Manhattan, KS

[see_bella]

Anybody on here is from Manhattan, KS or planning to move there to go to KState? Suggestions on places to live and not to live would be awesome. I am looking for a 1bd and I have no pets. Accessibility to the grocery store/pharmacy would be great. I do not want to live too far from campus as I won't be going with a car.

Merci!

[STEAM116]

Haha, did you end up going to KState? I am applying and was sad when this thread was empty

[Patsdevotee]

Haha, did you end up going to KState? I am applying and was sad when this thread was empty

I do not attend KSU, but I grew up a half-hour outside of Manhattan. It is a quaint city but rural in its own respect too. KSU is an agricultural school. Aggieville is where everyone goes to hang out. There are not any "bad" areas to live bc it's not a metro city. The rivalry between KSU and KU renders a ton of fun. Kansas is a great place to live. I have been here all 30 years of my life.

[psych21]

I will have to say, though, that living in Kansas without a car is one of the most difficult things I've done in my life, no kidding. (Harder than writing a thesis and a dissertation.) I felt like I was freaking TRAPPED in my apartment. Public transportation around here is an effing joke. I live in Lawrence, but have lived in Emporia as well, and been car-less in both places at some point.

[ritapita]

Apparently Manhattan KS is not the talk of the town.  

 

I am seriously looking at feedback for others experiences here.  I am an outdoorsy person...hiking, etc.  I also can't live in an apartment (dog, and lots of stuff), and when I do searches for housing it seems awfully pricey...more than I expected.  I just need a small house with a yard and garage and those are running about the entire cost of my proposed monthly stipend. Crazy.  

 

Any insight would be great.  I am looking at doing 4 years max here...in and out with my phd...IF i accept my offer.

[simpleurban]

Apparently Manhattan KS is not the talk of the town.  

 

I am seriously looking at feedback for others experiences here.  I am an outdoorsy person...hiking, etc.  I also can't live in an apartment (dog, and lots of stuff), and when I do searches for housing it seems awfully pricey...more than I expected.  I just need a small house with a yard and garage and those are running about the entire cost of my proposed monthly stipend. Crazy.  

 

Any insight would be great.  I am looking at doing 4 years max here...in and out with my phd...IF i accept my offer.

 

Hey there! I just moved to Manhattan last August for grad school. So far, I like it. It's a very quaint and friendly town.

 

Outdoors: Manhattan is lucky because it is in the most scenic part of the state (by far, in my opinion). The Flint Hills are really beautiful, especially in spring and early summer when they turn vibrantly green. There is an area outside of town that is a sort of nature preserve/research area run by K-State and the Nature Conservancy called the Konza Prairie. It is a stunningly beautiful hike with several loops of varying lengths. There are also two massive lakes right outside of town (Tuttle Creek and Milford), and boating is apparently popular there. There are some other nature areas near town, but I haven't checked them out yet.

 

Cost: Yes, Manhattan is very expensive, by Kansas standards. The town is growing faster than they can keep up with which results in a housing shortage and high real estate prices. You might try looking to the east of Manhattan, just outside of town there are some more affordable options. 

 

Overall, Manhattan is a really nice place. Like someone else said, there are really no bad areas, and the whole community seems pleasant. It is a tad rural for my tastes. Jacked up pickups are the norm, which can get annoying (to me). But there is a good mix of people. Aggieville is where all the undergrads go to get wasted on the weekends, but there are some decent places there. Downtown also has some more upscale establishments. Hope this helps!

[ritapita]

Thanks so much!  Your feedback is really helpful.  What department are you in?  I am curious if I need to try to negotiate my stipend.  Still not sure if I will go there, but you really gave great feedback!

[simpleurban]

Thanks so much!  Your feedback is really helpful.  What department are you in?  I am curious if I need to try to negotiate my stipend.  Still not sure if I will go there, but you really gave great feedback!

 

Great! I'm glad that helped. I am in the college of Architecture, Planning, and Design in the Landscape Architecture and Regional and Community Planning program. I have only been funded for a year (I hope), but I think it varies quite a bit from college to college and department to department. Let me know if you have any other questions!

[HistoricScout]

I know this thread is a few years old, but I’ve accepted a PhD position at Kansas State for fall 2019 in their history department. 

Ill be moving from Indiana and I’m just wondering how Manhattan is. Is it easy to get around without a car the first year? Are there apartments close to campus that are pet friendly? I’ll have a cat with me. 

The campus looks really nice from pictures that I’ve seen. 

[Shnoztastic]

@HistoricScout, congratulations! Manhattan (or Manhappiness) is a great little city. Manhattan sits around 50,000 people. I'll admit that it does not have great public transportation. I grew up there before leaving for undergrad. Manhattan is one of the more expensive city's in Kansas but is consistently considered one of the best college towns in the country and is high up on listings of best places to retire. Since I've left, quite a number of student rentals have been built near Aggieville and campus. It shouldn't be too difficult to find a pet friendly rental bearish to campus. The campus is gorgeous! Most of the original buildings are limestone construction and the campus is pretty cohesive.