photo by: Journal-World screenshot of Lawrence City Commission

City leaders narrowly approved a sales tax exemption on construction materials for a planned assisted living and memory care facility at their meeting Tuesday night.

Lawrence city leaders narrowly approved a sales tax exemption on construction materials for a planned assisted living and memory care facility on Tuesday night, though some were conflicted about whether the project was making environmental sustainability enough of a priority.

The Lawrence City Commission ultimately passed the measure by a 3-2 vote, with Mayor Courtney Shipley and Vice Mayor Lisa Larsen opposed. With the commission’s approval, St. Louis-based construction firm Dover Development will be issued up to $17 million in industrial revenue bonds and the city will forgo an estimated future sales tax revenue of approximately $52,750 on the project’s construction materials.

During the commission’s discussion of the project, Larsen and Shipley voiced some concerns about whether the firm had taken the environment into account when planning for the facility. Larsen, in particular, brought up previous comments that Dover Development representative Nick Dwyer shared when presenting to other city committees.

“When asked about environmental sustainability and the fact that nothing had been completed on your application in that regard, your statement, and I quote, was that ‘with the current construction market and the cost increases, this is not something that we focus on in our facilities,'” Larsen said to Dwyer during the meeting. “I was really taken aback by that comment.”

Dwyer replied that during the construction process for a new facility, the firm’s main focus is on the comfort and the experience of residents who will eventually live there. He also said rising construction costs were eating away at the firm’s ability to prioritize sustainable designs.

Larsen said that environmental concerns were a priority for the city. She pointed to Plan 2040, the city’s joint effort with Douglas County to guide the city’s growth over the next two decades, as an example of how much local leaders and the community as a whole prioritize environmental sustainability.

Commissioner Bart Littlejohn also wondered whether the development would employ people in Lawrence — both during construction and after the facility was complete. Dwyer said that the firm tends to prioritize local subcontractors and local full- and part-time employees once a facility is in use.

In other business, the commission:

* Authorized City Manager Craig Owens to enter into an hourly rate service agreement not to exceed $14,500 with Gould Evans Associates, a local architecture firm, to help develop a permanent “parklet” program in downtown Lawrence. The program, which allows downtown businesses to construct patios and outdoor dining areas in parking stalls, began in June 2020 as a temporary program and has since been extended through Aug. 31.

* Approved partial disbursement of the city’s funding toward general shelter operations for the Lawrence Community Shelter. The first half of the city’s $290,000 annual allocation will be released now, and the second half will be released six months from now in September. As a condition of that approval, Commissioner Brad Finkeldei asked that representatives with the shelter come back to brief the commission on how they’re using that money by July 5, rather than closer to September.