By Anthony Gorges
A ribbon-cutting put on by Visit Manhattan was held on Monday to officially open the new visitor's pavilion at the Konza Prairie Biological Station (KPBS).
The new pavilion is located at the trailhead entrance of the Konza Prairie Nature Trail at 100 Konza Ln. Inside the pavilion, several informative signs are displayed that detail the history and other facts about the Konza Prairie Biological Station and Trail.
Dr. John Blair, the Director of the KPBS and also a university distinguished professor (UDP) at Kansas State University, explained that the Konza Prairie Biological Station was established in the 1970s as a partnership between The Nature Conservancy, and Kansas State University. It is managed by the Division of Biology at Kansas State University. The KPBS is 8,600 acres.
"Konza is a special place to the public," Blair said. "It supports our local and regional community and provides them a place to come and experience the tallgrass prairie. It draws people from all fifty states and from other countries to come here to Geary and Riley County to experience some of the last remaining parcels of intact tallgrass prairie."
Jill Haukos, an Environmental Educator for the Konza Environmental Education Program (KEEP), explained that the pavilion and signage project is similar to a structure that she had visited in the Kansas City Area. "After we got that very general idea, I went to our staff here on-site, and the whole process progressed very quickly," Haukos said. "This has really gone from a general idea to a structure, to here we are, within one year. We are so thankful for all the people who were involved with that."
The announcement was made that the visitor's pavilion has been dedicated to Joe Gelroth, who has dedicated over 40 years to maintaining the nature trail. Gelroth said that it is an honor to be recognized.
Partners for the project included:
1998 Jack Goldstein Charitable Trust
Caroline Peine Charitable Foundation
Geary County Convention and Visitors Bureau
Earl and Marcia Allen
Joe and Janette Gelroth