Community invited to County Government Day event on April 23 at the fairgrounds

The community is invited to join us for our first Douglas County Government Day event from 4 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 23, at the Douglas County fairgrounds, 21st and Harper Streets. Please join us in learning about the services that we provide in honor of National County Government Month.

Bring the kids! We will have lots of touch-a-truck activities with equipment from Public Works, Lawrence-Douglas County Fire Medical, Consolidated Fire District No. 1, Sheriff’s Office, Emergency Management and Maintenance. These Douglas County departments will also be at the event: Sustainability, Youth Services, District Attorney, Clerk/Elections, GIS, Appraiser, Treasurer, Register of Deeds and Administration. 

There will be food trucks, live broadcast and music from Great Plains Media’s stations 105.9 KISS FM and 92.9 The Bull, and family-friendly activities.

There will also be information available about the Treatment & Recovery Center and Engage Douglas County. Lawrence-Douglas County Public Health will have their mobile vehicle at the event and will be offering free blood pressure checks along with general health information.

Please save the date on your calendar and join us April 23 at the fairgrounds!

Douglas County residents need to register prescribed burns with Dispatch Center

Landowners typically burn their fields and brush piles – commonly referred to as open or prescribed burning - in the spring. The practice is used to restore native grasslands, recycle nutrients, control woody plants and weeds, and improve certain wildlife habitat.

Prescribed burning is regulated by Douglas County Home Rule Resolution 23-11-3, which was reviewed and revised last year by the Douglas County Fire Chiefs Association and Douglas County Emergency Management and then adopted by the Board of County Commissioners in November 2023. The purpose of the regulations is to protect the health and safety of the public.

Under the policy, Douglas County residents need to call the burn hotline at 785-832-5394 before igniting any burns. The county burn hotline is updated every day by 8 a.m. and notifies residents if burning is authorized for the day. If burning is authorized, residents must log their name, contact phone number, location of burn and material being burned with Douglas County Dispatch. They can log their burn by pressing zero and talking to a dispatcher or filling out an online form at dgcoks.org/outdoorburning.

Last year, Douglas County Consolidated Fire District No. 1 responded to 118 calls that were classified as a grass fire or wildland fire in Douglas County, and Lawrence-Douglas County Fire Medical responded to 143 incidents in 2023 that were dispatched as a grass fire or wildland-related fire.

According to fire officials, nearly 95 percent of all wildfires result from the activity of people and, therefore, a significant number could be prevented through taking proper actions towards fire safety.

Lawrence middle school student Felix Kirkland wins Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge

Felix Kirkland, of Liberty Memorial Central Middle School in Lawrence, received first place in the 2023-2024 Douglas County Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge on Feb. 16 at the Dwayne Peaslee Technical Training Center. He received a $1,250 check and qualified for the state competition in April in Manhattan. His business Greener Grass is an all-electrical lawn tool rental service.

Felix competed with 15 students who represented nine businesses. Since Felix won first place, his teacher Devin Heath received a $250 award.

The other cash-prize winners were:

• Second place - Quinn Maddox and Millie Newell, of Bishop Seabury Academy in Lawrence, $1,000. Their business is Seabiscuit Bakery, specializing in custom cakes and cupcakes.
• Third place - Cooper Cohorst and Ian Bryan, of Baldwin High School in Baldwin City, $500. Cooper and Ian own C&B Fabrication, a welding and 3D print business. They specialize in precision repairs and custom fabrication.
• People’s Choice - Joshua Eason, of Raintree Montessori School in Lawrence, $250. His business Sweet Scents offers an array of handmade products that are scented such as pillows, stuffed animals and candles.

The judges for the competition were: Jack Oglesby, Douglas County Sheriff Jay Armbrister, Kristina Edwards and Carrie Poe, of the KU Small Business Development Center, Kyle Johnson of Douglas County CORE, Jenn Laird, of Network Kansas, County Commissioner Shannon Reid, and Tyler Lindquist, of Multistudio. Assistant County Administrator Jill Jolicoeur organized and facilitated the event.

Millie Newell and Quinn Maddox, of Bishop Seabury Academy, received second place in the Douglas County Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge and a $1,000 check.

