Author: Troy Coverdale

Manhattan City Commissioners agreed to publish a high-end of 3.5 for a mill levy increase ahead of a pair of 2022 budget hearings in September. Earlier this summer, the commission had agreed to publish a potential mill levy increase of 5.079. Mayor Wynn Butler was emphatic at the time that he would not agree with that much of an increase, and reiterated it Tuesday night. City staff was recommending the higher number in an effort to restore services and staffing that have been cut over the past few years. Butler criticized that approach, saying the focus needs to be on increasing…

The Riley County Commission will incentivize employees to get COVID-19 vaccinations. Commissioners voted 2-1 Thursday morning to pay employees one hundred dollars upon proof of vaccination. Benefits eligible employees will also receive an additional scheduled annual day of leave time. Employees will have a two month period to get vaccines, allowing for the time necessary for the dual-dosing required for the Moderna or Pfizer shots. The topic gained traction after the commission earlier this month discussed COVID protocols going forward, electing not to implement a mask mandate for county buildings. Human Resources Manager Elizabeth Ward said in following up with…

A local developer is proposing an estimated 40-million dollar project that would supplant the parking lot at 12th and Laramie in Aggieville, and will begin negotiations with the city on a final plan after getting City Commission approval Tuesday night. Back 9 Development’s T.J. Vilkanskas noted that the proposed retail, office and residential space would cost the city nothing, other than selling off the parking lot for one dollar. Vilkanskas says the estimated property tax impact could reach between one and two million dollars annually plus another 413 thousand dollars in sales taxes. Vilkanskas also projects 700 jobs to be created…

A new report from the Riley County Police Department shows more thefts of motor vehicles in the month of July than at any other point of 2021. Keys were left in five of the ten stolen vehicles in July. The jump in thefts comes during a stretch that has seen double digit numbers of vehicles stolen in five months of the past year. 10 or more vehicles were stolen in each September, October, November and December of 2020. There were also 16 burglaries from vehicles in the month of July and it’s projected that the number of those incidences will…

Junction City Fire was called on twice to deal with apartment fires Thursday. The first caused 15-thousand dollars damage to apartments at 238 East 14th, having started in a vacant apartment before one in the afternoon. An apartment next door suffered smoke damage and cats from inside were returned to their owners. The second fire call sent JCFD to 935 Windward Drive as the deck for a third-floor apartment had caught fire. That blaze was limited to the deck area and caused an estimated 10-thousand dollars damage.

The USD 320 Wamego School Board has put a mask mandate in place for the school year that starts next week. Interim Superintendent Greg Mann tells KMAN the district board voted 4-3 to implement the mandate. The board did agree to allow exemptions to the mandate, similar to how exemptions are handled related to activities by the district. In a memo sent to staff this week, it’s classified as a “religious exemption” to mask mandates. The district sought advice from its legal counsel and are accepting the exemptions. Mann says school boards are being put into a no-win situation with…

Eighteen new coronavirus cases in Riley County since Monday have brought the total of people infected with one of the CDC-labeled variants of concern to 100 going back to December. There are currently 130 active cases of coronavirus according to the Riley County Health Department, which says nine people are currently hospitalized. Four of those patients are being treated in Ascension Via Christi’s intensive care unit. Capacity issues have resulted in some needing treatment for COVID-19 to be transferred from Riley County to other hospitals in the Midwest, according to the health department. According to one hospital official Wednesday, the…

The first of the legislative redistricting listening sessions this morning saw commenters specifically focus on one criticism: the fact the meetings were being held before Census numbers are released. That included Manhattan State Representative Sydney Carlin. Manhattan-area State Senator Tom Hawk noted that changes passed by the Legislature included a revamping of how students and military in his current district will be counted. Some in attendance made it clear they expect the legislature to draw the new maps based on political matters and don’t want that to be the basis. Linda Uthoff with the Manhattan/Riley County chapter of the League…

The city of Manhattan will again require staff and visitors to wear masks in indoor facilities starting Monday. City Manager Ron Fehr announced the mandate in a Friday afternoon press release, noting that the requirement is only for the city-operated facilities and does not mean that there’s a city-wide mask ordinance. Fehr says the decision is based on recent CDC and Riley County Health Department recommendations as the county is among those dealing with high transmission rates of coronavirus. As of Thursday, there were 150 active cases of coronavirus in Riley County, per the health department.

The first legislative redistricting public input listening session will be Monday morning in Manhattan. The joint House and Senate committees on redistricting will meet at nine in the ballroom of the K-State Union, launching a five-day, 14 city tour of the state. Each stop includes a 75-minute hearing. U.S. Census numbers from last year are to be utilized for the adjustment of the various boundaries, but they have been delayed and may come out while the Legislators are part way through their tour. Democrats have criticized starting the process while those numbers haven’t been released, but Republican leadership has promised…