Author: Brandon Peoples

Pottawatomie County Public Works officials are working to replace a rural bridge following a structural failure recently Interim Public Works Administrator Dustin Newman told county commissioners Monday the failure was on an old stone bridge on Victory Road, an unpaved county road, just south of the Excelsor Road intersection, near Onaga. “It washed out the road. We had a citizen call us and let us know. We found out shortly after we closed the road there’s a business down there, so we worked as fast as we could to get our temporary bridge up, so we have the road back…

Riley County on Monday launched a new online, self-service scheduling system for COVID vaccinations. Vaccine appointments are now open to all residents 18 and older who have not yet received the shot. Anyone interested can go to rileycountyks.gov/vaccinerequest. All first and second dose appointments this week will continue at Pottorf Hall in CiCo Park. Starting next week, the health department plans to administer first doses at the health department, at 2030 Tecumseh Road. Second shots will continue at Pottorf Hall through mid-May. The health department is planning a vaccine Facebook Live event Wednesday at 4:30 p.m. with area physicians on…

Riley County Police say one person was hospitalized after being struck by a car Sunday morning. Officers responded to an injury accident near College and Kimball Ave. just before noon Sunday. According to its incident report, 68-year-old Marian Brandenburg of Manhattan, was found at the intersection and was transported to nearby Ascension Via Christi for treatment of injuries. Police say 19-year-old Talitha Peverill was issued a citation for failing to yield right of way to a pedestrian.

A Manhattan man is jailed on a host of charges after police say he broke into a home and was found in possession of stolen items and drug paraphernalia. Riley County Police charged 28-year-old Tony Hoover Thursday with nine total counts including aggravated burglary, two counts of criminal trespass, possession of stolen property, interference with law enforcement, possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia. He’s additionally charged with two counts of failure to appear. Police listed three victims when Hoover allegedly broke into a home in the 1000 block of Pierre Street. Hoover remains jailed on a bond of $20,545.

More than 800 acres were scorched in a wildfire in northern Riley County Friday afternoon The fire, first reported around 2 p.m. forced a temporary closure of Blue River Hills Road, west of Tuttle Creek Lake. In addition to local volunteer firefighters, two 600-gallon Kansas Forest Service contracted tankers were brought in to assist along with aircraft called in to fight the fire from above. Fire units from Waterville and Fort Riley were also called in to help. Riley County PIO Alice Massimi said some structures in the path of the blaze had been threatened but no damage was reported.…

Sales tax revenue in Pottawatomie County was up in 2020, despite the economic downturn associated with the pandemic. Pottawatomie County Economic Development Corporation Executive Director Jack Allston highlighted the figures from the corporation’s annual report. “And mostly due to the fact that some of the big boxes are in Pottawatomie County, grew from $5.3 million to $5.7 million in sales tax revenue, which is again really good for the county,” he said. Property tax revenue also increased $1.6 million and has increased by $3 million between 2018 and 2020. But perhaps most surprising was the real estate market. In Pottawatomie…

One of the biggest blows to Manhattan out of the pandemic has been the loss of the use of Kansas State University’s Natatorium. At a virtual town hall with faculty and staff Thursday, K-State Chief of Staff Linda Cook said the university is in the early stages of conversations with a local committee that includes representatives from the city, USD 383 and the Marlins swim club for a replacement indoor aquatic center. “They’re coming up with some proposals of some of the existing pools, how they might be enclosed and trying to determine how much support the community would have…

Update: 10 a.m. Thursday The man shot in the Manhattan Town Center parking lot Wednesday evening is reportedly in critical condition at a Topeka hospital. Riley County Police said Thursday morning the 33-year-old man was involved in an road rage incident in Manhattan and threatened two people with a crowbar. Police say a 20-year-old woman and 21-year-old man were victims in the altercation. The 21-year-old man reportedly shot at the alleged attacker, in apparent self-defense, and the crowbar-wielding man fled the scene. He was later located near 3rd and Kearney suffering from gunshot wounds. Police say the he was initially…

Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly is likely to come down with a new statewide mask order Thursday. As has been the case during the pandemic, counties have the option to override the governor’s orders and opt out, but doing so requires a special meeting. County Counselor John Watt informed Pottawatomie County commissioners Monday of their options if they chose once again to opt out. “If you want to set a special meeting, my recommendation would be to do it on Friday, because you have no idea what she’s going to do on Thursday, and when she’s going to be doing it,”…

A Riley County judge has sentenced one of four individuals for his role in a 2019 fatal attempted robbery. After pleading guilty in February, 21-year-old Dylan Hitsman, of Abilene, was sentenced Tuesday to nearly 24 years in prison on charges of second-degree murder and aggravated battery. Chief Judge Grant Bannister presided over the case. Hitsman will serve consecutive sentences on both charges, including 253 months on the murder charge and 32 months for the aggravated battery charge. He’s also been ordered to pay more than $17,000 in restitution to the victim’s family. Hitsman, along with his brother Jaylon, Richard Goens…