Cooper Cohorst and Ian Bryan, of Baldwin High School, received third place in the Douglas County Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge and a $500 check! Their friend Austin Chambers, at left, helped support them during the competition.

Joshua Eason received the People’s Choice Award and a $250 check during the Douglas County Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge. 

Deadline to appeal property value is March 29

The Douglas County Appraiser’s Office mailed change of value notices on real estate for the 2024 tax year on Feb. 28. The notices are like previous ones in which they feature last year’s value and the new value.



New to the notice this year are website resources that taxpayers can use to obtain additional information on current/prior property assessment information, the property value process, how to appeal, and the property value appeals process in Kansas.

Property owners who want to appeal their value need to fill out the request form on the back of the notice and submit it to the Appraiser’s Office by 5 p.m. Friday, March 29. It can be mailed or dropped off at the office, which is in the basement of the County Courthouse, 1100 Massachusetts St., or emailed to appeals@douglascountyks.org. Informal interviews will be scheduled between March 18 and May 3.

Most residential property owners will see values increase between 5% and 10% from the prior year, while most commercial property owners will see values increase between 3% and 13%. According to the Appraiser’s Office, the increase in value is typically due to year-over-year price increases (changes in the market), demand exceeding supply, renovations or additions to existing structures, or changes in the use of a property.

Information used to value a specific property can be provided by the Appraiser’s Office upon request. This information can assist property owners in determining whether a value appeal is appropriate.

About your Board of County Commissioners

Chair Karen Willey

Vice Chair Shannon Reid

Patrick Kelly

The Douglas County Commission typically meets 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 February. They unanimously approved:

• the County’s participation in a 15-year, 70% Neighborhood Revitalization Area (NRA) to conduct historic rehabilitation on the property at 900 Rhode Island.
• a conditional-use permit for vacation rental use at 724 E 715 Road near Lone Star Lake.
• appointing the recommended candidates to the Treatment & Recovery Center advisory group.
• a resolution to establish the Consolidated Fire District #1, Douglas County, KS, equipment reserve fund and move 2023 budgeted transfers to the fund.
• County’s 2023 year-end fund transfers.
• a supplemental funding request of $30,000 for the Lawrence Chamber of Commerce for fiscal year 2024.
• an interlocal agreement with the cities of Lawrence, Eudora and Baldwin City for the financial and governing structure of the Emergency Communications Center.
• 2024 Vegetation Management Plan.
• support for a Midco Broadband Acceleration grant in the amount of $20,000.
• contract with B.A. Green Construction Company in the amount of $1.4 million for the Commission meeting room remodel project on the second floor of the historic Courthouse and a total project budget of $1.5 million.

On a 2-1 vote, the Commission denied an amendment to Plan 2040, Chapter 8B: Specific Land Use Plans, Revised Southern Development Plan to revise the land use map, change the commercial references and revise residential and open space uses within an area, generally located southeast of Iowa Street and Kansas Highway 10. Commissioners Karen Willey and Shannon Reid voted against the amendment; Commissioner Patrick Kelly voted in favor of it.

** 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. There is one work session scheduled in March, and it will be at 3:30 p.m. March 27 at the Public Works/Zoning and Codes Building, 3755 E. 25th St., about the

Kansas Sky Center project.

Please note: There will be no County Commission meeting on March 13. Beginning with the March 20 meeting, Commission meetings will be held at the Public Works/Zoning and Codes Building, 3755 E. 25th St.,due to renovation work in the Commission meeting room.

Commission to consider Kansas Sky Energy Center during special business meeting on April 13

The Lawrence-Douglas County Planning Office is processing a conditional-use permit, or CUP, application from Free State Solar Project, LLC for a commercial/utility scale solar energy conversion system use, commonly referred to as a solar farm, on approximately 1,105 acres of property northeast of Lawrence in Grant Township.

The applicant is proposing to develop a commercial/utility scale Solar Energy Conversion System to be known as the Kansas Sky Energy Center. As proposed, Evergy would build, own and operate the project pending regulatory approvals.

