CITY MANAGER’S REPORT

Week ending April 15, 2016

2015 Annual Building Permit Trends Report

Attached is the 2015 Building Permit Trends Report.  This annual report provides data regarding Lawrence building permits issued during 2015, as well as trends for Lawrence building permits compared to prior years.  The report also compares Lawrence building permit information to nine (9) regional Kansas jurisdictions and to seven (7) regional peer university cities.

STAR Communities Rating Progress Update

The City of Lawrence and Douglas County have been taking active steps towards building a sustainable community.  In 2015, the City and County received a scholarship to participate in the STAR Communities Rating System to measure sustainability progress.  The STAR Community Rating System provides a clear, data-driven approach to assessing the broad definition of community sustainability (social, economic and environmental progress).  STAR generates a rating out of 5 stars that will help us measure progress, and identify areas for improvement.  Thus far, city staff have collected about 50% of the available points within the STAR framework, and are thrilled to already have enough points to qualify for 3/5 stars.  We are aiming for 4 stars so that we can be the most sustainable community in Kansas (Wichita has already been STAR certified; they received a 3).  We will submit our points in late summer 2016, and then the STAR Communities staff will verify and award a score.  Please contact Sustainability Coordinator Eileen Horn with any questions:  ehorn@lawrenceks.org

Rental Licensing Reports

Planning and Development Services submits the September, October, November, and December 2015 rental licensing and inspection reports for review.