Author: Brandon Peoples

The Pottawatomie County Sheriff’s Office may soon take over dispatch for the Wamego Police Department. During a Monday budget work session with the county commission, Sheriff Shane Jager said he was approached by Wamego City Manager Stacie Eichem about that possibility. Jager says Wamego has struggled in recent months to staff the dispatch center. “Also, with Wamego they have four full time dispatchers right now, one part time dispatcher. I would request that we have four additional dispatchers to help with the additional traffic,” Jager said. Jager told county commissioners that his office has already taken overnight shifts from WPD.…

Manhattan residents may notice steam coming from manhole covers throughout the city. That’s because the city today is beginning annual cured-in-place pipe sewer lining projects. The annual maintenance is done to help slow the deterioration of sanitary sewers as they age. The city uses the trenchless pipe rehab technology that installs a resin-infused tube into a deteriorated line. This process results in a seamless, jointless “pipe-within-a-pipe” with a smooth, continuous inner surface. Some temporary traffic disruptions should be expected. Notable project areas include Dickens Avenue, the intersections of Claflin and Denison, Denison and Hunting, Stewart Court, Grandview Terrace, Wildwood Lane,…

Uncertainty remains over how Pottawatomie County will go about finalizing its draft regulations governing solar energy farms. County Planner Stephan Metzger sought guidance from county commissioners Monday, over how to best proceed. Commissioner Pat Weixelman says he believes the draft as written currently takes away local control. Metzger says some of Weixelman’s concerns were actually addressed by planning and zoning. He spoke to a concern in the regulation regarding ground cover where the panels would be placed. Metzger mentioned a sticking point in his draft regulations that has planning commissioners split over the required foot length for setbacks for some…

No injuries were reported after a suspect fired a gun early Sunday in the Aggieville area. According to Riley County Police, officers filed a report for aggravated assault, criminal discharge of a firearm and criminal damage to property near 12th and Bluemont Ave. Police say an unknown suspect pointed a gun at a 26-year-old male victim shortly before 2:30 a.m. The suspect reportedly fired the gun, damaging a window at the Courtyard by Marriott hotel. The victim was not injured. The estimated total loss was approximately $300. Police have not identified a potential suspect. The case remains under further investigation.

A 12 person passenger bus, retired by the Flint Hills Area Transportation Agency, was officially donated to Morning Star CRO Friday. Morning Star Inc. CRO serves clients in substance abuse recovery or suffering from severe mental health matters. Elizabeth Stitt is the a driver and peer support specialist with Morning Star. She says having this bus will help the organization tremendously, since many of their clients can’t drive. The agency currently serves about 70 Manhattan residents. Stitt talks about how Morning Star helped her come over her struggles with isolation. Morning Star co-executive director Richard Stitt explains more about Morning…

Help wanted signs are popping up everywhere across the region including local government. Assistant Pottawatomie County Administrator Officer Heather Gladbach says there are close to a dozen vacancies in the county offices, including six positions in public works. The public works administrator position has been vacant since December when former administrator Peter Clark announced his resignation. Dustin Newman served in the role on an interim basis, before he resigned in May. Commission Chair Greg Riat says many of the applicants for the position have lacked the necessary hands-on experience the county is searching for. Riat contends that even with the…

Governor Laura Kelly proclaimed June as Kansas Dairy Month Thursday with a stop at Hildebrand Farms Dairy. During her visit, which also included Secretary of Agriculture Mike Beam, Kelly pledged support for dairy farmers, who produce over 4 billion pounds of milk each year, generating over $668 million to the Kansas economy. Last year, the Kansas dairy industry increased milk production by more than 5 percent. Hildebrand Farms has been in operation since the 1930s and continues to sell milk in glass bottles at 120 stores throughout Kansas. Gov. Kelly will return to the Flint Hills for a ribbon cutting…

A Manhattan woman has been charged with driving under the influence following an injury crash at Tuttle Creek Blvd. and Kimball Ave. Wednesday morning. According to the Riley County Police Department, 38-year-old Teena Whitmore was southbound on Tuttle Creek Blvd. around 8 a.m. Wednesday, driving a Mini Cooper when she struck a sport utility vehicle head-on at the intersection. The driver of the SUV, 48-year-old Julie Overstreet, of St. George, was sitting at a red light in the inside northbound turn lane on Tuttle Creek Blvd. Both were transported to Ascension Via Christi for minor injuries. Police later arrested Whitmore…

The Kansas Department of Transportation has approved June bids for state highway construction and maintenance. Among the bids approved this month is one totaling just over $800,000 for pavement marking on a stretch of K-18 in Riley County. It spans from approximately the Geary/Riley County line east to the K-113/Seth Child Road junction. Cillesen and Sons, Inc. of Sedgwick County was awarded the bid. Additionally KDOT in May approved a bid totaling nearly $386,000 to Ebert Construction of Wamego for a bridge replacement over Swede Creek northeast of Randolph. The full statewide list of June bids are below. District One…

Imagine having your student debt wiped clean. It happened for 122 students at Manhattan Area Technical College. President Jim Genandt tells KMAN the college used funds from COVID-19 relief to pay off student debt incurred between Spring 2020 and 2021. This was done for students who had entered college but couldn’t keep going because of the pandemic, due to whatever interruptions that were pandemic related. Administrators announced the move last Friday, cancelling more than $170,000 in debt. Genandt says students who owe the college money, typically receive a hold on their accounts until the debt is paid off. All told,…