The proposed project is an up to 159-megawatt alternating current (MWac) photo voltaic (PV) solar energy facility. If approved, the project is anticipated to produce renewable energy capable of supplying electricity to about 30,000 Kansas homes annually. The applicant is requesting a 25-year CUP term. The applicant is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Savion, LLC.

The CUP request was reviewed by the Lawrence-Douglas County Planning Commission on Dec. 18, 2023. On a 4-4 vote, the Planning Commission failed to make a recommendation, and, therefore, it was deemed to have made a recommendation of denial to the Board of County Commissioners.

The Board of County Commissioners will have a work session about the request at 3:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 27, at the Public Works/Zoning and Codes Building, 3755 E. 25th St. No action or public comment will be taken during the work session.

County Commissioners will have a special business meeting at 9 a.m. Saturday, April 13, at the Public Works/Zoning and Codes Building, 3755 E. 25th St., to hear public comment, discuss the CUP, and consider action on the item.

Public comments can be submitted here or by email at publiccomment@douglascountyks.org. For more information, visit our website.

Commission to consider wind energy regulations during business meeting on May 1

The Board of County Commissioners will consider a text amendment to the Zoning and Land Use regulations for the unincorporated areas of Douglas County on May 1. The text amendment — TA-22-00031 — is regarding Wind Energy Conversion System (WECS) standards. 

The regulation changes were initiated by the Lawrence-Douglas County Planning Commission in January 2022. This came from an interest in better aligning the wind regulations with the recently adopted solar regulations. The Planning Commission voted to form an ad-hoc committee at its meeting on March 20, 2023, to create Draft No. 2 which was published on Sept. 26, 2023.

The revised regulations were reviewed by the Lawrence-Douglas County Planning Commission during two meetings: Oct. 23, 2023, and Jan. 22, 2024. On a 6-3 vote, the Planning Commission passed a recommendation of approval to the Board of County Commissioners for the revised Wind Energy Conversion System (WECS) regulations with one key modification: the setback distances from non-participating property owners be set at 2,500 feet from the property line. 

County Commissioners will have a work session at 4 p.m. Wednesday, April 24, at the Public Works/Zoning and Codes Building, 3755 E. 25th St., about the revised Wind Energy Conversion System (WECS) regulations. The meeting will also be available by Zoom. No action or public comment will be taken by Commissioners during the work session.

Commissioners will consider the revised Wind Energy Conversion System (WECS) regulations during their business meeting at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, May 1, at the Public Works/Zoning and Codes Building, 3755 E. 25th St. The meeting will also be available by Zoom.

Public comments can be submitted here or by email at publiccomment@douglascountyks.org. For more information, visit our website.

Sheriff's Office offering Reentry Simulation event for community members on April 17

Douglas County Sheriff's Office Reentry staff is excited to offer a Reentry Simulation event to community members, especially those who work in the criminal justice or social services fields, from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., Wednesday, April 17, at Flory Meeting Hall, 2120 Harper St., at the Douglas County Fairgrounds.

The simulation is an educational outreach event that allows community members to experience the challenges that individuals face as they navigate from being in custody back into the community.

“These exercises can be eye opening for people who don’t have familiarity with the system or the challenges people face when they don’t have access to things most of us take for granted, like government identification forms,” Sheriff Jay Armbrister said. “We welcome anyone who is interested or curious in this work to do the simulation and see the value the Reentry team brings to our community in the work they do in helping people get back on the right path.”

Members of the Citizen's Academy are pictured last year checking out Unit 66, a Sheriff's Office patrol vehicle that is also used for recruitment and community events. The class members that day learned about law enforcement driving and were able to drive vehicles themselves on a closed course as part of the hands on academy.

Sheriff's Office accepting applications for Citizen's Academy through March 22

Sheriff Jay Armbrister and Undersheriff Stacy Simmons announce the opening of applications for the 2024 Douglas County Sheriff’s Office Citizen’s Academy. 

“This agency is proud of what our Citizen’s Academy has become, especially with the amount of hands-on experience we are able to give members of the community as well as the forum to have candid conversations about law enforcement, corrections and our community,” Armbrister said. “We encourage anyone who wants to know more about the Sheriff’s Office to apply, and we are excited to show a new group the work our deputies, corrections officers and civilian staff do every day on behalf of everyone in the community.”

