The Douglas County Elections Office is located at 711 W. 23rd St., Suite 1, which is in the shopping mall at the southwest corner of 23rd and Louisiana streets.

The general election is Tuesday, Nov. 8. Polling locations will be open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. For your voter information, visit: myvoteinfo.voteks.org/voterview

Registered voters can cast their ballots early at the Douglas County Elections Office, 711 W. 23^rd St., Suite 1, at the following times:

• 8 a.m.-7 p.m. - Monday-Friday, Oct. 31-Nov. 4
• 9 a.m.-1 p.m. - Saturday, Nov. 5
• 8 a.m.-noon - Monday, Nov. 7

Additional times and locations include:

• 10 a.m.- 7 p.m. Monday-Friday, Oct. 31-Nov. 4 at the Golf Course Superintendents Building, Flory Meeting Hall at the Douglas County Fairgrounds and Lied Center Pavilion.
• 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 5, Lecompton City Hall, Eudora City Hall and Baldwin City Fire Station.

Advance ballots can be returned by mail or in person:

• If returning by mail, it must be postmarked by Tuesday, Nov. 8, and received by Friday, Nov. 11.
• If returning in person, the ballot must be returned by 7 p.m. on Election Day. It can be returned in a drop box within Douglas County, at the Elections Office, 711 W. 23^rd St., Suite 1, during business hours, or any polling location in the county during voting hours on Election Day.

To track your ballot, visit: dgcoks.org/myballot

The County Commission work session and business meeting on Wednesday, Nov. 2 will be held in courtrooms inside the Judicial and Law Enforcement Center.

County Commission meeting to be held Nov. 2

in Judicial and Law Enforcement Center

The Board of County Commissioners work session and business meeting on Wednesday, Nov. 2, will be held in the Judicial and Law Enforcement Center, 111 E. Eleventh St. The work session will be at 4 p.m. in the Division 4 courtroom and the business meeting will be at 5:30 p.m. in the Division 2 courtroom. Attendees will need to enter through the main doors of the building and follow normal security protocols.

The new location is due to water damage that occurred last week in the southeast corner of the County Courthouse while a contractor was working on the sprinkler system. There was damage in the County Commission meeting room, Treasurer’s Office and Appraiser’s Office. The audio and video equipment in the Commission meeting room was significantly damaged. Maintenance, IT and Administrative staff are working on cleanup efforts and getting the Commission meetings back in the Courthouse as soon as possible. In the meantime, we will announce future meeting locations on our website and social media channels. The meetings also are available on Zoom.

Meeting information: http://dgcoks.org/commissionmeetings

The County Commission meeting room inside the Courthouse sustained water damage last week. The audio and video equipment received significant damage.

Register of Deeds office offers free recording of military discharge form 

Military veterans are encouraged to record their military discharge form (DD214) with the Douglas County Register of Deeds office for safekeeping. This is an important document that is often needed for veterans’ benefits. 

The Register of Deeds office offers this service for veterans at no cost. Veterans keep the original document. The recording provides safe and secure storage for peace of mind. Free certified copies can be accessed quickly by authorized parties.

The Register of Deeds office is located on the third floor of the County Courthouse, 1100 Massachusetts Street. For more information, call 785-832-5282.

Investigators seek community's help related to suspicious grass fires in Douglas County

Firefighters have responded to several grassfires in recent weeks that occurred generally in the same area southeast of Lawrence and south of Eudora to the Johnson County line. Due to the similar nature and timing of the fires that tend to cluster around the same location, they are considered suspicious in nature at this time.

Douglas County Sheriff's Office investigators are asking for help from community members who might have seen any suspicious activity or vehicles in the area of the fires. 

Anyone with potential information to assist investigators can contact the Sheriff’s Office, 785-841-0007, or Douglas County Crime Stoppers, 785-843-TIPS (8477), where callers can remain anonymous and may be eligible for a reward.

News release: http://dgcoks.org/102122news

Free safety checks for child car and booster seats

Douglas County Sheriff’s Office deputies who are certified as child passenger safety technicians are scheduling appointments for car seat inspections Nov. 14-18 at the Judicial and Law Enforcement Center, 111 E. Eleventh St.

The event is geared toward helping families ensure their car seats and booster seats are installed properly and safely before the busy Thanksgiving travel season. A properly installed and secured child safety seat greatly reduces the risk of serious injury during a crash.

To schedule a free appointment, email: carseat@dgso.org.

Past due on mortgage or property tax payments? State funding assistance is available

The Kansas Homeowner Assistance Fund program is available to help qualifying Kansans who are past due on mortgage or property taxes. The program is funded through the federal American Rescue Plan Act. Applicants must meet the following criteria:

• You own your home in Kansas and are at least 30 days past due on mortgage or property taxes.
• The property is your primary residence.
• Your income did not exceed 150% of your area’s median income.
• Your household has experienced financial hardship during the COVID pandemic.

Ninety-nine applications worth a total of $1.2 million have been approved in Douglas County.

Deadline to enter this year's Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge is Nov. 18; students can win cash prizes

Douglas County is seeking applications for this year’s Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge!

The competition - open to students in grades 6 through 12 - consists of preparing a written business plan, an executive summary, an elevator speech, formal presentation and trade show presentation. Students compete for $3,000 in prize money. The students’ work is judged by local entrepreneurs, teachers and community leaders. The deadline to submit an application is Friday, Nov. 18.

