Readers may remember in November that Kansas! magazine named Lecompton among the state’s five best small towns with populations under 5,000. Atwood, Council Grove, Marysville and Norton were the other four.

Lecompton will give itself a pat on the back for that accomplishment with a community party from 4 to 6 p.m. Saturday at Rowena Park at the corner of Elmore Street and Woodson Avenue. Lecompton City Clerk Lynley Sanford said the city government was sponsoring the party.

“It’s a thank-you to all our community members who voted for us and helped us get that recognition,” she said.

Those attending the party will be treated to hot dogs and homemade ice cream, Lynley said. There will be a bounce house for children, and the Lecompton Township Volunteer Fire Department will have a couple of trucks at the party for close inspection, she said.

Eudora residents may have noticed construction in the undeveloped areas of the Shadow Ridge subdivision, which has been inactive save for limited infill development since the 2008 recession. Eudora City Manager Barack Matite said developer Roger Johnson had bought the remaining undeveloped platted lots in the subdivision and was installing streets, sidewalks and other infrastructure needed to build 27 more single-family homes in Shadow Ridge.

The activity is a welcome development for the city, which has had only three permits for new single-family homes this year, Matite said.

“It’s a good sign” he said. “Given our location and given what we offer, I think Eudora could be an attractive alternative for people in Lawrence looking to buy a home and start a family.”

In 1892, James Murray, J.E. Hair, W.L. Martin, W.W. Junkins and J.C. Barton founded Baldwin State Bank in Baldwin City. The bank remains a downtown institution at the corner of High and Eighth streets, and is headed by the father and son team of Carl and Brian Butell, the latest members of the family associated with the bank since J.C. Butell joined its board of directors in 1900.

To help mark the 125-year anniversary, the bank and the Baldwin City Chamber of Commerce will have an open house from 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday at the bank. Baldwin State Bank Vice President Jim Sears said the open house was one of the monthly events the bank has been having to commemorate the anniversary. The events will continue throughout the year, he said.

The bank open house is part of a Chamber doubleheader. Also scheduled for 5:30 p.m. Thursday is the ribbon-cutting for Baldwin City Fitness, 814 High St.

The Eudora Parks and Recreation Department will have a family fun night starting at 7 p.m. May 12 at Laws Field, 1428 Elm St. The evening will include food, information booths and games until 8:30 p.m., with a free showing of a movie starting at 9 p.m.

The Baker University music and theater department will treat music lovers to two presentations Sunday at McKibbin Recital Hall on the Baker campus in Baldwin City. Gavin Webster will perform piano works of Beethoven, Sibelius and Rachmaninoff along with Broadway show tunes and duets of Disney favorites with Marci Ziegler at 3:30 p.m., and mezzo soprano Lora Finley will present her senior recital with the assistance of Laura Hrivnak on piano at 7:30 p.m.

The Baker University and Johnson County Community College orchestras will jointly perform Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday at Rice Auditorium on the Baker campus.

The Baldwin City Chamber of Commerce monthly meeting will be noon to 1 p.m. Wednesday at the Baker Alumni Center. Presenting on the topic “Breaking Down Town and Gown” will be Randy Flowers, Baker director of student life, Tony Brown, Baldwin City councilman and Baker professor of psychology, and the Baker public relations class. Lunch is $7.