Author: Brandon Peoples

Manhattan Catholic Schools has exceeded its 1.5 percent threshold for COVID-related absenteeism after a positive COVID case was identified in a 2nd grade classroom last week. That equates to greater than five students missing class due to quarantines. In a letter sent to parents Wednesday, Principal Mike Hubka noted that the school is in “red” status as a result of its threshold established at a special council of education (COE) meeting Tuesday in a 6-3 vote. Riley County Health Department Director Julie Gibbs confirmed Wednesday there is no active outbreak at this time due to no connection between cases. As…

Riley County Commission Chair John Ford has tested positive for COVID-19. Ford said in a release through the County Health Department that he is suffering from a mild case after waking up Tuesday with severe congestion, a headache and a loss of smell. The health department is notifying those who were close contacts of Ford and noted that another county employee in that grouping has tested positive and is currently in quarantine. Ford said he had just received a booster shot Friday before testing positive. Thursday’s scheduled commission meeting has been canceled and the commission chambers will be sanitized.

Unofficial election results showed a shift to a more fiscally conservative majority on the Manhattan city commission as well as the USD 383 Manhattan-Ogden School Board. In the city race, two incumbents retained their seats with former Mayor Usha Reddi finishing with the most votes in Manhattan at 3,571. Current Mayor Wynn Butler came in second in voting with 3,499. Both were re-elected to four year terms. Former commissioner John Matta finished third in voting with 3,265, giving him a two-year term on the commission. He will replace Aaron Estabrook, who finished in fourth place with 2,799 votes. The lone…

An investigation continues into a Monday evening fire that destroyed a home south of Fort Riley Blvd. Firefighters from both Riley County Fire District No. 1 and Manhattan Fire Department arrived on scene around 6:30 p.m. to an abandoned 2-story home fully engulfed by flames. Deputy Riley County Fire Chief John Martens tells KMAN it took about five hours before they finally cleared the scene, with close to three dozen firefighters from both agencies responding. No injuries were reported and Martens says the home was not occupied. The roof reportedly collapsed but fire did not spread to any nearby properties.…

Nearly 3,100 Riley County voters took advantage of early voting which wrapped up at noon Monday. According to the County Clerk’s office, 3,095 advance votes were tallied at the end of the voting period, including 2,386 voting at the Riley County Office Building, 627 ballots by mail, 49 paper ballots and 30 provisional ballots. The advance vote tally was more than 600 voters higher than the 2019 election (2,456), the last comparable non-presidential year. Anyone who failed to turn in a mail ballot can do so at any polling place Tuesday from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. KMAN will have…

Pottawatomie County residents who serve as jurors for district court trials in 2022 will receive extra compensation for their service. Commissioners unanimously adopted a wage increase Monday. Those who get called for jury duty will receive $25, plus mileage for the first day they’re summoned to court, and $50 a day after that. According to Chief Justice Jeff Elder, Pottawatomie County averages about 10 to 15 jury trials each year. Commissioner Dee McKee says the increase should ease some financial burden to those called to jury duty. Pottawatomie County, like its neighbor Riley County, has long paid $10 for the first…

A convicted felon formerly from Junction City has been found guilty of kidnapping and strangling a woman in Manhattan in 2017. A Riley County jury found David Lee Gollahon guilty Wednesday on the charges of aggravated kidnapping, aggravated burglary and attempted aggravated robbery. Sentencing is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. on Dec. 7. The charges stem from a December 2017 incident at the Scenic Valley Inn, where Gollahon broke into in an attempt to rob the woman. The 60-year-old Gollahon is currently serving a 13-year federal sentence for a pair of 2019 armed bank robberies in Baltimore. He was extradited from…

Think elections don’t matter? Tell that to the eight candidates running for the Manhattan city commission, who all told spent the last three months, raking in nearly $39,000 from donors to get them elected. Candidates were required to submit campaign finance reports Oct. 25, ahead of the general election. The totals account for all contributions collected between late July and late October. Former city commissioner Rich Jankovich led all candidates in fundraising, garnering over $10,000 in contributions. Incumbent Usha Reddi raised over $7,200 and Wynn Butler raised $6,200. The rest of the field saw John Matta raised over $5,700, Monica…

Just days remain before voters head to the polls to determine two key local races. As candidates continue to try and sway voters, partisan politics have crept into the city commission and USD 383 school board races, which are traditionally seen as nonpartisan. Whether it’s in a radio spot, a Facebook ad, a comment at a forum or even during public comment at a meeting, there’s almost no escape from the talking points or rhetoric from both sides of the political discussion. Associate Communications professor and Director of the Institute for Civic Discourse and Democracy, Dr. Tim Shaffer says it’s…

Key dates were announced Thursday by Kansas State University, related to its Dec. 8 deadline for all employees to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19. In order to comply with the new federal executive order as an entity which receives federal funding, all K-State faculty and staff as well as graduate and undergraduate student employees must get vaccinated or face termination. The university says Nov. 15 is the deadline to submit a request for a religious or medical exemption. Those requests will be approved or denied by Nov. 19. Nov. 29 is the last date for employees to upload proof of…