This will be the sixth year for the Douglas County event. During past competitions, students have pitched businesses that offer swimming lessons, resale clothing, jewelry, baked goods, taxidermy and pet sitting.

Douglas County supports the Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge (YEC) program in association with the Network Kansas E-Community Partnership. Douglas County is one of many communities across Kansas to host an event designed to give students a hands-on entrepreneurship experience. 

Douglas County’s first-place winner will get the opportunity to compete in a statewide competition and earn more prize money and honors.

Community invited to Day of the Dead harvest event on Nov. 2 in North Lawrence park

Join Somos Lawrence and the Ballard Center for a Celebration of the Day of the Dead on Wednesday, Nov. 2, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. in John Taylor Park in North Lawrence.

The Day of the Dead is a harvest event when reflection of the thin line between life and death is most evident in everything around us, and where we collect the harvest closing the cycle of abundance of the spring and summer. Offerings and altars for loved ones will be set in the community garden at John Taylor Park with a larger central installation to honor all of those who passed in the context of COVID-19. In addition to the over 9,000 deaths from Covid in Kansas alone, the context of the pandemic made it particularly challenging to receive treatment for chronic conditions, access emergency care, and receive visits from loved ones. It also made it very difficult for people to gather following the passing of loved ones. 

The Douglas County Heritage Conservation Council funded the project as part of the 2022 Natural and Cultural Heritage Grant awards. The Somos Lawrence and Ballard Center project uniquely addresses intangible cultural heritage that is shared by many throughout Douglas County during this celebratory event.

Community invited to attend WorkWell Symposium

The "Pathways Business & Wellness Symposium" is Tuesday, Nov. 1, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Lied Center, 1600 Stewart Drive. Attendees can register at the door starting at 8:30 a.m.

The event is an opportunity to learn more about efforts to create a healthier community for Douglas County residents and how businesses can take steps to create a healthier environment for employees. Douglas County Human Resources Manager Michelle Spreer and Assistant County Administrator Jill Jolicoeur will serve on a panel discussion about the Family-Friendly Workplace initiative.

The event is free and lunch is provided. It is sponsored by LiveWell Douglas County and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Kansas.

Courthouse clock, elevator out of service

Don’t forget Daylight Saving Time ends Sunday, Nov. 6, and you will need to turn your clocks back one hour.

You may have noticed that the clock in our historic Courthouse clock tower hasn’t been working. The Courthouse opened in 1905 and the clock is the original clock. Due to the age and special nature of the motor that runs the clock, staff have been unable to find a replacement. The County is attempting to have one rebuilt; however, the small brass gears on the inside of the motor are no longer available, so they are being custom manufactured.

Additionally, the Courthouse elevator is not working. The elevator is going to be out of service for another six to 10 weeks for the replacement of the main jack. The jack has to be custom-made which takes six to eight weeks and then at least two to four weeks for installation. There is an accessible entry at the northeast corner of the building. Once inside, clients can ask for assistance at the Appraiser’s Office window. We apologize for the inconvenience this is causing employees and clients. We appreciate your patience.

Staff in the District Attorney's Office receives training on a new case management system in October.

DA’s Office launches new case management system

The Douglas County District Attorney’s Office rolled out a new case management system on October 24, eliminating paper-based processes and streamlining workflow.

The cloud-based platform, PROSECUTORbyKarpel (PbK), replaces two legacy systems that were used for case management and electronic discovery. 

“Replacing these outdated systems increases our ability to more effectively carry out our mission for a safe and just community,” District Attorney Suzanne Valdez said. “PbK enhances our day-to-day operations and we are grateful for this investment to better serve the people of Douglas County.”

Designed by prosecutors, the new system transitions the District Attorney’s Office to an electronic file system to improve case management, workflow management, data and grant reporting and record keeping. PbK also provides a victim portal to give victims access to case information and improved digital communication channels.

The PbK platform, developed by St. Louis-based Karpel Solutions, is used by more than 550 agencies in 31 states and has been selected by more than 40 Kansas county and district attorneys’ offices including Franklin, Geary and Reno counties.

County employees' artwork helps brighten walls in Judicial and Law Enforcement Center

The 7th annual Douglas County Employee, Friends & Family Art Exhibit is on display in the Judicial and Law Enforcement Center, 111 E. Eleventh St. until the end of the year.

The exhibit includes photography, paintings, drawings, stained glass, quilts and doll clothing. Items can be viewed on the main level in the District Attorney’s lobby and conference room, the law library, and Division 4, 5 and 6 offices and in the lower level in the District Court Clerk’s Office and Division 3 office.

County offices to close for holidays in November

Douglas County Government’s general and satellite offices will be closed Friday, Nov. 11, for Veterans Day and Thursday and Friday, Nov. 24-25, for the Thanksgiving holiday. There will be no County Commission meeting on Wednesday, Nov. 23.

The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office, Consolidated Fire District No. 1, Emergency Communications Center, Criminal Justice Services will be operating. If you have an emergency, please call 911. If you have a non-emergency, call 785-843–0250.

Judicial and Law Enforcement Center:

111 East 11th Street

Lawrence, KS 66044