Manhattan officials returned on Wednesday night from the National League of Cities conference held in Washington D.C.
Manhattan mayor Usha Reddi said that the four-person contingent, which also involved City Commissioner Karen McCulloh, City Manager Ron Fehr, and Asst. City Manager Kiel Mangus, attended several sessions concerning affairs in Manhattan and other similar cities.
“[We] talked about the importance of military in our community and how to make them stronger,” Reddi said.
She added that other sessions included discussions with U.S. Senator Pat Roberts, as well as staff members from Representatives Jerry Moran and Roger Marshall.
Those discussions primarily centered around community development grants, which are reportedly being slashed by $3 billion nationwide, according to Reddi. Over $1 million from that grant has been used in Manhattan.
Additionally, officials met with Transportation Security Administration concerning security at Manhattan Regional Airport with larger flights scheduling to begin soon at the airport.
“We were worried because we were getting those larger flights by May 5th, because of the security measures they wanted to take,” Reddi said.
Reddi did state that they are working with the TSA on a more flexible timeline for the upgrades, which Reddi calls “90 percent done.”
The full interview with Manhattan mayor Usha Reddi can be heard below:
