Public Meetings
As of Wednesday, October 25th, we’ve held 6 of the 11 scheduled community meetings to share information about the comprehensive planning process. Participation numbers have been impressive, with 10-30 people attending each meeting. (Trust me, those are impressive numbers for public meetings!)
To raise awareness, we mail a notification postcard to every resident in the township two weeks in advance of the meeting. While anyone can attend any of the meetings, we choose nearby locations in each district to make it as easy as possible for township residents to attend together as a group.
Public input survey
We've also received 480 survey responses so far, though some are only partially complete. The survey is open through December 1, 2023 and our goal is to reach 1,000 responses. Unfortunately, few of the people who attend the meetings have heard about the survey, so we will continue to work to raise awareness and encourage participation. We mailed an additional 250 notification postcards to random addresses outside of Manhattan city limits. We also spoke with our committee network to ask for their help in spreading the word on their social media and other public notification platforms.
The more public input we receive, the better we’ll be able to formulate a plan that accurately reflects the community’s vision for the future.
Random sampling of survey comments:
- Please make sure this update process is transparent and over-shared with the county residents.
- Keep growth near Manhattan/Ogden.
- Internet/broadband should be a priority for Riley County.
- Stop increasing taxes.
- Emphasize working together and forward thinking.
- I love the area and my job.
- It’s a beautiful area with easy accessibility to entertainment.
- The rural aspect of Riley County is a huge part of the community.
- Affordable housing is a huge issue.
- More resources for communities outside of Manhattan.
Sampling of demographics:
- Approximately 94% live within Riley County and, of those, 29.4% live in unincorporated Riley County.
- Almost 69% of respondents have lived in the county for more than 11 years.
- 78% own land here.
- The age range with the most respondents is 35-44 with 23.8%, followed by 45-54 at 18% and 55-64 at almost 18%.
- 67.3% work full time and approximately 19% are retired. 77.6% work in Riley County.
The public input survey takes about 10 minutes to complete. Please fill it out if you have not done so already and encourage your friends and neighbors to share their input, too. The survey will be open until at least December 1.