Manhattan City Government Seeks Resident Input Through 'Feedback Friday' Initiative

MANHATTAN, Kan. — The City of Manhattan has launched a weekly community engagement program called "Feedback Friday" to encourage residents to share their opinions on city services and municipal matters.

The initiative, promoted through the city's official social media channels, asks residents to participate in constructive dialogue about local government operations. According to a recent Facebook post from the city, officials emphasize keeping conversations constructive and note that personal attacks and insults do not benefit anyone.

This week's Feedback Friday question focused on digital communication preferences, asking residents whether they would like to receive more text notifications or badge notifications from a city app for non-emergency matters such as meeting notices, road construction updates and facility closures.

"We want your direct and honest feedback, but personal attacks and insults do not benefit anyone," the city stated in its social media post.

The city encourages residents who prefer not to leave public comments to contact manhattanks.gov/webmaster directly via email.

Manhattan operates under a five-member city commission that serves as the governing and legislative body, with commissioners elected at-large on a nonpartisan basis. City Commission meetings are held at City Hall, 1101 Poyntz Avenue, and are broadcast live on Cox Cable Channel 3, the city's website and Facebook.

Public comments about items not on meeting agendas can be made during the public comment section of legislative meetings each month. The Feedback Friday initiative appears to supplement these formal public participation opportunities by providing a more accessible, social media-based platform for community input.

The City of Manhattan provides municipal services for more than 50,000 residents. City Hall operates from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 8 a.m. to noon on Friday.

The program reflects a broader trend among local governments to use social media platforms for community engagement and to gather resident feedback on municipal services and policy questions.

Residents can follow the City of Manhattan's Facebook page for weekly Feedback Friday questions and other city announcements.