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Lawrence voters can vote Nov. 4 to approve a new police station. They can also vote to approve a 0.2 percent sales tax increase to fund the new station, which will cost $25.7 million.
Proposed sales tax could fund new police station
KELSIE JENNINGS
@Kelcjen
Students and residents of Lawrence could help fund a new police station every time they go out and spend money, starting next April.
A sales tax increase of 0.2 percent to raise money for constructing and equipping the new facility has been approved by the Chamber of Commerce. All that's needed now is voters' approval, which will be decided at the Nov. 4 general election.
The cost of the new facility is $25.7 million, according to the city's website, but $24.2 million could be raised by sales taxes. If voters approve the tax increase, 0.2 percent of the cost of their purchases will go toward the new building. Sgt. Trent McKinley of the Lawrence Police Department puts this in perspective by saying it's the same ratio as two cents is to $10.
The funding by taxes will expire after nine years, unless the $24.2 million is raised before then, McKinley said. So,
the more money people spend in Lawrence, the faster it will be paid off.
"it's something that I think that the sales tax, in this particular case, is the fairest way to pay for the building."
MIKE AMYX
Lawrence mayor
"If we have really good sales
tax returns, lots of people are spending money in Lawrence and it gets paid off in seven and a half years, then that's when the tax would stop," he said.
McKinley said the main reason behind building a new police facility is to consolidate all of their officers and services. Right now, there are six police buildings around town, and having the department in one location would make for more efficient service. The new facility's size is planned to be 63,000 square feet, while the separate facilities now have a
combined square footage of 37,489, according to the city's website.
McKinley works in the west facility on Bob Billings and Wakarusa, but the actual law enforcement building is downtown. He said he doesn't ever see patrol officers because of how the department is geographically split up.
"We, in administration or detectives, don't have the interactions with the men and women that are on the street, that are taking calls and gathering information,"
McKinley said. "So there's a lot of missed opportunities to share information and solve crimes if you're not together and you're not interacting."
McKinley said having locations all over the place has also been confusing for residents because they're not sure where to go and often end up at the wrong building and must be redirected to the right one. If there is one facility, then residents will know where to go and it will save time for
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Hearings set for men arrested in alleged Hashinger rape cases
Preliminary hearings for William Noah McCoy, a University student, and John Harris Jossie, a student at Johnson County Community College, who were charged with alleged rape Thursday afternoon, have been pushed to Nov. 4 at 2 p.m., so evidence may be collected for both cases.
Hearings for motions made by both court-appointed lawyers of the accused were set for Oct. 21 at 11 a.m. The lawyers also requested bond modifications but were denied, so bond remains at $50,000 cash or surety.
Anguiano said the PSO began its investigation Oct. 3 after the two women made reports. He also said while the alleged rapes occurred the same morning as the alleged Kappa Sigma fraternity sexual assault incidents, the two are not related.
McCoy, from Olathe, and Jossie, from Lawrence, both 21 years old, were arrested Oct. 7 on suspicion of raping two women in Hashinger Residence Hall, according to Capt. James Anguiano of the KU Public Safety Office. The alleged rapes occurred between 2 a.m. and 5 a.m. on Sept. 28.
The PSO reviewed the Hashinger Residence Hall incidents because they happened on campus, but Lawrence Police are investigating the claims against Kappa Sigma, which is located off campus at 1045 Emery Rd.
Anguiano said the office handed over reports to the Douglas County District Attorney, who will carry out the case.
This story is developing. Check back at Kansan.com for updates.
- By McKenna Harford
Campus reacts positively to gay marriage ruling
JAMES LAMB
@theiameslamb
Last week, the U.S. Supreme Court opened the door for the legalization of same-sex marriage in Kansas, a choice that has been celebrated by parts of the KU community.
["The reaction] has been very positive,very surprised," said Mitchell Cota, president of Spectrum KU,a student association dedicated to celebrating gender and sexuality diversity.
"People are not taking it as real. Some people still can't believe that this happened in Kansas so quickly," Cota said.
RECENT DEVELOPMENTS WITHIN NORTHEAST KANSAS COUNTIES
The Supreme Court declined to hear appeals against decisions from states in three Circuit Courts that found bans against same-sex marriage to be unconstitutional. This may allow for marriage equality in all the states governed by these Circuit Courts, one of which Kansas belongs to.
COLE ANNEBERG
As an associate professor of women, gender and sexuality studies, Katie Batza has been able to see the student community's reaction to the decision and the surprise it has brought to her students who are invested in the issue.
"I've seen a lot of my students who are actually really excited about it. They seem really pumped about it. My sense of my students' response is that everybody's kind of shocked, but pleasantly so." Bataz said. "We knew it was coming, it was just a matter of time to get here to Kansas. [Students are surprised that] we're ranked in the twenties in terms of the number of states that got gay marriage, rather than the late forties."
"A big issue is poverty in the queer community," Cofa said. "A lot of LGBTQ students, and people in general, get kicked out of their houses, they get their financial sources cut off,
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CROSSWORD 6
Some are taking the marriage equality victory as a relief, as much as anything, as it allows LGBTQ activists to now adjust their focus on other issues affecting the community.
Index
Basically they're trying to drag their feet as long as humanly possible," Batza said. "Kansas lawmakers are trying to get the Supreme Court to specifically make a decision on it, specifically for Kansas, even though Kansas clearly falls within one of these Circuit Court rulings."
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OPINION 4
decision of the U.S. Supreme Court, Kansas courts are refusing to comply, and won't grant marriage licenses to same-sex couples. Kansas courts are waiting until there is explicit clarification at a federal level, but Batza said she believes it to be a matter of time until they are forced to concede their position.
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SUDOKU 6
"They don't really have a legal leg to stand on here.
Edited by Kelsie Jennings
Batza also saw the benefit in the LGBTQ community being able to move past marriage equality, stating that it allowed people to "focus on some issues that are perhaps more pressing and representative of more diverse communities within the LGBT community."
so we're probably going to focus more on advocacy for helping those persons"
However, despite the
Don't Forget
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