Fifth-grade students draft unique plans for proposed site of controversial downtown Lawrence apartments

After city leaders rejected a controversial proposal to build a five-story apartment and retail building downtown, some local elementary students were so inspired to come up with alternative plans that they’ve spent their summer working on them.

In May, the Lawrence City Commission rejected the proposal from Chicago-based developer Core Spaces to build the Hub on Campus at the northeast corner of 11th and Massachusetts streets in downtown Lawrence. Following the decision, Madeline Herrera asked her fifth grade class at Deerfield Elementary, as part of a project-based learning method, what they might build instead.