The Public Works Administrator for Geary County, Corey Trumpp, has announced that the county contracted a two-inch asphalt mill and overlay with APAC on Old Highway 77. The starting date is planned for July 24th. Duration of the project is planned to take 10-14 days, depending on the weather.
Traffic control will be limited to one lane and will be directed by flaggers and a pilot car. Depending on traffic volumes, delays could be expected from 5-10 minutes.
Rebecca Nordyke, Geary County Clerk, has announced that her office will be open until 7 p.m. on Tuesday, July 17th, to assist citizens in registering to vote.
She is reminding the public that Tuesday is the last day you can register prior to the primary election on August 7th.
Citizens should re-register if they have moved or changed their names. if a citizen is not certain if they are registered correctly they should contact the County Clerk’s Office at 238-3912 or check online at www.voteks.org, choose the “what is my registration status, polling place and ballot” icon.
Fort Riley bid farewell to Garrison Commander Col. John Lawrence on Friday and welcomed the incoming Garrison Commander, Col. Stephen Shrader.
The change of command ceremony was held at Ware Parade Field at 500 Huebner Road ( Photos courtesy of Nita Miller ).
The Junction City – Geary County Metropolitan Planning Commission has given the green light for three steps related to the new Junction City High School project.
They have approved the preliminary plat, recommend the rezoning of the school site north of K-18 and west of the city from Agriculture District to Multi-family Residential District, and a special use permit to allow for a school on property zoned multi-family residential.
One topic of discussion involved the need to pave Munson Road on the west side of the new school. MPC Chair Maureen Gustafson said she would like to say that officials would like to be able to pave all the way around the school so there are not a lot of issues there. “You start driving buses and you start driving a number of cars down the gravels roads, and I’m sorry, I’m not going to disagree with the people that live out there. They’re going to deteriorate very quickly. If we can address the drainage issues and somehow or another put a comfort level on how the roads are going to be sustained I think we will have a lot of frustration on our hands within the city and the county.”
School bus access is planned to the school via Munson Road on the west side of the property, with much of the general traffic entering the site from the Karns Road – K-18 intersection.
There are plans to extend Karns on the east side of the property north to Rucker Road. But there will have to be discussions with the county about helping pave Munson Road since the right of way on that road will remain in the county.
There will be a 14-day waiting period for any protests and then the MPC recommendations will go to the Junction City Commission for action on annexation, the rezoning and special use permit for the school site.
MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) — A Manhattan man has been sentenced to life in prison for killing his ex-girlfriend’s baby.
Andrew Gibson, 28, must serve 25 years of his sentence for first-degree murder in the May 2016 death of 3-month-old Serenity Reich before becoming eligible for parole. He also was sentenced Thursday to three years for child abuse.
Gibson previously dated Serenity’s mother, Ariel Reich-Wille. While she was out of town, Gibson volunteered to watch her two children, including Serenity, at his apartment.
While being interrogated, Gibson told investigators he pushed the infant’s face into a mattress top. A medical examiner determined Serenity died from asphyxiation. The medical examiner also found bruises on the baby’s scalp and upper back, as well as multiple rib fractures that had started to heal.
The need to pave a portion of Munson road running along the west side of the planned new Junction City High School site is becoming a topic of conversation.
That was part of the road layout explained by Leon Osbourn, Kaw Valley Engineering, at a Metropolitan Planning Commission. “We have to improve Munson Road going north. It’s going to have to be because of the amount of traffic that could be coming in and out of there.” Osbourn added there is an effort to try and convince the county to blacktop Munson Road to Rucker Road.
There are also plans for a roundabout at Karns Road and K-18 on the east side of the school site, and discussion has begun about the need for a possible second roundabout at Munson Road and K-18. There is also an intention to extend Karns Road north to Rucker Road.
This is planning time for the new school, which is not scheduled to open until August of 2021.
New lighting and a sidewalk have been installed along K-18 running west out of the city.
This has been part of a city project that will help improve access for pedestrians to the west side of the city. The goal is to eventually have the sidewalk go all the way west to the new Junction City High School after it is built( Photos courtesy of Junction City Public Works Director Ray Ibarra ).
The City of Manhattan has issued some precautions you can take to you and your neighbors are able to deal with the summer weather safely.
Never leave children or pets alone in hot vehicles, check on family members and neighbors, especially those who are older, If you have to be outside wear light, loose-fitting clothing, drink plenty of water to stay hydrated and take frequent breaks in the shade.
Know the signs of heat-related illnesses such as heat exhaustion and heat stroke, avoid high-energy activities, stay indoors n an air-conditioned area as much as possible, and check on your pets, bring them inside and provide them with plenty of cool water.
In Manhattan cooling locations open to the public include the Douglass Community Center, Flint Hills Discovery Center, K-State Student Union, Manhattan City Hall Lobby, Manhattan Public Library, Manhattan Town Center, Riley County, and the Riley County Seniors’ Service Center.
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In Junction City some cooling locations include the Dorothy Bramlage Public Library, Geary County Health Department conference room, or the Junction City Municipal Building Gym.
POTTAWATOMIE COUNTY —One person was injured in an accident involving a Union Pacific train in Pottawatomie County.
At approximately 7 am on Wednesday morning, a Union Pacific train approached the rail bridge over the Big Blue River east of Manhattan.
An adult male in his mid 30’s was seen lying between the tracks on the bridge, according to Union Pacific spokesman Jeff DeGraff.
The man was alerted by the sound of the oncoming train and attempted to get out of the way but was struck as the train passed over him.
He suffered minor injuries and was transported to a local hospital. Union Pacific Police are coordinating with Pottawatomie County Sheriff’s on possible citations for trespassing on the bridge.
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POTTAWATOMIE COUNTY —One person was injured in an accident involving a Union Pacific train in Pottawatomie County.
Emergency crews responded just after 7 a.m. Wednesday to the railroad bridge over the Big Blue River just east of Manhattan in western Pottawatomie County.
A train struck and injured a person on the bridge, according to Sheriff Greg Riat.
The injured person was transported to a local hospital, according to Riat.
The Union Pacific Railroad is investigating. The sheriff’s department had no additional details early Thursday.
ABILENE, Kan. (AP) — A former sheriff’s lieutenant was placed on two years of probation for stealing more than $22,000 in cash from the Dickinson County Sheriff’s Office.
Forty-nine-year-old Gregory Swanson was sentenced for felony theft Wednesday after pleading guilty in April. He also admitted stealing more than $3,400 in money used by the Drug Enforcement Unit to buy narcotics.
The Salina Journal reports Swanson expressed remorse before being sentenced. He was ordered to serve five days in jail before his probation.
He resigned in May 2017 after serving in the sheriff’s department for nearly five years. He also agreed to permanently forfeit his law enforcement credentials in Kansas and other states. He worked for 19 years in the Saline County Sheriff’s office before moving to Dickinson County.
