photo by: Sylas May/Journal-World

City Commissioner Kristine Polian is pictured Wednesday, July 1, 2026, in downtown Lawrence.

When Kristine Polian heard that Lawrence had been chosen by CNN as one of America’s 10 best towns to visit, she couldn’t hide her excitement.

“This makes me so stinking happy, man!” the city commissioner said on Wednesday morning in downtown Lawrence, a few hours after the CNN article came out. “I’m like, the World Cup and just… God! And this is just such a moment right now for Lawrencians to be so completely proud of who we are and what this town is.”

Polian wasn’t alone – businesses up and down Mass. Street told the Journal-World they were proud of the recognition, at a time when Lawrence is already in the national and international news because of its embrace of the Algerian national team.

Lawrence was No. 9 on CNN’s list, and the headline nods to the city’s history: “The American town that keeps rising from the ashes.” Barry Neild, global editor for CNN Travel, visited Lawrence this spring to do his research, and what he found, as he wrote in the article, was “Main Street perfection” and “a place where shoppers can find the kind of independent stores that, in other towns and cities, have long since vanished.”

Neild told the Journal-World that from his first moments in Lawrence, he could see why people love it.

“A testament of a great destination, for me, is that moment when you suddenly feel like, ‘Oh, I could really live here,'” Neild said. “It usually comes, you know, day two, day three of a vacation, but the moment I set foot on Mass., I was just like, ‘Oh, yes, I could live here!'”

The CNN article says the towns were chosen by the editors from a list of nominees submitted by readers and staffers. They looked at dining, nightlife, proximity to sites of interest, the towns’ identity and more when making their selections.

Lawrence is right in the middle, and Neild said its charm is something that tourists should take note of – including tourists from other countries, like the U.K. where he lives.

“We’re at a time when it has been documented that perceptions among the rest of the world of America as a tourist destination have declined in the level of interest in recent years, for whatever reason,” he said. “But as somebody coming from that world into the heart of America, and experiencing it, it was so wonderful. It was such a great experience to realize that the America that the rest of the world dreams of is still there, you know; the heart of America is still beating strongly.”

photo by: Sylas May/Journal-World

Carolyn OMalley of pet supply store Lucky Dog is pictured Wednesday, July 1, 2026.

Having a moment

Neild’s article mentioned a couple dozen Lawrence institutions – from Haskell Indian Nations University to the Watkins Museum to Weaver’s to Ladybird Diner. The Journal-World spoke with several of the businesses that were mentioned – some people had heard, but others, like Lucky Dog manager Carolyn OMalley, were completely surprised.

“I’m amazed by that,” OMalley said. “As a small business, it’s fantastic that we were mentioned.”

On the other hand, Chris Luxem at The Raven was “not too surprised, honestly.” “Lawrence, we live here, so we know how incredible Lawrence is,” Luxem said.

photo by: Sylas May/Journal-World

Chris Luxem of The Raven Book Store is pictured Wednesday, July 1, 2026.

At the Lawrence Antique Mall, which the article described as “a multi-story maze of treasures and trinkets,” owner Kyle Billings said he hoped the national publicity would motivate people “to come and visit and see what we have to offer.” And Mass. Street Soda owner Luke Thompson said he’d read the article, and wanted to note that while much of it focused on downtown, “there’s a lot of stuff outside of Mass., too, that’s great.”

Some of them thought that Lawrence was getting a lot more attention than it usually does, between this and coverage of how Lawrence welcomed Algeria for the World Cup.

Thompson said he was talking the other day to Kim Anspach, the executive director of Explore Lawrence, and he told her that “We couldn’t have bought more publicity than we got when Algeria came.”

And over at The Dusty Bookshelf, manager Shelby Wilson said there had been a lot of good publicity lately. “Especially in the past couple of years, KC has been having a good moment, and Lawrence is included in that,” Wilson said. “… And there’s a good sense of pride that everyone was really welcoming to Algeria.”

Shelby Wilson, manager at The Dusty Bookshelf, is pictured Wednesday, July 1, 2026.

Neild visited before the team arrived, but he saw some of the preparations, and he’s seen the videos about Lawrence and Algeria on social media. “It was heartening for me to see, because I had such a great time there and I was happy to see that great experience being extended to the visiting team,” he said.

To Polian, all the recognition is coming at a crucial time, a time when many in the community might need some encouragement.

“I feel like we’re at a pivotal time right now where it just feels so hard for everybody,” she said, in part because of political and social issues that Lawrence can’t control. “It’s almost like the universe saying, ‘Guys, it feels really hard right now, but don’t forget who you are and don’t forget how absolutely great we are.'”

photo by: Shawn Valverde/Special to the Journal-World

Downtown Lawrence, looking north, is pictured in this aerial photo from September 2023.

‘The things that people want to protect’

Neild didn’t just talk about Lawrence’s unique downtown, its universities and the history everyone knows. He also wrote about Lawrencians’ efforts to preserve the local institutions and businesses that they cherish.

“In some ways, it’s still a front line,” he wrote of Lawrence. “Today, however, the fight is all about preserving the soul of a classic American town.”

Among other things, he mentioned how the community fought to stop the so-called “cornfield mall” proposal at the south end of Lawrence in the 1980s, when leaders were worried that such a development would hurt downtown stores.

What longtime Lawrence residents know is how common those stories are. Some of them have drawn national attention before, such as when The Raven outlasted the massive chain bookseller Borders that had moved in a block away.

Polian recalls something she heard an older Lawrencian say once: “Yep, we’re all mad, but we ain’t leaving!”

As an elected official, she said, she sees how important Lawrence’s identity is to many people, and how fiercely they advocate to protect the specific things they care about. The community’s advocacy can sometimes seem “divisive or problematic,” she said, but she thinks that without it, Lawrence wouldn’t have the same character and charm.

“I think the passion … the passion involved in those conversations and debates that we have in open meetings, via social media, etc. – that passion comes from the protectiveness that people in this town have for this place,” Polian said.

Sometimes, she said, someone can be “completely divisive on social media or at the podium in an open meeting, (and) that same individual is the most welcoming person to somebody you just met.”

That welcoming impression is what visitors take away from Lawrence, she said.

On Wednesday morning, she was actually on her way to meet with a visitor, someone who had her own things she loved about Lawrence.

“I have somebody that has been in local government in the Wichita area for years, and she wants to come and have a meeting, and she’s like, ‘We have to meet at Wheatfields,'” Polian said. “Or ‘I really want to go into Weaver’s.’ Or ‘I really want to hit Johnny’s North, the original.’

“That character, all of those things – we talk about the neighborhoods, we talk about these little shops that we have on Mass.

“Those are the things that people want to protect.”