The academy is a seven-week program that begins April 4 and runs through May. Participants will meet on Thursday evenings and two full Saturdays. The academy is designed to give participants a working knowledge of the duties and responsibilities of the Sheriff’s Office, including tours and an overview of the Corrections and Operations Divisions, and lessons on driving skills, car-stop techniques, field-sobriety testing, building searches, defensive tactics and the use of force.

Applicants must be Douglas County residents, 18 years of age or older. The online application is available at Sheriff’s Office website.

Applications will be accepted through March 22. Anyone with further questions can call the Sheriff’s Office at 785-841-0007.

Emergency Management hosting Severe Weather Night event on March 18

Join Douglas County Emergency Management and the Topeka National Weather Service for an information session about severe weather at 7 p.m. Monday, March 18, at the Lawrence Public Library, 707 Vermont St. The event will include:

• a presentation by the National Weather Service about severe thunderstorms, storm features, and storm safety and preparedness.
• information about personal emergency planning.
• opportunities to sign up for free weather alerts or purchase a weather radio.

Emergency Management offering free training

Are you ready to become a Disaster Asset? Register for the CERT (Community Emergency Response Team) Weekend Training April 19-21. This hands-on training will cover topics such as first aid, fire safety, disaster psychology, medical operations, and more. Don't miss this opportunity to learn essential disaster response skills!

Join the Engage Douglas County coalition in April for its first 5K Run\Walk & Festival! All proceeds from this event benefit youth suicide prevention and mental health efforts in Douglas County. There will be food, music, activities and more!

The 5K Run/Walk begins at 8 a.m. Saturday, April 27, at Broken Arrow Park, 2800 Louisiana St., in Lawrence. The route goes through the beautiful wetlands area.

Engineering Technician Pat Wempe, left, of Public Works, and Supervisor Edna Brubaker, of Emergency Communications, were recognized for 30 years of service with Douglas County during an Employee Service Award luncheon today at the fairgrounds.

County recognizes employees during luncheon

Douglas County hosted its second annual Employee Service Award luncheon today, Feb. 29, at the fairgrounds. During the event, 63 employees who celebrated a milestone work anniversary in 2023 were recognized. Employees who retired during the past year were also honored. Together, they represented a total of 1,063 years of service to Douglas County!

Department leaders and elected officials enjoyed serving food to employees during the luncheon, and got to pick fun aprons to wear.

County Administrator Sarah Plinsky thanked employees for their dedication and service. “Employees are the heart of our organization. The work that you do as a public servant is immensely important. I believe that public service is a calling and a choice to serve a community - a choice that comes with great responsibility and great reward. It is my honor and privilege to work alongside all of you."

These Douglas County employees were recognized for 25 years of service, from left, Sheriff Jay Armbrister, Tammie Bell, of Criminal Justice Services, Major Steven Buchholz, of the Sheriff's Office, Robin Rooks, of Criminal Justice Services, and Undersheriff Stacy Simmons.

These Douglas County employees were recognized for 20 years of service, from left, Kevin Sontag, of Public Works, Gary Bell, of Maintenance, Charles Lamont, of Public Works, Christopher Garcia, of Criminal Justice Services, Timothy Morland, of the Treasurer's Office, Catherine Holman, of Criminal Justice Services, and Sgt. Christopher Morris, of the Sheriff's Office.

Department and elected officials who helped serve food during the Employee Service Award luncheon are, from left: District Attorney Suzanne Valdez, Criminal Justice Services Director Pam Weigand, Public Works Director Chad Voigt, Zoning and Codes Director Tonya Voigt, Sheriff Jay Armbrister, County Administrator Sarah Plinsky, Register of Deeds Kent Brown, County Appraiser Brad Eldridge, Emergency Communications Director Tony Foster, Emergency Management Director Robert Bieniecki, Assistant County Administrator Jill Jolicoeur, Treasurer Adam Rains and Sustainability Manager Kim Criner Ritchie.

Judicial and Law Enforcement Center:

111 East 11th Street

Lawrence, KS 66044