Community invited to hear award-winning storyteller Kevin Kling on Oct. 19

The community is invited to attend a performance of Emmy Award-winning storyteller Kevin Kling at 7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 19, at the Lawrence Arts Center, 940 New Hampshire St. There is no cost to attend.

Kevin Kling is a nationally-recognized storyteller, playwright and NPR commentator from Minneapolis, Minnesota. He delivers hilarious, often tender tales about growing up in the Midwest, hopping freight trains, getting hit by lightning, and eating things before knowing what they are. 

Like many of us, Kevin is no stranger to adversity, trauma, and loss. He was born with one disabled arm; a midlife motorcycle accident paralyzed the other, and learning how to navigate chronic pain and complex PTSD became a daily feature of his life. But for Kevin, being able-bodied is always only a temporary condition, and while a broken heart may never be fully repaired, it can heal. 

Kevin’s stories offer insights about growing into loss, finding humor in the face of suffering, and maintaining a spirit of love and connection as we struggle to move forward.

Doors will open at 6:30 p.m. with resource tables from the following behavioral health partners: Bert Nash Community Mental Health Center, NAMI Douglas County, DCCCA Inc., Peer Support Specialists, Lawrence-Douglas County Public Health and Kansas Suicide Prevention Headquarters.

Leavenworth mayor to share story at Recovery Walk

The Douglas County Drug Court team is hosting its annual community Recovery Walk event from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 9, in South Park.

Guest speaker will be Jermaine Wilson who will share his journey of being an inmate in a maximum-security prison to becoming Mayor of the City of Leavenworth, his hometown.

September is National Recovery Month.

Douglas County District Court is among 10 courts selected for Eviction Diversion Initiative grant

Douglas County District Court has received a grant from the National Center for State Courts’ (NCSC) Eviction Diversion Initiative to strengthen eviction diversion efforts and improve housing stability across Douglas County. It is one of 10 state and local courts selected through a competitive application process and review by an advisory council composed of state court chief justices and court administrators. 

Each court will use the grant funding to hire dedicated staff to implement holistic, sustainable, and community-driven strategies that can be offered to both landlords and tenants as alternatives to the traditional eviction track. The court will still hear and decide eviction disputes when the parties are unable to reach some other resolution, but the goal is to help the parties avoid the time and expense of traditional litigation simply because they didn’t realize what other options exist.

Successful eviction diversion programs provide landlords and tenants with the time, information, and resources necessary to resolve their housing problems in the least harmful way. 

Courts will benefit from ongoing peer learning opportunities, a national evaluation led by Stout Risius Ross LLC, and intensive technical assistance provided by NCSC as they implement eviction diversion and court reform strategies that leverage community resources including legal aid and mediation services, housing and financial counseling, and rental assistance programs.

Other selected sites include:

• Colorado: 4^th Judicial District Court, Colorado Springs
• Kentucky: Jefferson County District Court, Louisville
• Ohio: Akron Municipal Court
• Oklahoma: Tulsa County District Court
• Oregon: Clatsop County Circuit Court, Astoria
• Tennessee: Shelby County General Sessions Court, Memphis
• Texas: Harris County Precinct 1 & 2, Houston
• Utah: Third District Court, Salt Lake City
• Washington: Clark County Superior Court, Vancouver

About your Board of County Commissioners

Chair Patrick Kelly

Vice Chair Karen Willey

Shannon Reid

Douglas County Commissioners typically meet at 5:30 p.m. Wednesdays in the County Courthouse, 1100 Massachusetts Street, on the second floor in the Commission meeting room. Meetings are also available on Zoom.

County Commissioners took the following action on regular business agenda items in August. They unanimously approved:

• one-time funding of $10,000 for Midco if the company receives a Broadband Acceleration Grant through the Kansas Office of Broadband Development for improving rural broadband access. 
• a site plan for a well control building in the southwest corner of the intersection of North 1900 and East 1600 roads, east of the Lawrence Regional Airport.
• a request to rezone about 33 acres at 1577 Road from general industrial and agricultural districts to transitional agricultural district.
• the 2024 operating budget for Douglas County.
• a temporary business-use permit from Evergy Inc. to allow a laydown yard on property at 1805 E. 200 Road.

