Happy National County Government Month!

We are proud and honored to serve the Douglas County community by maintaining roads, parks and bridges, providing public safety and court services, keeping land records, preserving our history, supporting behavioral health and human services, conducting elections, and advocating for a sustainable future.

Community encouraged to provide input for Open Space Plan through survey, photos and more

Douglas County is seeking the community's input about how open spaces could be preserved and used in ways that benefit the community into the future. Feedback will be used to help establish a Douglas County Open Space Plan. The plan will be a broad policy guide toward prioritizing a range of ecosystems and land uses such as prairie, floodplain, agriculture, historic sites, trails and more.

Residents can provide information by:

• Completing a survey. The questionnaire will take about 10 minutes to complete. 
• Calling a toll-free 24/7 hotline at 785-236-7415. They can leave a message with their open space ideas and hear stories from community residents.
• Participating in a photo challenge. Residents can submit photos by uploading them through a link at dgcoks.org/openspace. Participants could win a $100 gift card and have their photo featured in the final plan.
• Attending a meeting. The Open Space project team and advisory committee will host two community engagement sessions. The first one will be on Thursday, June 8, at 5:30 p.m. at Lawrence Public Library. The second one will be on Friday, June 9, at 1:30 p.m. at Lone Star Lake Community Building.

News release: http://dgcoks.org/041823news

Community invited to share feedback about draft Housing and Homelessness strategic plan

The Housing and Homelessness Steering Committee, which is facilitated by the City of Lawrence and Douglas County, is seeking the community's input on its draft five-year Housing and Homelessness strategic plan. The plan has five focus areas: equity and inclusion, affordable housing, supportive housing, systems and emergency shelter.

The committee will be hosting community meetings: 

• Friday, May 5, 9-10:30 a.m., Lawrence Union Pacific Depot, 402 N. Second St., Lawrence.
• Thursday, May 18, 5:30-7 p.m., Lawrence Public Library, 707 Vermont St., Lawrence.

By 2028, the goal is to create a system that achieves functional zero through policy, system and environmental changes resulting in all Douglas County residents having access to the fundamental human right of safe, accessible, attainable, and affordable housing, and which homelessness is a rare and brief occurrence.

GIS launches new web portal

The Douglas County GIS (Geographic Information Systems) Department has launched a new Geoportal, a collection of GIS-related content containing web applications, maps, data and projects produced by GIS staff.

The public can view interactive maps of road closures, properties, voting precincts, taxing districts, controlled burns and more. Users can download data and maps for free. GIS also offers standard road maps and ownership maps or plat books for purchase.  

There’s a collection of unique projects where GIS services are being utilized. These projects include Open Space Plan, Climate Action Plan, agritourism, Criminal Justice data dashboards and rental availability. 

GIS Manager Tyler Fleming said, “I am excited to introduce our new Geoportal. Through this site, you can find and interact with our public web applications, download public documents, download GIS data and answer your questions. GIS is continually evolving so be on the lookout for new content.”

About your Board of County Commissioners

Chair Patrick Kelly

Vice Chair Karen Willey

Shannon Reid

The Board of County Commissioners meets at 5:30 p.m. Wednesdays in the Douglas County Courthouse, 1100 Massachusetts Street, on the second floor in the Commission meeting room. Meetings are also available on Zoom. There will be no meeting on Wednesday, May 31.

The County Commission took the following action on regular business agenda items in April:

• approved a resolution that establishes a minimum maintenance designation on a portion of North 1075 Road in Wakarusa Township.
• approved the 2023-2024 healthcare plan renewal for employees.
• approved a supplemental budget request of $29,700 for Kansas Holistic Defenders.
• approved a request to rezone 2 acres at 1749 E. 1500 Road from transitional agriculture and light industrial districts to a light industrial district.
• approved a conditional-use permit for an event center at 1629 E. 800 Road.
• authorized the County Administrator to sign a facility lease agreement with Bert Nash Community Mental Health Center for the Treatment and Recovery Center (TRC) for 2023-2027 and an operating agreement with Bert Nash for the TRC at a cost not to exceed $1.6 million in 2023.

** Recordings of the meetings can be found on the Douglas County YouTube channel.

Work sessions

County Commissioners also have work sessions to study and discuss various topics throughout the year. No action is taken during work sessions. If there's a work session, they are held at 4 p.m. on Wednesdays before the business meeting. Here’s the schedule for upcoming work sessions; however, these may change. So, please check the agenda before attending.

• May 17 – Judicial and Law Enforcement Center masterplan
• June 7 – Open Space Plan
• June 14 – Cottonwood Inc.
• June 21 – Post-crisis response system

Don't cheat! Answer is at the bottom.

Special bond election for Baldwin City, Eudora school districts set for May 16

USD 348 (Baldwin City school district) and USD 491 (Eudora school district) have called for a special bond election to be held on Tuesday, May 16. This election will be a regular election, not a mail ballot election. Register voters in these districts should have received a mailer from the Douglas County Elections Office with instructions about voting.

Advance voting began April 26 and will close at noon May 15. Advance voting, in person, is offered at the Douglas County Elections Office, 711 W. 23rd St., Suite 1, at the following times:

• Weekdays, April 28-May 12, 8 a.m.-5 p.m.
• Monday, May 15, 8 a.m.-noon.

