10/06/26 City Commission Meeting

The City of Manhattan, Kansas, City Commission meeting on October 6, 2026, included several capital and public-finance discussions. The Commission unanimously authorized a city-state agreement with the Kansas Department of Transportation for signalization improvements at Casement Road and Hayes Drive (City Project ST2302; KDOT Project 8271). The project, supported by an approximately $500,000 Highway Safety Improvement Program grant with a 90/10 funding split, will add traffic signals and pedestrian crossings; design and easement work is expected in early 2027, with construction spending scheduled no earlier than October 1, 2027. The consent agenda also passed, including a professional-services study of stormwater drainage near Tuttle Creek Boulevard and other routine items. A resident raised concerns about a proposed road sales tax and debt; a commissioner stated the plan is pay-as-you-go, with no bonding planned.

The Commission unanimously accepted a petition for an additional 1% retail sales tax at Kansas State University and set November 17 public hearings on proposed CID, TIF, and STAR-bond measures for Edge District 3.0, a development discussed as a roughly $300 million project. These actions set hearings and did not approve the financing or development terms; commissioners emphasized the need to review a written agreement and proposed project benchmarks. The Commission also postponed consideration of the Historic Preservation Plan to a December 8 work session. No vendor contract award or vendor selection was identified.