Author: Brandon Peoples

While in-person conventions are slow to return to Manhattan, the number of people staying in hotels continues to rise. Manhattan Convention and Visitors Bureau Executive Director Karen Hibbard says early indications are that June hotel stays ticked up slightly. Official June numbers won’t be released until later this month. Hibbard says May numbers are also significantly better than the year before. The average daily rate for May was $110 compared to $77 in May 2020. Revenue per room was at $65 compared to $22 the year before. A number of events are planned during the month of July, including the…

One week remains until the deadline to register for the August 3 primary. July 13 is the deadline to do that. Voting by mail and advance voting begin on July 14, wrapping up at noon on Monday, Aug. 2. Advance voting at the Riley County Office Building will be offered weekdays from 8 to 5 p.m. beginning on the 14th as well as Saturday, July 31 from 8 a.m. to noon. Nine candidates are vying for three seats on the USD 383 school board. They include incumbent board member Karla Hagemeister, Jennifer Chua, Kevin Harms, Betty Mattingly-Ebert, Jayme Morris-Hardeman, Teresa…

Arrangements are pending for 22-year-old Jace Ward, of Wamego, who died over the weekend following a two year cancer battle. Family members say visitation will be held Thursday from 6 to 8:30 p.m. with a funeral at 2 p.m. Friday. Both will take place at Trinity Baptist Church in Wamego. A private graveside burial will follow. Ward was diagnosed with diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG), a cancer of the brain which controls essential body functions. He was told he had an inoperable brain tumor and given nine months to live and outpaced that, surviving 26 months. He died Saturday. Ward…

Police in St. Mays arrested a 45 year old man late Friday for reckless driving and for purposely trying to cause a wreck with other drivers. According to police, the man was observed driving westbound on Highway 24 and entering St. Marys at around 8 p.m. Officers intercepted the suspect vehicle, which was reportedly intentionally driving head-on in opposing traffic in an attempt to collide with other drivers. The vehicle was stopped at the 100 block of Bertrand Ave. The man, who’s name was not immediately released was taken into custody for suspicion of driving under the influence and aggravated…

The Manhattan Fire Department made quick work of a structure fire Friday morning. Just after 8 a.m. firefighters were dispatched to 1621 Woodcrest Drive for the report of a fire in the garage of a town home. The building was showing light smoke when firefighters arrived on scene. The fire was knocked down within five minutes. A team of more than a dozen firefighters responded, clearing the scene within less than three hours. No injuries were reported. The one-story building contains three town homes, but the fire was contained to just one unit, with only smoke damage in the other…

Manhattan city officials are planning to remove the Mayor’s Holiday Tree in Triangle Park. The 18-foot-tall Colorado Spruce was planted in 2019 to replace the nearly 20-year-old blue spruce that blew down in high winds earlier that year. According to a release from the city Friday, the city’s Forestry Supervisor J. David Mattox said the new tree failed to get adequately established after transport and did not survive the transplant shock. No disease was present. The department will remove the tree in the coming weeks. Discussion of next steps to provide a holiday tree in Triangle Park are pending.

One of the 10 Manhattan residents to file for the USD 383 school board race has withdrawn his name from consideration. Bill Spiegel, who filed at the deadline, announced Wednesday on his Facebook page that he was dropping out of the race due to a potential conflict of interest between the district and his wife’s employer Varney & Associates. Spiegel said in a statement he believed the situation had been vetted but because of new unspecified information that had come up decided it was best to withdraw. Since he did register ahead of the June 1 deadline, Spiegel’s name will…

Boomtown will be bustling this weekend for the return of the annual 4th of July pyro musical. Wamego officials are expecting larger than normal crowds as a result of the pandemic shutdowns last year. Wamego Chamber of Commerce Events Coordinator Kara Holle says city officials are hoping visitors will execute patience this holiday weekend. Shuttle parking for the parade and fireworks show is available in the red lot, (Wamego High School sports complex) and the green lot (Wamego Middle School). Holle also detailed changes for Sunday’s parade. The parade starts at 6 p.m. Sunday and will be followed by a…

The Riley County Fair returns later this month and it was recently announced that the fair will in fact have a full carnival. Extension Director Gary Fike says it’s good news after COVID canceled most fair activities last year. Fike says Ottaway Amusements is working with another carnival company to bring in more rides to the fair. There will also be a wristband night at the fair. Fike says since they had initially planned on not having much of a carnival, many vendors had opted to pull out of this year’s fair, without the prospect of high foot traffic. The…

The Kansas Board of Healing Arts has indefinitely suspended the license of a former Junction City High School athletic trainer. Brandon Martino was arrested in February by Geary County authorities on two counts of sexual exploitation of a child. He was also charged with two counts of promoting obscenity to minors. According to the order, a student patient who was under 18, received a sexually explicit text message from Martino, including a nude image of himself. The full order is available to the public at ksbha.org.