Author: Brandon Peoples

Pottawatomie County employees will get a slight mid-year pay increase following commission action Monday morning in Westmoreland. Commissioners unanimously settled on a 3.5 percent increase, effective July 1 to help assist employees struggling to stay afloat amid rising inflation. The increase was agreed upon after an initial proposal Monday from County Administrator Chad Kinsley, seeking a 10 percent pay increase for employees, rivaling a 10.5 percent increase Riley County approved last month. Kinsley was critical that commissioners have focused too much attention on having the state’s second-lowest mill levy at 28.647. Commission Chair Pat Weixelman took offense to Kinsley’s comments.…

Local officials will soon be considering annexation of a portion of the Green Valley area into Manhattan as part of the Scorpion Biological Systems development planned near Hwy 24 and Excel Road. Manhattan Area Chamber of Commerce Economic Development Director Daryn Soldan presented a timeline that includes the City of Manhattan planning to consider a resolution at its June 21 meeting. Commission Chair Pat Weixelman asserted that Pottawatomie County won’t be railroaded into agreeing to any annexation decision without some information that spells out revenue projections. Assuming the City of Manhattan passes its resolution next week, Pottawatomie County will have…

Wamego Police Chief Michael Baker has been suspended, for reasons that are currently unclear. KMAN received an anonymous news tip Tuesday stating that Baker had been suspended with no reason given. We reached out via email to CIty Manager Stacie Eichem for comment. She responded saying “It is the policy of the City of Wamego not to comment on personnel matters.  The requested information involves an internal personnel matter and therefore, I am not at liberty to respond.” Pottawatomie County Attorney Sherri Schuck informed KMAN she too was inquiring about the matter and had no knowledge beyond that. It is…

The National Weather Service has confirmed that Saturday’s damage from the Spillway area was part of an EF-1 tornado that began 3 miles east of Olsburg on an 11 mile path toward the southeast side of Tuttle Creek Lake. The tornado was on the ground for about 13 minutes and had estimated peak winds at 99 mph with a 30 yard max width. The winds from that storm impacted the River Pond campground area and uprooted trees throughout Tuttle Creek State Park. The National Weather Service has also confirmed three additional EF-1 tornadoes occurred within Saturday’s severe storm system, all…

Riley County crews were out Sunday assessing damage from Saturday evening’s severe storms. Teams from the Riley County Appraiser’s Office and Manhattan Fire Department’s Risk Reduction Division have been tasked with going through neighborhoods. Downed power lines and large tree limbs remain the most reported damages. Riley County’s Public Works Facilities sustained significant damage as did the Tuttle Creek River Pond campgrounds. Five structures in Manhattan’s McCain neighborhood area, east of the Kansas State University campus, were condemned and deemed unsafe to occupy, by Risk Reduction. That includes two unoccupied Greek houses, Chi Omega and Kappa Alpha Theta. Those buildings…

Tornadic thunderstorms impacted the Manhattan area Saturday night, producing a confirmed tornado near Tuttle Creek State Park on what was the 14th anniversary of the 2008 tornado, that caused widespread damage in the Little Apple. Numerous trees were uprooted at Tuttle Creek State Park Saturday, in the River Pond area and officials late in the evening announced that the campground would be closed until Monday while cleanup continues. Joshua Hunt, of Wamego, just purchased a new 16 foot Bunkhouse camper two weeks ago, only to see it blown onto its side from strong winds Saturday evening. His family sought shelter with many others at…

More charges were filed Friday against a 44-year-old man who once worked as a nurse at a Manhattan preschool. The Riley County Attorney’s Office has filed eight additional charges against Joshua Penabaz as part of an ongoing investigation. A news release from the Riley County Police Department alleges Penabaz raped a 5-year-old student while employed at College Hill Early Learning Center in September 2021. The remaining seven charges were allegedly from incidents that occurred between 2009 and 2011 involving a female victim between the ages of 2 and 4 at the time. The charges include a single count of aggravated…

An Onaga man escaped serious injuries after an accident in Atchison County. The Kansas Highway Patrol says 19-year-old Keegan Wood was southbound on US 73 when a deer ran into the roadway, striking his motorcycle, causing it to overturn. The crash occurred just after 1:30 p.m. about 4 and a half miles south of Atchison. The crash report states Wood, who was wearing a helmet, sustained only a minor injury and was treated at a nearby hospital.

2022 Cowboy Poetry Contest Finals (Friday 7 p.m. at the Flint Hills Discovery Center) The best cowboy poets in Kansas are taking the stage Friday for the state finals in the 2022 Cowboy Poetry Contest. The Flint Hills Discovery Center serves as the backdrop for the annual event. Poetry contest chair Ron Wilson, of the Lazy T Ranch in Manhattan, says finalists will present in two go rounds that include both serious and humorous poems. Qualifying contests were held in Fredonia and Hays and included 28 entries from four states. Manhattan residents that have made it into the finals include…

Newly installed Flint Hills Regional Council Executive Director Jerry Lonergan, provided his inaugural update to the Pottawatomie County Commission Monday. Lonergan says the council recently received a $500,000 Brownfields grant from the Environmental Protection Agency Region 7. The EPA officially presented the check to the council, during a ceremony Wednesday at the Geary County Commission Chambers. The Flint Hills Regional Council was selected for community-wide assessment work and the development of reuse plans for Junction City, Manhattan and Ogden and other communities throughout the region. In a release from the EPA Wednesday, it noted priority assessment sites include Junction City’s…