k-spaces can be characterized as the topological inductive limit of compact spaces. Locally compact spaces are k-spaces but not conversely (k-spaces can also be characterized as quotients of locally compact spaces).
Locally compact spaces have the distinguished property that they have a bunch of relatively compact open sets: every compact set is contained in a relatively compact open set and moreover that if $K$ is compact and $U$ is open with $K \subseteq U$ then one can find an open set $U'$ and a compact set $K'$ such that $K \subseteq U' \subseteq K' \subseteq U$. Do these properties completely characterize locally compact spaces?
A locally compact space is also the topological inductive limit of its relatively compact open sets. Can this be used to characterize locally compact spaces as an inductive limit of particular systems of topological spaces?