L A W R E N C E
JOURNAL-WORLD
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75 CENTS
Windy and humid
High: 84
With all the rain, wheat yield still an unknown
Low: 64
Today’s forecast, page 10A
INSIDE Running game KU’s strongest position Our first installment of a weekly summer position breakdown of the KU football team starts with running back James Sims and the Jayhawks’ sound rushing attack. Page 1B NATION
Supreme Court blocks Wal-Mart case A massive sex-discrimination class-action lawsuit cannot move forward against WalMart Stores Inc., the U.S. Supreme Court said in a Monday decision that legal observers expect to have wide-ranging ramifications for claims against other huge companies. Page 7A SUSTAINABILITY
Film crews document Take Charge Challenge This week, two film crews will be in Lawrence and other parts of the state to document the Take Charge Challenge, a program pitting Lawrence against Manhattan to see which one can conserve the most energy. Page 3A
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QUOTABLE
Being cozy with business is not necessarily bad. Kansas needs to be open for business. We don’t have mountains; we don’t have oceans. If we don’t allow for people to make it easy to make a profit in Kansas, there really is no reason to come here.” — Rep. Scott Schwab, an Olathe Republican, commenting on a report that Sunflower Electric Co. was allowed by the Kansas Department of Health and Environment to answer public questions about a coal-fired electric plant that were intended to help shape permit requirements for the facility. Page 3A
COMING WEDNESDAY We catch up with some members of a local church who spent about a week in Haiti helping earthquake victims.
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INDEX Business Classified Comics Deaths Events listings Horoscope Movies Opinion Puzzles Sports Television Vol.153/No.172
LJWorld.com
TUESDAY • JUNE 21 • 2011
7A 4B-8B 9A 2A 10A, 2B 9B 5A 8A 9B 1B-3B, 10B 5A, 2B, 9B 20 pages
Mayor: Tax hike will be difficult to avoid By Chad Lawhorn clawhorn@ljworld.com
Richard Gwin/Journal-World Photo
LUKE ULRICH, WHO LIVES SOUTH OF LAWRENCE, kneels in one of his wheat fields Monday to survey the crop. The wheat is ready to be harvested, but farmers may have a difficult time getting their combines into the rain-soaked fields.
‘There’s no way of knowing till we actually cut it’ By Mark Fagan mfagan@ljworld.com
ONLINE: Watch the video at LJWorld.com
The wheat’s climbing up to their belt buckles, the thick patches of golden brown promising solid yields amid a season of relatively high prices. Now, if only farmers could get their combines in the fields. “I have no idea what it’ll do,” said Charles Beeghley, itching to harvest his 80 acres along the east side of U.S. Highway 59 south of Lawrence. “Average would be all right.” Yes, average would be fine. But as Douglas County farmers wait for their rain-soaked fields to dry out this week, they’re cau-
tiously holding out hope that the area’s No. 3 crop might turn in a strong performance at the elevator. With prices hovering Monday at $7.35 a bushel, ag observers see a chance for farmers to do OK this year despite having paid rising prices for fertilizer, fuel and other inputs that drive up the costs of production. “I think it’s going to be good,” said Bill Wood, director of K-State Research and Extension in Douglas County. “Just driving around the county, it appears to be in pretty good shape. We haven’t had many disease problems. We’ve had pretty good weather. The fields Please see WHEAT, page 2A
Corn and beans look promising Douglas County’s two major crops are barely in the ground or just growing up, but already they’re showing plenty of promise. “The corn looks pretty good,” said Bill Wood, director of K-State Research and Extension in Douglas County. “It likes some of this rain. It also likes sunshine. This last week, if you were standing in the corn you could just about hear it growing — it was stretching up.” Farmers planted their corn on schedule in early May, and only a few fields are lacking
the soybeans they’ve been waiting for. Such crops are harvested in the fall. Last year Douglas County farmers had 25,000 acres of corn and 41,000 acres of soybeans, compared with just 1,900 set aside for wheat — an especially low total blamed on a late fall harvest in 2009, which had postponed wheat planting. Average yields per acre in the county, during the past four years: Corn, 118 bushels per acre; soybeans, 33.6 bushels per acre; wheat, 32.25 bushels per acre.
