When city consultants asked 25 Lawrence residents to imagine their community in 10 years, some similar visions emerged. Many said they wanted to see the arts scene grow and diversify, increased pedestrian and bike paths, and more integration within different sectors of the community.

The residents were participants in a community meeting, which was open to the public, at City Hall on Saturday morning to provide feedback for the city’s cultural plan. The Kansas Creative Arts Industries Commission recently awarded the city a grant to complete the plan, and two consultants, Christine Harris and Tom Borrup, have been hired to do so.

The team has hosted various focus groups and community forums to gather input from the public as part of the process. The city also will have an online survey available on its website in early June, Harris said.

Porter Arneill, the recently hired director of arts and culture, attended the meeting to listen to what residents had to say. Arneill noted the number of people present, especially for a Saturday morning.

“I’m impressed by the turnout and the passion I see in this community,” he said.

As part of the meeting, residents broke into five groups and brainstormed about the most valuable aspects of Lawrence. Harris told residents the consultants want to identify aspects both big and small that make Lawrence unique.

“The way we approach cultural planning is arts and culture with a lowercase ‘a’ and ‘c,'” she said.

All of the groups said that community support for creativity — be it in the arts, music or food — was an aspect they love about Lawrence. Many groups also noted the value that the character of downtown, resident engagement and the culture of education brought to the community.

Borrup said the consultants want to help preserve what people love about Lawrence, but also make improvements.

“These are all things that we want to honor, value and build upon,” he said.

Additional community forums will be hosted in late June, and the team plans to deliver its final plan to the city by the end of July.