Author: Brandon Peoples

The Riley County Board of County Commissioners are planning to host quarterly meetings this year outside of Manhattan. Meetings will be held at 6 p.m. in the smaller cities within the county. Commission Chair Kathryn Focke says it’s important to make local government accessible to everyone and says she’s hoping to send the message that “commissioners are here to serve rural residents too.” The first of four meetings will take place March 30 at Riley City Hall. The next will be held June 29 at the Leonardville Community Building. The third quarter meeting will be Aug. 31 at the Randolph…

The Red Cross is encouraging residents to roll up their sleeves this week. The Manhattan Community Blood Drive will take place Monday and Tuesday at Pottorf Hall in CiCo Park. Red Cross Kansas District spokesperson Kristi Ingalls explains there are some added bonused if you come out to donate blood. She also recommends using the Red Cross Blood Donor App to schedule your appointment. Ingalls says the Red Cross is always aiming to keep the shelves stocked so blood is always readily available to patients who need it. Appointments can also be scheduled at redcrossblood.org. The drive runs from noon…

Plans are on hold for the Midtown Aggieville development after one of the project’s investors pulled funding. The Manhattan Mercury reported the pause Friday after Back 9 Development President TJ Vilkanskas said an unnamed investor was not making its deposited funds for the $53.9 million project, despite a prior verbal agreement. The amount invested reportedly amounted to half of the capital raised. Vilkanskas says the investor cited the final announcement of the K-State Foundation’s third office building as a main concern, as well as macro-economic factors such as the ongoing banking crisis unfolding. All land, labor and materials have been…

After the owner of Royal Towers failed to meet a March 16 deadline to correct walkways and stairwells spelled out in a previous Notice of Condemnation letter, the Manhattan Fire Department says the building will be placarded and a notice to vacate will be provided. According to the Department’s Office of Risk Reduction, a structural engineer is evaluating the walkways and determining a safe way for occupants to move furniture and heavy belongings out of the building, with plans expected to be made available by March 24. Once received, that plan will be communicated to management and residents who must…

Authorities say a teenage girl riding a bicycle was injured Thursday afternoon crossing Bluemont Ave. near the intersection of Manhattan Ave. According to the Riley County Police Department, a vehicle was headed eastbound through a green light as a 13-year-old girl rode through the intersection southbound and struck the side of the vehicle. Emergency personnel were dispatched to the scene shortly before 1 p.m. The child sustained currently undetermined injuries and was transported to Ascension Via Christi. Her condition is unknown at this time. Further details are pending a completed RCPD investigation.

11 a.m. Thursday update Riley County officials say a powerline that was struck by a fallen tree limb sparked a grass fire Wednesday in a rural area northwest of Manhattan. The fire scorched an estimated 400 acres in a wooded area near Keats along Hidden Valley Road. More than two dozen firefighters from Riley County Fire District No. 1, the Manhattan Fire Department and Fort Riley Fire spent more than four hours bringing the fire under control. One residence had to be temporarily evacuated for safety, but county officials say no structures or livestock were lost. No injuries were reported.…

Three people have been arrested in connection to a March 6 shooting at the Sunset Zoo parking lot, including the victim. The Riley County Police Department said Wednesday that 18-year-old Christian Soto, 17-year-old Edgar Torres and 23-year-old Carlos Rodriguez each face charges of aggravated robbery. An RCPD investigation led officers to believe the three robbed two other males, aged 17 and 20, at gunpoint. According to police, during that alleged robbery, Rodriguez was shot in the neck by the 17-year-old victim. By the time officers arrived, all parties had left the scene, except for Rodriguez, who was transported to Via Christi…

A Pottawatomie County felon is under investigation for alleged use of counterfeit money. According to the Riley County Police Department, 33-year-old Jamie Berges, of St. George, was arrested Tuesday after being transported from the Pottawatomie County Jail for a Riley County District Court warrant, for failure to appear. The warrant stems from a February 2020 incident alleging Berges bought cigarettes, using fake money. She remains jailed on a $40,000 bond. Berges has previous convictions for drugs and theft, according to the Kansas Department of Corrections. Online court records show Berges has two other pending cases involving burglary and theft out…

Manhattan Regional Airport is preparing for its major runway reconstruction this spring, which will include a three month closure of airport services beginning in May. The early stages of that project will begin with a temporary closure of the runway between 6 p.m. March 28 and 7 a.m. March 31. Engineer Diane Hofer, with Olsson provided a summary of what’s occurring during Monday’s Airport Advisory Board meeting. She says relocated threshold will be installed and crews will also work to paint numbers and move lights and signs as necessary. Both runways will remain open then from March 31 until May…

The Shawnee County Sheriff’s Office has arrested a Topeka man who led authorities from numerous agencies on a manhunt Tuesday morning that crossed into Pottawatomie County. Sheriff Brian Hill says 27-year-old James Brooks was arrested for burglary and four different types of theft, including theft of a firearm. Brooks is accused of stealing a pickup and attached livestock trailer from a residence north of Rossville around 5 a.m. Tuesday and later crashing it near a rural intersection northeast of St. Marys. After locating the abandoned truck, authorities established a perimeter and located Brooks nearby. He’s currently being held in lieu…