KSHB 41 reporter Lily O’Shea Becker covers Franklin and Douglas counties in Kansas. Share your story idea with Lily.
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The city of Lawrence issued more building permits in 2025 than in the past two years combined, Mayor Brad Finkeldei said during a city commission meeting on Dec. 2.
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Finkeldei expects the growth to continue into 2026 and 2027.
"The two largest single-drivers of sales tax in this community in the past 50 years are going to come online in 2026: the new convention center and Costco," Finkeldei said on Dec. 2.
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Finkeldei is referencing the University of Kansas' new convention center at its renovated Memorial Stadium and a potential Costco site in west Lawrence that the city is currently reviewing.
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Finkeldei focused on development projects both in downtown Lawrence and in and around west Lawrence during the city commission meeting.
Steve Wilson opened City Wine Market in west Lawrence almost 16 years ago.
"I've lived in west Lawrence for about 30 years, and I've seen it grow from where we are sitting (at City Wine Market) today was a field, to the growth of Rock Chalk Park," he said.
Now, he's seeing the city review plans for Costco on a site just south of Rock Chalk Park, the same site where development projects have been discussed for the past 15 years, according to Wilson.
"It's finally come to fruition," he said. "The project will benefit our community. Good tax dollars. It will draw in people from surrounding communities."
Finkeldei said the phone is "ringing off the hook" to fill lots surrounding the proposed Costco. The warehouse's impact is expected to cross K-10.
Large infrastructure projects to extend water, sewer, and roads, along with a water tower west of Kansas Highway 10, are expected to spur residential and commercial development in a more underdeveloped part of town, according to Finkeldei.
"We're moving away from that idea phase of, 'Wouldn't it be nice if we built something west of K-10?' to people making investments, signing contracts, making plans, and I do think we'll see annexation and development requests in 2026 to move to the west of K-10, and that's exciting," Finkeldei said at the meeting.
Wilson said he's open to growth, but he wants west Lawrence — which he describes as having more space compared to neighborhoods that surround KU's campus — to keep its character. He said his friends and customers who live west of K-10 are hesitant about the development.
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"People have deliberately moved out there to live on 3, 5, 10-acre lots, more than that, to have nature as their neighbor," Wilson said.
Wilson has watched his neighborhood grow for 30 years, and he's growing with it. Just next door to his City Wine Market, he's looking to open a Betty Rae's Ice Cream franchise in February.
"West Lawrence has been really good to us," he said. "This location has been outstanding."
He expects the potential Costco, which would open doors 1.5 miles away down West 6th Street from his storefronts, to bring more local and regional traffic past his businesses.
"I really do see it as an additional draw to Lawrence, to west Lawrence, and just driving by my business," he said.
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