Manhattan City Commissioners continued their budget discussions during Tuesday’s work session and reviewed multiple funding requests from outside agencies.
Of all agencies requesting funds, the Flint Hills Area Transportation on Agency had the ask with the highest percentage increase of 105%. This would bring the ATA’s funds from $143,000 in 2023 to $293,000.
ATA Executive Director Anne Smith said this request is high, but feels the economic contributions made by ATA help warrant the increase.
Deputy City Manager Jason Hilgers said there may be options to help provide more funding for the organization. He said collaboration on city projects might be one solution.
The commission agreed it would be worthwhile to look into that option to help provide the funding. Commissioner John Matta also suggested seeing what the city-university fund can contribute, along with the other communities serviced by ATA.
Additionally, the Aggieville Business Association, Downtown Manhattan Inc., the Manhattan Arts Center and the Riley County Historical Society-Wolf House requested funds equal to those received last year: $60,000, $93,000, $43,700 and $5,000 respectively.
The board also expressed their support in Manhattan Area Technical College’s request of $200,000 annually for five years to help fund their Advanced Technology Center.
Manhattan Public Library initially requested $750,000 for their employee benefit fund, which reflected a nearly 10% property valuation rate. They instead asked to return with a lower request after learning the city is aiming closer to 6%.
Also during the budget discussions, commissioners considered funding for the Special Alcohol Fund and the Community Support Funds Advisory Board.
After failing to receive enough support in previous discussions, Commissioner Wynn Butler said he still wants to look into utilizing the Special Alcohol Fund for the mental health co-responder program for RCPD.
City Manager Ron Fehr said he does not disagree with Butler’s reasoning, but further research needs to be done to determine the legality of using the funds in this manner.
Commissioners were also presented with possible funding options for the Community Support Funds Advisory Board. Butler suggested allocating a set amount to prevent discussions of needed increase down the road.
Ultimately, the commission agreed it was most reasonable to proceed with a 6% increase from the $526,000 allocated in 2023.