There’s at least one City Hall leader betting on a property tax increase for 2012. Lawrence Mayor Aron Cromwell said Monday that he hasn’t yet seen a proposal that would allow the city to responsibly avoid an increase in its property tax mill levy. Based on preliminary numbers, 2012 Cromwell city revenues are expected to be about $1.2 million short of expected city expenses. “We’re faced with a budget that will demand either a substantial cut in city services or a mill levy increase,” Cromwell said. “I’m not comfortable cutting the services we would have to cut.” City commissioners will dive into the city’s 2012 budget process this afternoon at a 4 p.m. study session at City Hall. The study session will include a presentation from the City Manager’s office that details 11 scenarios under which the city’s mill levy would need to increase for 2012. The scenarios contemplate a mill levy increase ranging from 1.7 mills to 4.6 mills. For reference sake, a 1-mill increase would add $23 in taxes to a $200,000 home. Please see BUDGET, page 4A
Group to start mulling how to consolidate schools Members to get together for first time Thursday By Mark Fagan mfagan@ljworld.com
Members of a new community group will be getting a clear sense of direction this week as they start work on recommendations for how to shrink the roster of elementary schools in the Lawrence school district. Whether their assigned tasks result in new directions in the coming months remains to be seen. Members of the volunteer group — formal name: Cen-
tral and East Lawrence Elementary School Consolidation Working Group — will assemble for an organizational meeting at 7 p.m. Thursday at district headquarters, 110 McDonald Drive. Members will meet and start building the mutual trust they’ll need to compile a list of recommendations. “I don’t want there to be any misconceptions about what the working group is supposed to do,” said Rick Doll, district superintendent, who appointed the group’s 26 members and who will lead the first meeting. “It’s fairly simple. The board has charged them with: How do you consolidate the six east and central Lawrence
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The board has charged them with: How do you consolidate the six east and central Lawrence schools into three or four schools? It’s not whether. They’re very clear about that. It’s how do we consolidate.” — Rick Doll, Lawrence school district superintendent schools into three or four schools? “It’s not whether. They’re very clear about that. It’s how do we consolidate.” Come July 11, four new members will join the Lawrence school board, replacing four members who helped form the working group and including the two leaders of the Lawrence Ele-
mentary School Facility Vision Task Force whose work led to creation of the working group. Of the four incoming members, at least two have questioned the responsibility given to the group, including Rick Ingram, who received the most votes in the April board election. Randy Masten, who fin-
ished third, said Monday that while the working group “is a good thing,” its stated charge lacks the flexibility necessary for the community to come up with the best plan for financially challenged schools. The working group could identify other viable options to consolidation — such as identifying other sources of funding — to bolster district operations. “There are other variables in the equation,” Masten said. “It’s not a foregone conclusion that we’re going to close any set number of schools. We’re looking for information and input.” Shannon Kimball, who Please see SCHOOLS, page 4A
City approves Iron Chef-style competition for 4th of July By Paul Koepp Special to the Journal-World Energy smart: The Journal-World makes the most of renewable resources. www.b-e-f.org
Get ready for some fireworks in your mouth. City officials gave the green light Monday for an Iron Chef-style competition and party to be hosted by downtown restaurant Teller’s at this year’s Fourth of July celebration in Watson Park. Parks and Recreation officials met with restaurant owner Tom
Wilson on Monday to hash out concerns over the footprint the extravaganza could leave on the park. “Ultimately we just want to make sure the park looks the same when they leave as it did when they arrived,” said Tim Laurent, the city’s facilities operations supervisor. Wilson agreed to find parking spaces on the street for a large refrigerated truck containing food
products instead of driving it into the park, Laurent said. The 2,000square-foot enclosure will also hold stadium seating for viewing the fireworks show put on by the Lawrence Jaycees. The Teller’s event, featuring an attendee-judged competition among the restaurant’s three chefs, is part of an attempt to make the annual celebration bigger and better. The chefs will put together dishes, and guests can
buy a ticket for all three chefs’ plates for $20 and then vote on the winner. The Lawrence Originals, a group of 21 locally owned restaurants, will host the festival in Watson Park for the third straight year from 2 p.m. until the fireworks display at 9:45 p.m., including food booths, family activities and live music. — Reporter Paul Koepp can be reached at 832-7217.