Manhattan City Commission Work Session - March 16, 2026
Manhattan City Commission Work Session - March 16, 2026
The Manhattan City Commission held a work session on March 16, 2026, to receive updates on tourism performance, the Anderson Avenue construction project, street maintenance plans, stormwater management, and housing policies. Commissioners heard public testimony on multiple items and provided direction to staff for future actions.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Visit Manhattan Presentation: Amber Starling (408 Houston St.) questioned strategies for flat visitor numbers and the impact of gas price increases on tourism. Jason Smith (Chamber of Commerce) defended the CVB's performance, noting that the Livestock Association conference was retained for three successive years and that holding flat numbers was a success given the exceptional 2023.
- Anderson Avenue & Roundabouts: John Ball (College Heights Baptist Church) thanked the city and contractor for keeping the church informed. Carol Baldwin (755 College Heights Circle) opposed the proposed roundabouts, stating that roundabouts do not decrease accidents and that community opposition was strong.
- Housing Policies: Melbourne (1918 Humboldt St.) urged expanding workforce housing funds to renovation and rehab of existing owner-occupied structures and noted many dark homes. Josh Brewer (Habitat for Humanity) supported year-round applications, expanding eligible uses to include accessory dwelling units and land acquisition, and reforming the steering committee. Amber Starling reiterated her earlier comments, criticized chamber representation, and proposed building a large facility with housing authority. Lindsay Lopy (3821 Silverleaf Dr.) suggested per-unit funding instead of 10% cap to reach lower AMI levels and year-round applications. Craig Lopy (same address, New Place Development) agreed, noting the 10% cap limits projects targeting 80–100% AMI.
Visit Manhattan Quarterly Update
Marcia Rosell, Executive Director, presented 2025 tourism data: 1.4 million inbound trips, $162.6 million visitor spending, average stay 3.2 days (first in state), 56% occupancy, $3.1 million transient guest tax (TGT) collected (21% from short-term rentals, up from 17%). January 2026 TGT collections showed increases over 2025. Conferences and sports events are tracking well with notable spikes from DECA and Kansas HOSA. Short-term rental listings averaged 337/month in 2025; only 58 are registered with the city, raising concerns about unregistered units and TGT collection. Commissioners questioned the disparity and strategies to boost visitation. Rosell noted increased digital marketing and World Cup outreach.
Anderson Avenue Intersection Study & Construction Update
Public Works Director Bryan Johnson presented an update. Winter storm Fern cost $147,000 with 72-hour operations. Anderson Avenue phase 1A/1B is underway. A traffic impact study for the Unger property conversion to residential showed lower peak-hour traffic than when it was office. Accident data (2018–2024) showed crashes concentrated at driveways. The city recommended against traffic signals or roundabouts at Timberlane and Bellhaven intersections due to low volumes and cost, but will monitor. Bayer Construction proposed closing Anderson from Timberlane to Wickham from May–August 2025 (and several 5-day closures in fall) in exchange for a $72,000 reduction. Commissioners expressed support for closure but wanted a larger credit; direction was to negotiate further with Bayer and seek better terms. Roundabouts were shelved for now, but Commissioner Fox emphasized monitoring accidents. Driveway closings were left open for future consideration.
Street Maintenance & Pavement Plan
Johnson outlined $3 million in sales-tax-funded street maintenance for summer 2025, including mill/overlay and concrete work in various neighborhoods. Commissioners noted Hudson Avenue needs but were told it will be addressed in 2026 after water main design. Commissioner Morrison suggested bonding for more work; a detailed discussion is scheduled for March 24.
Campus Creek and Downtown Watersheds
Johnson reported a $115,000 Corps of Engineers grant for modeling. The city seeks to partner with K-State on detaining water on campus to reduce downstream flooding costs. The study cost is estimated at $400,000, with city share (~$200,000) from in-lieu fees ($300,000 available). Commissioners approved issuing an RFQ with a selection committee including K-State and possibly commission members.
