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The VOTER
President’s Message: Greetings –
As outgoing President of League, I would like to thank everyone who has been
such a wonderful help to me over the past three years. I worked with great Boards, wonderful
volunteers and a dedicated membership.
In fact, it was these individuals who did all the real work and accomplished
the many positive things that have happened during my presidency. I think the candidates’ forum we held on
March 25th was one of the most important ever as there were a number
of very new faces running for office and we had a chance to hear their ideas
and philosophies. Please come to the
annual meeting on Tuesday, April 10th, so that you can meet Nancy Boyda, have a chance to see League friends (and the
renovated Depot if you haven’t already seen it) and give me a chance to
personally thank you all. See you at
League. Annual Meeting is April 10, 2007 5:30 p.m. social time, 6:00 dinner, 7:00 Nancy Boyda will speak Catered by the Brookville Hotel -- $15/person R.S.V.P. to Karen McCulloh, 532-5671 or 776-6854 by April 6th We hope to see you there! March Lunch with League by Jurina Watts, 2nd Vice President Monty Wedel, Director of Planning and Special Development, Mr. Wedel presented a Map that identified Future Land Use for
*To view a
copy of the map for a complete breakdown of the future land use areas please visit
the Riley County Website and click on documents first, then Vision 2025, and
lastly maps. The Vision
2025 process includes current goals such as general development that focuses on
design, service, and environment; using prime land for agriculture and creating
solutions to land use conflicts; developing appropriate commercial and
industrial locations; promoting affordable residential areas with character and
sound infrastructure; and supporting the development of parks, schools, and fire
stations as well as good quality road and street systems. Issues with the
current plan are in the area of Agriculture.
The large lot zoning is not working. More definitive guidance and a review of the agriculture
exemption process are needed. Other issues include road capacity and dust
control, and small city growth. Edith L. Stunkel Good Government
Award The League
of Women Voters of Manhattan/Riley County is now accepting nominations for the
2007 Edith L. Stunkel Good Government Award. Please
nominate a person you or your organization believes should be recognized for
voluntary contributions to our community as described below. League members and
non-League members alike may submit nominations. About the Award
Established
in 2001, this award honors the efforts of long-time League member and public
servant Edith Stunkel to involve her fellow citizens
in government. She labored tirelessly to
create an atmosphere in our community where public input and public process are
highly valued and citizen involvement is expected, principles that are integral
to the League’s mission and philosophy. Founded by
activists who secured voting rights for women, the League of Women Voters has
always promoted the values and processes of representative government. Protecting and enhancing voting rights for
all Americans, assuring opportunities for citizen participation, working for
open, accountable, representative and responsive government at every level –
all reflect the deeply held convictions of the League. Who is Eligible
The nominee
must be a current resident of The
individual – whether an elected or appointed official or volunteer – typically
is noted for writing, speaking, organizing support for government or advising
on effective ways to deliver services to the public. This could be accomplished
in a variety of ways such as attempting to increase citizen participation in
government; educating the public about an issue; working towards more open
government; or involvement in ways that represent principles leading to better
decision-making. Current members of
the League of Women Voters Board of Directors are not eligible to be nominated. Sending a Nomination Please complete a nomination form and return it no later
than May 10, 2007 as follows: By mail to: Edith L. Stunkel Good Government
Award League of
Women Voters By e-mail: Request a digital
form and return completed form to Karen Mayse at karenluvsjazz@cox.net By fax: Please fax your completed form ATTENTION: KAREN MAYSE to
785-776-6190. The award recipient will be recognized at a reception on May
31, 2007 (details to be announced in the May Voter). Health Insurance Task Force by Karen Rappoport Last
spring, the Flint Hills Living Wage Coalition began a dialogue with other
organizations in The revised
position statement reads as follows: We believe
that all children in We ask the
State of We think
that all citizens need to have more and better information about health care
issues, including preventive health practices; we propose a central information
and referral service readily accessible to everyone. We support
initiatives to enable small businesses to furnish affordable insurance coverage
for employees through the creation of large pools of insured persons. We ask the
State Legislature to look at elements in plans adopted, or under consideration,
by other states such as We request
that the Governor continue the Health Care Cost Containment Commission and make
its recommendations known to the public; we expect the State of Oral Health Issues Forum By Karen Rappoport One of the
organizations involved in the Health Insurance Task Force is the Community Health
Council. Its executive director, C.
