City study on North Lawrence corridor, Grant Township to progress with open house, survey

The City of Lawrence hosted an event last month for residents and business owners to voice their hopes for a project reimagining the future of the North Lawrence corridor.

Now the project team is planning an open house to present the findings, alongside a survey to garner additional community input.

Almost 200 people gathered in Woodlawn Elementary’s cafeteria in November for a community visioning session, pitching ideas to improve transportation and infrastructure, placemaking and economic opportunity along the North Second Street/U.S. 59 Highway corridor.

Although the city has termed this initiative the North Lawrence Corridor Study, the project encompasses tracts of land from unincorporated Grant Township.

Participants at the visioning session sought multiple improvements to the corridor, including long-delayed stormwater maintenance; safer transportation networks throughout North Lawrence, especially across the railroad; presence of everyday necessities in the area such as a grocery store; greater points of connection and access to the river; and preservation of agricultural land.

Throughout the visioning session, multiple attendees said they felt that the city didn’t adequately answer questions about the study before requesting input.

Some folks also expressed concern that the city should have spoken to residents in depth before signing a $400,000 contract with an outside consulting firm to run the project. 

Cece Riley, a a transportation planner with the city and the study’s project manager, spoke to these issues in an email she sent to session participants the following week.

For upcoming events, Riley said that the NLCS team plans to more clearly define the scope of the study, provide more time for questions and share more robust communication materials, like an agenda or fact sheet, among other improvements.

She also wrote that the city will be transparent about steps of the project with the public and clearly outline how community feedback influences the study. She emphasized that there will be ongoing opportunities for public engagement.

The next engagement opportunity will be the open house from 4 to 7 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 10 at Venue 1235, 1235 N. Third St.

“This come-and-go event will feature boards summarizing what we heard during the workshop and listening sessions, giving residents a chance to review the findings at their own pace and share any additional thoughts,” Riley wrote.

The project coordinators will also issue a citywide survey that “will gather broader input about what makes North Lawrence special, the needs of people who live, work, play, and travel through the area, and the community’s long-term vision for the next 10-20 years,” according to the email.

The survey will be available from mid-December to mid-January.

Wulfe Wulfemeyer (they/them), reporter and news editor, has worked with The Lawrence Times since May 2025. They can be reached at wulfe@lawrencekstimes.com.

Read their complete bio here. Read their work for the Times here.

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