Housing Policy Discussion
Stephanie Peterson presented an overview of the housing market analysis, workforce housing tools, and policy outcomes. Since 2022, the city has used sales tax exemptions, property tax abatements, IRBs, and RHIDs to incentivize housing. To date, 184 units were assisted at an average of $35,000/unit; workforce-specific units (62) cost $29,000/unit. The 10% project cost cap was identified as a limiting factor. Peterson presented projections showing available cash remains positive. Commissioners shared varied views: Commissioner Morrison advocated for more owner-occupied units, land trust, and eliminating residential tax abatements (IRB and RHID), while Commissioner Fox opposed RHID and IRB abatements but supported the sales tax exemption. Commissioner McCullough urged case-by-case evaluation and exploring new construction types. Mayor Czech wanted to refine criteria to prevent student housing and maintain the April 2026 application round. The consensus was to direct staff to draft policy revisions (e.g., lower AMI targets, year-round applications, per-unit caps, owner-occupied focus) and return for further discussion. The idea of reconstituting a steering committee was deferred.
Key Outcomes
- Visit Manhattan: Report received; no formal action.
- Anderson Avenue Closure: Direction given to negotiate a larger credit with Bayer and move forward with closure; roundabouts shelved but monitoring continued.
- Street Maintenance: $3 million plan noted; bonding discussion to follow on March 24.
- Campus Creek: RFQ for study approved.
- Housing Policies: April 2026 application round to proceed; staff to bring back policy amendments for commission consideration. No formal votes were taken as this was a work session.
Note: The meeting was adjourned at approximately 8:50 PM.
Meeting Transcript
Jason, would you call the role, please? Mayor Adam Czech. I'm here. Commissioner McCullough? Commissioner Fox. Here. Commissioner Morrison. Here. Commissioner Von Lennell. Here. You have a quorum. Thank you. Will you please rise and join me in the Pledge of Allegiance? Thank you. Commissioners, any comments, any news to share? I just want to thank all the public servants that helped with Thank Patty's Day. So that was a lot of overtime, I'm sure, for some of them. Thank you. Commissioner Morris. Commissioner Fox. This is International Women's Month, and the AAUW and Ucia Reddy had a wonderful dinner last Sunday night with four panelists who are all amazing young women at K State, some international. The other thing I'd like to mention is this past week, uh, General Monte Roan, the commanding general of the first infantry division traveled to Washington to witness the posthumous awarding of the Medal of Honor to Command Sergeant Major Terry Richardson. Um Sergeant Major Richardson is the 39th member of the first infantry division to receive the Medal of Honor. He served in Vietnam, drafted in 1967. He was a platoon leader. He was in an instance where he came under intense fire, rescued three wounded soldiers, climbed a hill to call in tactical air support, and realized that he was, as he went over the hill that the Viet Cong were on the other side of the hill. Nevertheless, he stayed for seven hours, called in 32 strikes, and is considered to be responsible for saving the lives of 85 people in his platoon. So we talk about our relationship with Fort Riley. I think it would just be it's appropriate to acknowledge that honor. I actually heard it on national radio as well, and so it was nice to have that recognition. All right. Thank you all. Um tonight is a work session. Our first presentation will be from Marcia Rosell on our visit Manhattan quarterly update. Good evening, Mayor, Commissioners, Marcia Rosell, Executive Director of Visit Manhattan. Okay, I don't think I have this open as a slideshow. There we go. Is there a way to make this full screen? I brought there with a flash towards here if that's local. Thank you, Jason. Okay. Just a reminder the mission of Visit Manhattan is to inspire and attract outside visitors that will come and spend dollars in our community. As the destination marketing organization, our role encompasses six areas of focus. We promote the destination brand to attract visitors through advertisement, digital marketing, public relations, content creation, and storytelling. The goal is to shape the perception and inspire the travel demand. We actively sell the destination for meetings, conferences, sports and special events while working with planners, submitting bids, and promoting local venues. This excuse me, this drives high value visitation with economic impact. Once the groups are booked, we provide exceptional service support, such as welcome materials, marketing assistance, and on-the-ground logistics to ensure successful events and repeat business. We connect visitors with hotels, attractions, restaurants, and local business through our website, itineraries, references, and trip planning tools, acting as an unbiased information hub. We engage our hospitality partners to align efforts and broadcast our amazing amenities.
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