On Election Day, May 16, polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Treatment and Recovery Center staff gather to mark opening day on April 10.

Treatment and Recovery Center serves those who need immediate access to behavioral health care

The Treatment and Recovery Center (TRC), 1000 W. Second St., opened Monday, April 10. It serves all Douglas County residents, children and adults, who need immediate access to behavioral health crisis assessment and treatment. After hours, people experiencing a mental health crisis can come to an entrance on the west side of the building and be seen by TRC staff.

Community check-ins are accepted from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. weekdays and noon to 4 p.m. on weekends, 365 days a year. Services include:

• Triage/assessments
• Psychiatric med evaluations/prescriptions
• Referrals
• Initial treatment planning
• Coordination of care

Patients seen at the TRC can return for interim care as needed to follow up. If during the time of services, it is determined by the attending physician that services at the TRC are not the appropriate level of care, the TRC team will coordinate the appropriate referral to other community providers and resources.

Lawrence-Douglas County Housing Authority receives national award for The Cottages

The Lawrence-Douglas County Housing Authority received an Award of Excellence from the National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials (NAHRO) for project design of The Cottages at Green Lake. It was one of only 16 housing and community development organizations to receive an award. It was selected from an initial pool of 178 Awards of Merit recipients.

The Cottages at Green Lake, 930 W. Second St., are located on the Treatment and Recovery Campus of Douglas County. They provide permanent supportive housing for individuals with serious, persistent mental illness. Supportive housing is a combination of affordable housing and supportive services designed to help vulnerable individuals and families use stable housing as a platform for health and recovery.

There are 10 separate cottages that have been specifically designed to maximize functional abilities and minimize barriers through good design and appropriate supports. The first tenant moved into The Cottages in January 2021, and they are currently all occupied.

The project was a collaboration among the Lawrence-Douglas County Housing Authority, Douglas County and Bert Nash Community Mental Health Center. Treanor HL was the architect for The Cottages.

• NAHRO news release

From left are: Stephanie Radke-Pence, registered nurse, Corrections Officer Nicole Middleton, Undersheriff Stacy Simmons, Major Gary Bunting, Sheriff Jay Armbrister and Tammy Lyles, a registered nurse from Advanced Correctional Healthcare. Radke-Pence and Middleton were honored this month for their life-saving efforts.

Douglas County Corrections officer, nurse receive Overdose Revival Award

Corrections Officer Nicole Middleton and Stephanie Radke-Pence, registered nurse, received an Overdose Revival Award from Advanced Correctional Healthcare on April 4 at the Douglas County Correctional Facility.

The award honored Middleton and Radke-Pence for their actions in February when they helped save a person in custody who was experiencing an overdose on the booking floor.

Middleton recognized the person had started experiencing severe symptoms. She administered two doses of Narcan when the person lost consciousness. Radke-Pence and Middleton continued providing medical care until medics arrived and transported the person to the hospital. The person made a full recovery thanks to their actions.

Sheriff's Office collects 400 pounds of medications on Drug Take Back Day

Douglas County community members dropped off more than 400 pounds of expired or unused medications on April 22 as part of National Drug Take Back Day.

Douglas County Sheriff’s Office deputies and volunteers with the University of Kansas School of Pharmacy collected the medications in downtown Lawrence, and deputies transported the 14 boxes to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration site in the Kansas City area to be safely destroyed.

National Drug Take Back Day allows people to properly dispose of unused medications to help avoid the risks of overdoses or unsafe use of medications, as well as preventing medication from entering the water supply.

Courthouse available for art exhibits

Organizations are welcome to display artwork on the second floor of the historic County Courthouse in downtown Lawrence! Local high school students, 4-H members and Artists Helping The Homeless participants have been among our past exhibitors.

More info

Douglas County Community Foundation establishes new fund for Housing Stabilization Collaborative

Special thank you to the Douglas County Community Foundation for setting up a donation fund for the Housing Stabilization Collaborative!

The Collaborative works with renters to eliminate housing barriers and with landlords to provide safe and affordable housing. Donations will help local households stay in their homes and build healthy lives.

More info, visit: https://hscdgco.org

Sheriff's Office donates comfort items in recognition of Child Abuse Prevention Month

The Sheriff's Office donated comfort items to the Children's Advocacy Center of Douglas County in support of National Child Abuse Prevention Month.

The staff uses the comfort items to support children during forensic interviews as the center offers a place for children to be interviewed after a report of abuse has been made.

Lt. Rita Fulton-Mays and Detectives Lance Flacshbarth and Mike Folks presented the comfort items to Executive Director Bev Turner and Family Advocate/Forensic Interviewer Sidney Lawyer.

We’re seeking to hire people with all kinds of talents, skills and occupational interests. Our job openings include:

• Buildings and Grounds full-time temporary laborers for mowing and vegetation control.
• Public Works full-time temporary laborers for road, bridge and park maintenance.
• Management analyst
• Emergency 911 Communications Officer
• Juvenile Detention Corrections Officer

For more information and a full list of Douglas County job openings, visit: http://dgcoks.org/jobs

Judicial and Law Enforcement Center:

111 East 11th Street

Lawrence, KS 66044