State Ag Department Could Be Moving To Southwest Kansas

The Kansas Department of Agriculture is considering moving its headquarters from Topeka to Manhattan or southwest Kansas.
The state department that handles facilities for state agencies is soliciting bids for office space in Topeka, Manhattan and Great Bend, Garden City and/or Dodge City.
Agriculture department official Max Foster said Monday the department’s lease in an office building in downtown Topeka ends Sept. 30, 2013.
Secretary of Agriculture Dale Rodman said in a statement that the department has been working for the past six months to find a space that meets all the department’s needs.
“As KDA receives more information about all possibilities, we will begin reviewing all available options while focusing on the core responsibilities of the department and providing those in the most efficient and effective manner possible,” Rodman said.
The bid solicitations being published in newspapers statewide say the department needs space for 20 to 180 workers. It has some 172 employees in its Topeka office and would