[{"_1":2,"_99":-5,"_100":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75,87],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6342028,"mediaKeyId","2255794-a2f5bc6cc4f5caa399b750db35bc8628","parentId",2255794,"title","Advisory board agrees to hear Municipal Stadium at Hobbs Park registry committee in March","audioSeconds",68,"startMs",3224000,"endMs",3292000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2255794-a2f5bc6cc4f5caa399b750db35bc8628&start=3224&end=3292","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2255794-a2f5bc6cc4f5caa399b750db35bc8628/thumbnail_3224000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6342028/Lawrence/Douglas-County/Kansas/Advisory-board-agrees-to-hear-Municipal-Stadium-at-Hobbs-Park-registry-committee-in-March","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6342028-f151281886d34ba990e1a965c9f123bb/orig.mp4?Expires=1776067347&Signature=NmGvAYm6ShAgjFb2vjZf7eGPQzx1ns7zHFHKnnWngFBLJjVP87be3cV2azYxqDwarxFlnJDpnyhW4F5AUYpnY9z8JUTzKjO4dzcMG3Mlom4HizvmywjwI~cGxsy7z419Wrq0G~InbX1OKb7QOBV4Od8Yd64XOHOZPG2Abix9pAKAWHjBbcCbMaUlvJfRtku0jqhaVNdUc-20sQQqyifUQh6-pJkpRoicN2tivHeIhBA31z7a05ChmndGgYZWPm5VnkDn4EHVqHbM8I-oDkkOkQX8UtyVo0R25qGSYmQXhzcfMCA7U0ws~JKWHEozkdI6QnAJIj5DOztd1rZYV3wjnQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","City Council of Lawrence, KS","date","2025-02-05T15:21:41Z","article","The advisory board agreed to invite a community committee to present at its March meeting on efforts to pursue listing Municipal Stadium at Hobbs Park on the National Register of Historic Places. Board members said the presentation would be informational; any official city action to pursue national listing would require Historic Resources Commission review and a recommendation to the City Commission.

A board member said Municipal Stadium at Hobbs Park (Eleventh and Delaware) was built in 1947 and remains in community use; the site is already listed on the Kansas state historic register. The committee’s presentation, the board was told, would explain the nomination steps, identify likely partners and outline anticipated public–private roles. Staff said the city must approve any formal nomination for a city-owned asset before the committee proceeds to the commission.

The advisory board approved the request by voice vote and set the presentation for the March 10 advisory board meeting. Staff noted the committee’s action would be informational to the advisory board and that Historic Resources Commission review is a required step before the City Commission would consider any formal request.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","02/10/25 Parks & Recreation Advisory Board","oneSentenceSummary","The board approved a March presentation from a community committee seeking support for pursuing National Register status for Municipal Stadium at Hobbs Park; the site is already on the state historic register and the committee plans to bring a proposal through the Historic Resources Commission and then the City Commission.","taxTitle","Lawrence, Douglas County, Kansas","taxId",3971,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6342033,"Board reviews 2026 budget 'Balancing Act'; commissioners signaled $6.5M general-fund gap",1967,2712000,4679000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2255794-a2f5bc6cc4f5caa399b750db35bc8628&start=2712&end=4679","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2255794-a2f5bc6cc4f5caa399b750db35bc8628/thumbnail_2712000.jpg","/articles/6342033/Lawrence/Douglas-County/Kansas/Board-reviews-2026-budget-Balancing-Act-commissioners-signaled-65M-general-fund-gap","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6342033-47e3c48ada10061a1ef3b93aa866bf76/orig.mp4?Expires=1776067347&Signature=LR4dqgKiI7KMUg-IUMDSlRfLKRM63ubdHwTTIFzHYFDMu1F4CjEtw9AlS0rz7t5ot2-fUMQRHH-fgxmIic6qQsLUInuS9OrV6KD~MoLj12wVLo9d84VAapo6AVhtJTkBf236KMulM~6c9aYzUmZlp6peIOIrcgFRA8eY23i0yzkMOd6t6cDJ6BuPPK3JGxczjzyLKdIFa5jE8s9VbRhWu-YH0oVWaB~2zO6hD2rY2TPq81l47510Yjxq1~IEb5H2kyxgquzNbMfZ7jQoDUdtk79GCz6M7Q15AOQmoECJb6b2nYAhARWdaBAf-3B~rvGI~ju~FL5VR5JPi5GPtUyrfg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Advisory board members received a detailed briefing on the City of Lawrence’s 2026 budget process and the Balancing Act public-engagement tool, which city staff and commissioners used to evaluate service levels and trade-offs to close a projected $6,500,000 general-fund shortfall for 2026.

Luis (Parks and Recreation staff) walked the board through the results staff compiled from commissioners’ Balancing Act inputs and from earlier citizen and employee committees. He said the Balancing Act translates service-level choices into approximate dollar impacts across the general fund and the eleven Parks and Recreation program budgets. Luis summarized that most general-fund service lines were marked for reductions under the commissioners’ current priorities; notable exceptions were aquatics and youth/adult sports, where commissioners signaled they wanted to maintain current service levels.

Staff and board members discussed specific figures presented in the tool. Luis said the parks, trails and open-space program has a roughly $5,500,000 budget and that a 5% reduction equals about $275,000 while a 20% reduction equals about $1,100,000. Staff cautioned the tool models expenditure changes only and does not automatically compute the revenue impact of service reductions. Mark (staff) explained the Balancing Act displays existing cost-recovery rates for some programs: aquatics was shown at roughly 30% cost recovery, wellness programming at about 60%, and golf at about 80%. Staff said cutting expenditure lines would likely reduce user-fee revenue for departments that recover costs through programming.

