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The biggest stories 2013 of
150th anniversary of Quantrill’s Raid ug. 21, 2013, marked the 150th anniversary of the historic event Lawrence may be best known for: Quantrill’s Raid. The city’s commemoration of the 1863 raid included a very 21st century take, the #QR1863 Twitter re-enactment. The social media project, which garnered national media attention, had community members create profiles for historical figures and live-tweet their activities throughout the day. Lawrence rebuilt and ultimately flourished after the sacking, in which Confederate guerrilla leader William Quantrill led raiders in killing or wounding 200 and burning nearly all the town’s structures.
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Construction begins on South Lawrence Trafficway fter decades of litigation and protests — centered on wetlands preservation — construction on the South Lawrence Trafficway officially began Nov. 12. A 2012 federal ruling had cleared the way for the final six miles of the project east of Iowa. The trafficway, which will connect Interstate 70 northwest of the city with Kansas Highway 10 east of town, is expected to take three years to build and cost $129.8 million. The project will include constructing about 300 acres of manmade wetlands to replace about 55 acres of natural ones. On Nov. 17, a group of environmentalists gathered to have a “memorial service” for the wetlands.
A Andrew Wiggins picks Kansas ecruiting is no joke around these parts and the day Andrew Wiggins, the No. 1 prospect in the high school recruiting Class of 2013, chose KU was full of the usual mixedbag emotions. Many feared he would pick Florida State, North Carolina or Kentucky. Others were certain he was Kansasbound. When the time came for Wiggins’ announcement, he told a gym full of supporters in Huntington, W. Va., that he would play his one season of college hoops in Kansas. It’s been a Beatles-esque run of Wiggins-mania ever since. The 6-foot-8, 200-pound Canadian forward currently leads the Jayhawks in scoring at 15.5 points per game.
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Downtown development
owntown development was a hot topic in 2013, with several projects stirring excitement and sometimes controversy. Work on the voter-approved $18 million expansion of the Lawrence Public Library began at Seventh and Vermont streets with an expected summer completion date. Plans for a seven-story apartment building at the northeast corner of Ninth and New Hampshire streets moved forward, led by Lawrence developer Doug Compton, left, and preliminary plans emerged for another sevenstory building — this one possibly including a national drug store chain — near the corner of 11th and Massachusetts streets, also led by Compton. The most talked-about development, however, was the Compton-led Marriott Hotel being built at the southeast corner of Ninth and New Hampshire streets. After wrangling over the height of the building and its impact on neighbors, a plan was approved for a five-story hotel, and ground was broken in July.
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See more stories of the year on page 6A. KANSAS BOARD OF REGENTS
Controversial social media policy to be reviewed By Scott Rothschild srothschild@ljworld.com
TOPEKA — Less than two weeks after approving a controversial policy governing the use of social media, the Kansas Board of Regents on Tuesday indicated it may reconsider. In a two-sentence news release, Regents Chairman Fred Logan said he has asked Andy Tompkins, the president and chief executive officer of the regents, to form a group of
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recommendations for amendments to the policy to be presented to the regents’ governance committee in April. On Dec. 18, the regents unanimously approved a policy that allows university heads to fire faculty and staff for improper use of social — Ronald Barrett-Gonzalez, president of the Kansas confermedia, which included postence of the American Association of University Professors ing messages that conflicted with the best interests of the representatives from each Citing publicly raised con- school. state university to review the cerns about the measure, LoPlease see POLICY, page 5A policy. gan said he would like any
I’ve been getting the annual Christmas calls and New Year’s calls, and they’re not asking how is the wife and kids, they’re saying, ‘Good grief, what is going on in Kansas?’”
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Same-sex married couples sue state over tax treatment By Scott Rothschild srothschild@ljworld.com
TOPEKA — Two legally married same-sex couples, including one in Lawrence, have filed a lawsuit against the Kansas Department of Revenue, which won’t allow them to file as married on their state taxes. “My clients are asking the court to order the Department of Revenue to follow the law,” said David J. Brown, the Lawrence attorney who filed the lawsuit in state district court in Shawnee County. The Revenue Department says it is following the law. Following a U.S. Supreme Court Please see LAWSUIT, page 2A