On Friday’s edition of In Focus we spoke with K-State Riley Co. Extension Director Gary Fike. We also spoke with Manhattan CVB Director Karen Hibbard. Rose Ditto and Joyce Mermis previews the Wamego Holiday Home Tour And Laura Munsch with Ambucs previews an event happening Dec. 10 at the MFD Fire Station.
Author: KMAN Staff
Riley County commissioners approved $121,231 to be transferred from the Riley County Public Works to the county CIP fund on Thursday. Public Works Director Leon Hobson presented major transfers to parks related CIP funded projects. The department has $60,000 for a community line item divided up between all of the parks. Hobson says they would like to move that leftover money to the CIP fund to then designate it for the Keats Shelter and Playground equipment. They also have some additional funds from projects they were not able to get to. $20,000 will be used for the Keats Shelter project…
The USD 383 Manhattan/Ogden School Board gave final approval last night to name its planned new elementary school Oliver Brown Elementary. Assistant Superintendent Eric Reid says he is looking forward to the educational pieces they will add to the building. He spoke with Brown’s daughter Cheryl Henderson-Brown about clearing up some of the history for the public. “First of all, it wasn’t Oliver Brown who was suing the Topeka school district, it was the NAACP and Brown was one of the representatives,” says Reid. Brown was named the lead plaintiff because the list was alphabetical and his name was the…
The Manhattan Emergency Shelter, the city’s only homeless shelter, is giving people a chance to give back in a creative way through their Adopt-N-Ornament Tree. The tree is decorated with ornaments containing wish lists belonging to people staying at the shelter. People wanting to participate can pick out ornaments, get the items on the list, and then bring them back to the shelter until Dec. 16th. According to Jessica Wilkus, the donation and volunteer coordinator for the shelter, donating through the Adopt-N-Ornament Tree helps a little extra because it assists a shelter that is largely reliant on supplies given by…
Thursday’s program featured National Bio and Agro Defense Facility officials including Dr. Ken Burton, Director of USDA APHIS, Marty Vanier, Director of the National Agricultural Biosecurity Center and new Communications Director Katie Pawlosky. Manhattan Emergency Shelter Inc. Volunteer and Donation Coordinator Jessica Wilkus joined us to discuss the shelter’s adopt an ornament tree and other needs at the shelter. VFW Post 1786 Commander Dan Watkins also joined us to reflect on Pearl Harbor remembrance, the holiday season and an upcoming Christmas celebration at the post next weekend.
A log jam was recently cleared by Manhattan Parks officials along Wildcat Creek near Pecan Circle, south of K-18. It had formed following the 2018 Labor Day flood when high waters damaged stream banks and toppled trees as tall as 60 feet. In a release from the City of Manhattan, Park Superintendent Casey Smithson said, “The area has a bend greater than 90 degrees and it represents a pinch point. When the large trees became lodged, they trapped a lot of additional debris.” With help from Hummel Tree Service, using winch trucks and a crane, 251,000 pounds of wood debris has been removed…
Manhattan is waiving more than $90,000 in utility connection and building permit fees for a planned low-income senior living development. The City Commission approved the waiver for the project in Lee Mill Village Tuesday by 4 to 1 vote with Commissioner Wynn Butler opposing. Manhattan had previously agreed to sell the 19 lots to the Manhattan Area Housing Partnership in January. The land was bought by the city in 2012 on a tax sale after a previous development struggled to get off the ground. The land has been slow to sell, leaving Manhattan covering the special assessment taxes and collecting…
The following summary of calls for service/reports filed by the Riley County Police Department is a portion of those received by police. Some names, addresses, and case details are withheld to follow local, state, and federal law as well as in an attempt to protect community members from being victimized further. Those arrested are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. MANHATTAN, KAN. – Officers filed a report for aggravated burglary in the 300 block of North 5th Street in Manhattan on December 3, 2019, at approximately 11:10 AM. Officers listed a 53-year-old male as the victim when…
Wednesday’s program featured a conversation with USD 383 Manhattan/Ogden Superintendent Dr. Marvin Wade and board member Jurdene Coleman ahead of their meeting. We also got a preview of Sunday’s McCain Holiday Home Tour with Chair Julie Keenan, K-State Chief of Staff Linda Cook and homeowner and Holiday Home Tour board member Amanda Purdom.
For the first time in over 10 years, a new tree will be used in the 34th annual tree-lighting ceremony in Triangle Park. “We lost what people know (as) the mayor’s tree in Triangle Park back in March,” Casey Smithson, the parks superintendent for the Manhattan Parks and Recreation Department, said. “Just getting prepped for the holiday season, we just a couple weeks ago put a new 18-foot-tall Colorado Blue Spruce back in the park. It had time to rest a little bit, we’ve got lights hung on to it and we’ll be in preparation for the tree lighting coming…