Author: Brandon Peoples

The Manhattan Fire Department’s Risk Reduction office is alerting general contractors who work in the city of some changes to its license renewal process. Building Official Darren Emery says those licenses are generally broken down into one or two year terms. This year all are due for renewal. Emery says there are some changes to be aware of. “We’re doing this all online. In the past we’ve done it through mail, we’ve done it through old-fashioned paper documents they’d submit. It’s all entirely online this year,” he said. Emery says it’s also the first time local general contractors will have…

A boil water advisory has been issued for a portion of Pottawatomie County Rural Water District No. 1. The Kansas Department of Health and Environment issued the advisory following a water line break Friday morning. As a result, a loss of pressure in the distribution system may result in bacterial contamination. Customers living west of Hwy 99 between Elizas Road and Repp Road are affected. Those living in the area are advised to take the following precautions until further notice: If your tap water appears dirty, flush the water lines by letting the water run until it clears. Boil water…

A police pursuit involving a Manhattan man with past criminal offenses, resulted in a crash Thursday afternoon in Wabaunsee County. The Kansas Highway Patrol says 31-year-old Sangla Stevens was traveling north on Northwest Snokomo Frontage Road, in the Paxico area, in an attempt to elude law enforcement, just after 2 p.m. The vehicle was traveling at a high rate of speed and lost control on the gravel. His Chevy Cruze left the roadway, struck a tree and a telephone box. Stevens sustained a suspected minor injury and was transported to Wamego Health Center. According to the Kansas Department of Corrections,…

Dr. Richard Linton was greeted with fanfare and celebration Thursday as the Kansas Board of Regents named him the 15th Kansas State University President. That’s Cheyrl Harrison-Lee, Chair of the Kansas Board of Regents. The 25-member search committee, chaired by K-State alumnus and retired BNSF Railway Chairman Carl Ice, who also serves on the Board of Regents, worked for the past five months on a nationwide search to find a successor to the retiring Richard Myers, who announced in May his intent to move on at year’s end. Ice told a gathering Thursday at Forum Hall that Dr. Linton was…

A Manhattan man was arrested Tuesday after allegedly threatening a police officer with a gun. According to the Riley County Police Department’s activity report Wednesday, 79-year-old Stanley Hoerman was arrested in connection for aggravated assault of a law enforcement officer. Police listed a 40-year-old male officer as the victim, saying Hoerman threatened him with the weapon. Hoerman was issued a $5,000 bond and was no longer confined as of Wednesday’s report.

A new president at Kansas State University is expected to be named Thursday, after the Kansas Board of Regents spent more than 10 hours Wednesday in executive session, which included interviews with candidates. The board adjourned without publicly commenting on a decision. They’ve planned a 10 a.m. meeting Thursday in Forum Hall where an approval vote will take place. A spokesperson for the Regents couldn’t comment on how many candidates took part in the interview process. Names have been kept confidential. The next president will be the university’s 15th, succeeding Gen. Richard Myers, who is retiring at the end of…

The Kansas State University Salina Aerospace and Technology Campus plans to award tuition-free scholarships to eligible incoming freshman from Kansas for one year. It’s the only public institution in the state currently to offer a free year of tuition. The school announced Wednesday it’s expanding its Experience Scholarship to a full year after having previosuly supported 75 students with a free semester of tuition. The campus plans to award the scholarship for the fall 2022 semester to more than 100 incoming freshman who graduated from a Kansas high school. Eligible students will be enrolled in one of K-State Salina’s engineering…

Riley County has confirmed one new COVID-related death and 57 additional positive Coronavirus cases since it’s last weekly report on Nov. 24. According to the health department, a 69-year-old unvaccinated male died Thanksgiving Day, after testing positive the day before. It’s the 65th COVID-related death in Riley County since the start of the pandemic. There were 73 additional recoveries in the past week, with active cases now totaling 100. Ascension Via Christi is caring for eight COVID-positive patients, including seven patients that are unvaccinated. Four patients are in the hospital’s Intensive Care Unit. The percent positive rate of new infections…

Kansas State University and the University of Kansas have both reportedly been told by the Attorney General for Kansas they are in violation of a new state law exempting employees from vaccinations on religious or medical grounds. The Kansas Reflector, a nonprofit online news outlet, says Derek Schmidt forwarded a letter to both university presidents and the Board of Regents president. In that letter, Schmidt reportedly said both universities deployed “intrusive written application materials when evaluating an employee’s request for exemption.” KMAN has also obtained the letter, which appears below. The GOP-led Kansas Legislature held a special session Nov. 22…

Pottawatomie County employees who worked everyday when the COVID-19 pandemic began through the first week of May 2020, will receive a one-time $600 check. The funds were unanimously approved by the commission Monday, to be paid out of federal American Rescue Plan Act funds the county received this year. The bonus will be paid out on Dec. 17. Those who did not work everyday during that period, won’t receive the premium pay. In addition, the 1.6 percent cost of living adjustment approved during the 2022 budget hearing in August has also been increased to a 3 percent COLA for all…