Clyde Jones, was instrumental in organizing an Oral Health Issues Forum in
February which was well attended by members of state and regional agencies,
local state legislators, our Superintendent of Schools, many area dental
hygienists and a few dentists. Speakers
dealt with the lack of dental care in the state for reasons including the lack
of providers - especially in rural areas; lack of insurance coverage; lack of a state
dental school; etc. But there were a number
of positive programs that hold promise, some of them in our own back yard, especially
1. Create
and implement a public education campaign addressing ways to prevent oral
disease, especially for school children. 2. Engage
school boards and school administrators to develop and implement oral health
policies and strategies. Examples
include oral health curricula for classrooms and "teeth healthy"
nutrition practices. 3. Create
and implement a coordinated system so that community dentists can provide
services to those going without, such as a Mini-KMOM (Kansas Mission of Mercy),
case management, and/or volunteering at a community dental clinic. 4. Ensure
that the community has an oral health coordinating council and identifies a
group to take leadership to implement and monitor an expanded oral health
system. LWVK Call to Convention The League: Legacy and Leadership On Saturday, April 28, 2007, the
Wichita Metro League will host the LWVK State Convention. It will be held at the Holiday Inn Select, Observer Reports League members report
on various community boards Board of Zoning Appeals Barbara Withee, Observer March 8: Board
Members: Connie Hamilton, Chairperson,
Harry Hardy, Vice Chairperson, Calvin Emig, Kate
Watson, La Barbara Wigfall The Board
approved on a 4-1 vote, with Watson voting against, the conditional use for a
social service facility at 519 A Conditonal Use permit was approved 5-0 for 2438 Vaughn to
allow continued use of a residence as a financial office for Bob Kruh, Observer March 29: Present: Johnson, The session
began at noon, and, following a suggestion by Linda Brown, there was brief
discussion of the possibility of establishing an advocacy center for abused
children. Mike Kearns
offered a proclamation recognizing April 8 -14 as Telecommunications Week in
order to express appreciation to the Public Safety Dispatchers of the Riley
County Police Department. Director
Watson reported that the national Commission for Accreditation of Law
Enforcement Agencies has renewed accredited status for RCPD, citing the
department for meritorious performance. Following
the practice of The board
received a trial budget for FY2008 and then went into executive session at
12:35 pm to consider the contract with the Fraternal Order of Police as well as
other legal matters. Barbara Withee, Observer January
18: Members
Present: George Ham, Acting Chairperson:
Stephanie Rolley; Mike Kratochvil;
Mike Toy; Mike Hill. Members
Absent: Harry Watts, Chairperson; Jerry Reynard. Actions
Taken:
Following the
Board actions above, the Annual Review
of Manhattan’s Comprehensive Plan
took place. The Flint Hills Regional
Growth Plan process now underway may identify a need to revisit the
Comprehensive Plan later. The city will
be working on issues regarding keeping pace with annexation and exploring
coordinated planning alternatives with The
Planning Board identified parks and open space, streets and traffic issues, and
continued expansion of the community as important issues to continue to work
on. They indicated that there were no
items identified that would require amending the Plan at this time. The Board asked staff about school districts
in relation to area growth. No comments
were recorded in this regard. February
5: Members
Present:
George Ham, Acting Chairperson; Stephanie Rolley;
Mike Kratochvil; Mike Toy; Mike Hill. Members
Absent:
Harry Watts, Chairperson, Jerry Reynard. Actions
Taken: 1.
Approved the final plat of the Townhomes at
Miller Ranch, located north of the intersection of 2.
Reviewed the south project area in the Manhattan Downtown Redevelopment
District for conformance with the Urban Area Comprehensive Plan. Eric Cattell,
Assistant Director for Planning, recapped the history of the project and
indicated that it conformed with land uses in the
Comprehensive Plan. The area was
approved 5-0. The Planning
Board continued discussion of suggestions received for the 2008-2013 Capital
Improvements Program. They approved the
following street improvements for inclusion in the 2008-2013 CIP: The following were also approved:
WORK SESSION following the regular meeting: The
Planning Board and representatives from Community Development, Parks and
Recreation and Public Works discussed issues relating to development in the
southwestern portion of Mary Ann
Fleming, Observer February
23: Treasurer
Tim Bagby reported that the budget situation is
normal for this time of year. Mr. Murphy reported that he and other staff have
participated in the Defense Department study looking at the regional impacts of
Two power-point
presentations were given. The first
dealt with planning for a pandemic flu outbreak based on Health and Human
Services studies. So far tentative plans
involve categorization based on fatalities in a particular area, with
recommended measures, e.g., quarantine, school closures, etc., for each level
of severity. The second power-point
presented a draft outline of the mayor's task force on child care in our
community. Jan Kruh, Julie Merklin, Lyndal Nyberg, Joan Strickler, Observers February 12 – Present: Michael Kearns (presiding), Alvan Johnson, Bob Newsome The Commissioners
signed a resolution urging that the federal and state governments retain
drivers’ license renewals at the local government level. The messages are to be sent to Senators
Roberts and Brownback, Congresswoman Boyda, Governor Sebelius, Kansas