Board members asked about options to raise fees or restructure cost recovery to reduce cuts. Luis and Mark said fee increases are possible and that Parks and Recreation has more direct revenue levers than most general-fund departments; staff noted the Balancing Act does not include an automatic linkage between expense cuts and revenue loss, so staff will separately analyze fee, recovery and equity implications before any commission decisions.

The Balancing Act also asked commissioners whether they would support increasing property taxes to avoid service reductions; staff said three commissioners opposed tax increases and two were open to them. Staff urged board members and residents to use the Balancing Act website and attend two public, in-person sessions at Carnegie (one scheduled the day after the meeting and one on the 19th) to provide input. Staff noted the City Manager’s recommended budget is due to the Commission around July 8, 2025, with final adoption expected in September.

No formal board action was taken on the Balancing Act during the meeting; the session served as information and an invitation for board members to participate in the public process.","Advisory board members were briefed on the city’s Balancing Act exercise for the 2026 budget. Staff said commissioners’ preliminary preferences would reduce many Parks & Rec service levels; the tool does not automatically model revenue changes from fee increases.",{"_33":88,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":89,"_41":90,"_43":91,"_45":92,"_47":93,"_49":94,"_51":95,"_53":96,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":97,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":98,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6342038,"Lawrence advisory board recommends acceptance of 2025 parks, recreation and culture master plan",2220,468000,2688000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2255794-a2f5bc6cc4f5caa399b750db35bc8628&start=468&end=2688","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2255794-a2f5bc6cc4f5caa399b750db35bc8628/thumbnail_468000.jpg","/articles/6342038/Lawrence/Douglas-County/Kansas/Lawrence-advisory-board-recommends-acceptance-of-2025-parks-recreation-and-culture-master-plan","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6342038-fb6d4a4748ace3c90b0a3e7d532bc5bc/orig.mp4?Expires=1776067347&Signature=MecolOWMsYH~ivghLsVCTuHvN3V8JFRAB8~QaIiqIuw-P2lid0vAKdcoUMT0jW1Xuu6ejOhgXLz2zq9zpsLgUrBrYqnOBbPTja7~pZI3MqyoMz-jpoTNzEt1aThfbOygsRAcLq5jfNVDadU89n~9Zjuut3dyU0n~qXEyC-o7Yire2ECsc4SLbJ0Pjm3I9vXjktdRwm4qPVw0JqKDnxaRpubIEZ3ehUizR1DYm0Pyg-X7jATtwj5a3RFjXTYylLNPeWA6mThH31EQIpuFedAq1OxFVfAtTYeTGoEFC-LFqGsWvZNC7-xJx5QqDd7MKbdxMuYmQSu9ycaMHFMSg8r11A__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Lawrence Parks, Recreation & Cultural Arts Advisory Board voted unanimously to recommend the 2025 Parks, Recreation and Culture Comprehensive Master Plan for acceptance by the Lawrence City Commission. The advisory board’s acceptance, the board and staff said, would treat the document as a guiding plan and would not itself create any policy or funding commitments.

Board members and staff described the master plan as an assessment of the city’s park system, facilities and programming with a set of prioritized recommendations and an implementation action plan. Luis (staff) told the board the plan “identifies needs by location and priorities, talks about our programming and recommendations based on both feedback from the public in the community as well as national trends,” and that acceptance would allow staff to use the plan to guide decisions over the next several years rather than obligate funds now.

Consultants who worked on the plan — identified in the meeting as Leon and PJ and representatives from the Designing Local team — joined the meeting online to answer technical questions about findings and public engagement. One board member pointed out a minor typographical repetition on page 9 of the executive summary; staff said they would correct that in the final document. Staff and consultants said the plan emphasizes making tradeoffs under constrained budgets and prioritizing services that deliver the greatest community impact.

Mark (staff) described how the plan will be aligned with the city’s Capital Improvement Plan (CIP): the master plan’s implementation chart already includes items that staff expect to request in future CIP cycles and smaller maintenance tasks that staff will program into operational budgets. Leon, one of the consultants, told the board that Lawrence’s trail system and indoor recreation space are strengths but that the city’s system “is not as balanced financially” as it could be and will need staged work to address gaps.

Board member Vicky asked whether the plan can remain useful for 10 years. Staff replied that the document is intended as a 5-to-7-year working guide that will be revisited and adjusted as circumstances change.

The motion to recommend the City Commission accept the master plan passed on a voice vote with all ayes. Before the master-plan discussion the board approved previous meeting minutes by voice vote.

The advisory board noted that the plan still must be accepted by the Art Commission (the arts/culture advisory body) and then be presented to the City Commission; staff said the art commission review was scheduled but might be rescheduled because of possible snow.

The board did not commit funding in its vote. Staff said specific capital projects, feasibility studies and budget requests that come from the master plan will still require separate budget or commission approvals.","The Lawrence Parks, Recreation & Cultural Arts Advisory Board voted unanimously to recommend the 2025 Parks, Recreation and Culture Comprehensive Master Plan be accepted by the City Commission; acceptance does not commit funds or policy changes.","actionData","errors"]

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Advisory board agrees to hear Municipal Stadium at Hobbs Park registry committee in March

Board reviews 2026 budget 'Balancing Act'; commissioners signaled $6.5M general-fund gap

Lawrence advisory board recommends acceptance of 2025 parks, recreation and culture master plan