The "Manhattan Optimist Club Bulletin": Vol. 2025 #30: 5-21-25
VOLUME 2025 MAY 21 NUMBER 30
The May 21, 2025, meeting of the Manhattan Optimist Club was presided over by Vice-President, Kelly Karl. Greg Wurst presented the Reflection which was followed by the flag salute.
Danielle Dulin, Manhattan City Manager, presented a program on “Manhattan City Government.” She began as the City Manager in October of 2024. She is from southwest Kansas and has a bachelor’s degree from K-State as well as a master’s degree in public education from the University of Kansas. Before being hired by the Manhattan City Commissioners, Danielle was the City Manager of Warrensburg, Missouri, home of the University of Central Missouri. Danielle was quoted in the Mercury as saying, “The vibrancy of this community immediately draws you in and the energy that is here”.
12th & Moro is shut down to replace aging infrastructure and beautification. This project will last about 30 days. Parking in the Aggieville parking garage will be free during construction. Once this project is complete, construction at 12th & Laramie will be next.
Two private investment projects will be coming to downtown Manhattan: The Hartford Building at 8th & Poyntz, and Wareham Hall renovations. The Hartford Building is being built on the former Commerce Bank site and will include apartments and retail space. The $8 million Wareham Hall project will renovate the concert venue.
North Campus Corridor work continues. Dennison & Kimball is open and construction in that area should be completed by mid-June. New things are planned for the Edge District.
Anderson Avenue will be closed soon, from Sunset Ave to West Loop, for infrastructure updates.
Cico Park updates are in progress. This project is funded by the 2017 quality of life sales tax. They are working on baseball fields, track, and tennis courts.
Danielle mentioned that Manhattan does not have enough affordable workforce housing and that it is hard to draw businesses into an area that doesn’t have enough places to house its workforce.
A KDOT study will be done on the East Manhattan Gateway at U.S. 24 & McCall Road. Results of the study will be used to create a vision for the development of this area and find opportunities for development.
Danielle also briefly discussed the city budget. A Budget Open House is being planned for August at the Eisenhower and Anthony rec centers so city officials can engage with the community and answer questions about the budget and how tax dollars are spent.
The Bill Snyder half marathon is this coming Saturday. Eight volunteers have signed up to help: two more spots are open.
Gary Lloyd and Clyde Scott appeared on the KMAN morning show to discuss our club activities and upcoming Optimist Musical Instrument Drive which will be held from June 2-7, 2025. Our club received a $1000 matching grant from Optimist International for this program.
Bruce Bidwell announced that T-Ball season begins June 9 and will last 6 weeks. Games will be held on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays at Optimist Park. Volunteers for supervisor positions and umpires are needed: signup sheets are on the tables.
The meeting closed with the Optimist Creed.
MAY 28: NOON MEETING: Phil Anderson & Tracey Anderson – Anderson- Knight Architects: “Manhattan Riverfront Project”
JUNE 4: MORNING MEETING: PROGRAM: Katherine Hensler – Dock Dogs Diving: Topic: “3rd Annual Dock Dogs Diving Contest”
JUNE 11: NOON MEETING: PROGRAM: Annual Flag Day Celebration at Optimist Park: Topic: “Flag Day Celebration (with catered lunch)”
JUNE 18: MORNING MEETING: PROGRAM: Trase McQueen, KSU Researcher on Memory and Aging: Topic: “Memory and Aging Research”
JUNE 25: NOON MEETING: PROGRAM: Respect for the Law, RCPD Officer Recognition: Topic: “Respect for the Law”