Secretary of Revenue Joan Wagnon, Kansas Senator
Roger Reitz, and Representatives Tom Hawk and Sydney Carlin. Cheryl
Collins, Director of Riley County Museum, announced that the state has
allocated $111,000 for repair of Goodnow House. The museum requires $202,700 for both
interior and exterior renovation. February
15 – All
commissioners present Charlotte Shawver, Register of Deeds, discussed the preservation of
county records. Temperature and humidity are problems for paper preservation
in the building. She said that storage
in Jennifer
Wilson, County Extension Director, reported on the first meeting of the 2007
Fairgrounds Master Planning Committee. They
plan to compare the Riley County Fairgrounds with similar counties such as
Finney, Cowley, and the State Fairgrounds. A future concern of the fair is the
limitation of space. February 26
– All commissioners
present Commissioner
Kearns discussed concerns about a proposed bill requiring counties to initiate
a mill levy to pay for repairs of colleges or universities located in their
county. Commissioners agreed against
this. Clancy Holeman
said he would send a letter stating that John Cowan,
GIS Coordinator, presented a demonstration on the updated Riley County Community
GIS website. There are many layers of information to be found there, including
identification of land parcels, their ownership and valuations. Susie Burt
described a free service educational opportunity program provided by the Leon Hobson,
Director of Public Works/County Engineer, introduced Russ Rudy, who made a
presentation on the Facility Conservation Improvement Program (FCIP). March 5 - All commissioners present A canvass was
completed for the primary election, and all votes were found to be correct. Leon Hobson,
Director of Public Works/County Engineer discussed the sales tax fund and cash
flow for the department. March 12 – All commissioners present Personal
Property statements are due back on March 15.
Six thousand statements were sent out; 38% have yet to be returned. The appraiser's office has sent
reminders. If personal property taxes
have not been paid on time, persons cannot renew their car tags. Leon Hobson
reported that 37 people attended the annual meeting of township officers. They
had presentations and discussions on several subjects, including diesel
emissions, and what township officials should know, including liability
insurance. Greg
Eyestone, County Extension Agent, reported that there are nine people who are
taking Master Gardener training. Northview and Ogden schools are participating in the nutrition
study that includes vegetable gardens.
The garden tour will be June 3. Eileen King, Commissioner Newsome
again stated his displeasure with the unequal distribution of funds from the
road and bridge 1/2-cent sales tax. It
was promoted for road and bridge repair money, but the County share has reduced
to 35.5%. The city is using the
remainder of funds for economic development.
Rich Vargo, Leon Hobson
updated commissioners on the status of various projects. The new budget and finance officer, Jill
Tatum, was introduced. She recently held
a similar position with the Board of Education. Clancy Holeman conducted an administrative work session, including
an update on legislation which is still in committee and intended to protect
county interests in the 1/2-cent sales tax funds. Cheryl
Collins requested that commissioners accept a grant to the The museum
building expansion committee met and studied the needs on March 4. March 15 – Present: Alvan Johnson, Mike
Kearns Laurie
Harrison, Emergency Management, gave a report, noting that local Boy Scouts
toured the new mobile command post. They
had a presentation at the local amateur radio society meeting. They are training storm spotters. At present, Doug Messer,
Assistant Chief of the Rural Fire Department, gave commissioners a list of the
fire calls so far this year. There have
been 872 renewals of burn permits, and there have been a few people burning
without permits. At least one of the
fires got out of control and caused property damage. On March 20 there will be a prescribed burn
workshop. Volunteer firefighters are now
prepared for the upcoming pasture-burning season. Brome is being burned now, and native grasses
will be burned the second and third weeks of April. Charlotte Shawver, Register of Deeds, presented a report from Amy
King, a departmental employee, who attended a recent workshop on Commissioner
Newsome brought up the subject of county officials being appointed instead of
elected. Individuals may be interested
in attending the county department heads’ annual retreat on March 30, 9 am to 4
pm at the Depot. League members are
specifically invited to attend. Lunch
will be provided, and the morning agenda includes the following strategic plan
updates -- distinction between city and county services, leadership,
comprehensive planning, facilities, and economic development as well as
brainstorming on other issues.
Following lunch, Brent Bowman will discuss buildings’ space needs. There may be a ballot question concerning
appointments rather than the election of county clerk, treasurer, register of
deeds, and county attorney. Those
wishing to attend should notify Jennifer Wilson, County Extension Agent. Leon Hobson
oversaw a bid opening for a Jennifer
Wilson discussed leadership development programs. Ginny Barnard, Extension
Agent, said the Walk Kansas program started last Sunday, March 11, with over
180 teams and 1,092 participants. Each
participant is expected to walk two miles a day, five days a week, until May
5. A celebration is planned for May 10
at Pottorff Hall. Monty Wedel, Planner and Developer, announced that the city
commission discussed the “Vision 2025" program scheduled for March 15.
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