The Douglas County Public Works Department is proposing to make changes to posted route numbers on several county roads.  The changes will be presented to the Board of County Commissioners for review, discussion and approval at their Dec. 8 business meeting.  The proposed changes do not affect mailing addresses or emergency operations. Route numbers — such as 442, 458, 1029 and 1055 — are primarily used by Public Works to define maintenance operations and snow removal. 

The Douglas County Treasurer’s Office mailed real estate and personal property tax statements to Douglas County taxpayers on Wednesday, Nov. 24.

The first-half real estate and personal property taxes are due on or before Monday, Dec. 20, 2021, and the second-half taxes are due on or before Tuesday, May 10, 2022.

Douglas County GIS web sites will be unavailable Friday, Dec. 17, while GIS web software is being upgraded. Popular items including “Property Viewer” and Map Gallery web applications such as “Survey Lookup,” “Cemeteries,” “Floodplain Lookup,” and others will not be available during the upgrade. 

The upgrade will not affect how users interact with the web resources after the upgrade but will allow for better security and enhancements to be introduced during the next year.

The Douglas County District Attorney’s Office is working with local nonprofit Building Peace Inc. to establish a Restorative Justice program.

In restorative justice programs, a trained facilitator convenes the offender with a victim or victims to talk about the act and how it affected the victim and the community. Through this process, the offender is held accountable for their actions and makes amends and the victims can begin healing.

“The community benefits, the victim benefits and the offender benefits,” Valdez said. “It’s a win-win-win.”

Robert Bieniecki has spent nearly 40 years protecting citizens through his work in the military, law enforcement and emergency management. He has flown planes during the Persian Gulf War, maintained aircraft for the U.S. Navy’s Blue Angels and retired as a captain at the Johnson County Sheriff’s Office. Now, he is serving as director of Douglas County Emergency Management during a global pandemic.

Yet, he remains humble. “I like helping people. I think I’ve always been a helper and wanted to provide community service,” he said.

Douglas County Government’s offices will be closed Thursday and Friday, Nov. 25 and 26, for the Thanksgiving holiday. There also is no County Commission meeting Wednesday, Nov. 24. 

The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office, Emergency Dispatch Center and Criminal Justice Services will be operating. If you have an emergency, please call 911. If you have a non-emergency, call 785-843–0250.

We wish everyone a safe and happy holiday.

Douglas County District Court Judge Amy Hanley helped deliver a keynote lecture via Zoom to judges, attorneys and other legal officials in Argentina who are working to expand the use of jury trials.

Douglas County Government’s general and satellite offices will be closed Thursday, Nov. 11, for Veterans Day. Thank you to our veterans and all who have served, past and present.

The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office, Emergency Dispatch Center and Criminal Justice Services will be operating. If you have an emergency, please call 911. If you have a non-emergency, call 785-843–0250.

Douglas County, in partnership with the United Way of Douglas County, would like to know what resources county residents would find most beneficial to their success. We are seeking input through a community survey at: http://dgcoks.org/resourcessurvey. The survey will be available through Dec. 17. The information will be used to better understand what barriers residents are facing and what resources are needed in Baldwin City, Eudora, Lawrence, Lecompton and rural areas of Douglas County.

Douglas County election results are available at http://dgcoks.org/election2021. Results will be unofficial until the canvass on Monday, Nov. 15. 

Women in Douglas County who have been incarcerated or under supervision in the criminal justice system are now eligible for free technology education through a partnership with the University of Kansas, Douglas County Criminal Justice Services and Douglas County Court Services.

Running means a lot to Rebecca Sudja. You can tell by how far she runs – completing a 100-miler in October 2020 in the Flint Hills and more than 80 miles earlier this month in Arkansas.

For the Re-Entry Case Manager at the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office, running means a chance to escape and think about what’s happening in her job, with her family or the events of her day. It has also meant connecting with a strong group of friends who are committed and support each other.