On a 2-1 vote, they approved:

• initiating a text amendment for staff to further research potential additional standards regarding piers used for solar arrays. Commissioner Willey voted against the measure.
• the County’s participation in a 15-year, 65% Neighborhood Revitalization Area (NRA) for First Management to redevelop an office headquarters at approximately 700 New Hampshire Street. Commissioner Reid voted against the measure.

** 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 work sessions in September; however, it may change. So, please check the agenda before attending.



• Sept. 6 – Supportive housing case management assessment findings
• Sept. 13 – Home-based business overview
• Sept. 20 – Budget and Community Partner follow-up

Public Works hires goats to control weeds on steep slope at Wells Overlook Park

For the first time, Douglas County Public Works recently used goats to control weeds and woody vegetation on a steep slope at Wells Overlook Park where native grass had been planted and was struggling to get sunlight.

Because the slope is too steep for mowing and unsafe for hand cutting by employees, Public Works hired a company called “Goats On The Go” for the 0.9-acre site. The goat wrangler installed a temporary fence, dropped off approximately 50 goats, provided a water trough and checked on the goats daily. It took the goats 10 days to complete their task.

Public Works staff were pleased with the outcome and plan to use goats again next summer.

Keith Browning, local road engineer for the Kansas Association of Counties, described it as an “outside-the-box approach to vegetation control."

Here's a before and after view of the goats' work at Wells Overlook Park.

Deputies, Corrections Officer, residents work together to rescue bicyclist after heart attack

Sheriff’s Office Deputy Claire Sweeney, Master Deputy Troy Miller, Corrections Officer Aaron Lathrom and passersby Elvira Barrios Guevara, Kari Wempe and Brenna Wulfkuhle saved a bicyclist who experienced a heart attack on a Douglas County road.

“I was super happy to see him alive,” Sweeney said. “When we found him, I thought he was going to die. A lot of times we don’t see the outcome from calls like this.”

• Full story: https://bit.ly/47bEdwa

Sheriff's Office Patrol Capt. Josh Kellerman is interviewed by a FOX 4 News reporter about the crash detection feature on mobile devices and how it helped the office find an injured driver.

Crash detection from mobile device alerts dispatchers, deputies to injury crash

Early on Wednesday, Aug. 2, the crash detection feature from mobile devices alerted dispatchers and helped deputies find a driver who had crashed in northwestern Douglas County.

Like most law enforcement agencies, the Sheriff’s Office is monitoring how these tools might work, and the Sheriff’s Office encourages the public to do the same. But deputies have seen the benefits in this case, especially in rural areas, said Sheriff's Office Patrol Capt. Josh Kellerman.

"You may not have somebody drive by you if you’ve been in a crash for 15-20 minutes or maybe even an hour so even in a county as busy as we are, there are going to be times where this is going to be so useful and helpful," Kellerman said. "It is good to know what’s on your phone and what its capabilities are, just like with your kids using devices: What can your phone do that you don’t know?”

• View the FOX 4 News interview

County website will have a new look on Sept. 7

Coming Thursday, September 7, our website – douglascountyks.org - will have a new look!

Our focus is to make it easier for you to find information on the site quickly and efficiently. We will continue to add functionality to the website. We hope you like it as much as we do!

County government offices closed for Labor Day; extra Sheriff's deputies helping to keep roads safe

Douglas County Government offices will be closed on Monday, Sept. 4, in observance of Labor Day. We wish everyone a safe and happy holiday weekend!

The Sheriff's Office will have extra deputies on roads and highways patrolling for impaired drivers through Sept. 4. The special traffic enforcement is part of the Kansas "You Drink. You Drive. You Lose" campaign, funded by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration with safety funds administered by the Kansas Department of Transportation. The support allows law enforcement agencies to fund overtime for deputies and officers to patrol specifically for impaired drivers and other dangerous traffic infractions.

Judicial and Law Enforcement Center:

111 East 11th Street

Lawrence, KS 66044