| Manhattan, KS is known for being the home of Kansas State University and being one of the cities with the highest percentage of high school graduates in the U.S. It has a low unemployment rate and crime has been dropping in the area as well, with violent crime dropping by a whopping 44 percent over the last five years. This doesn’t mean that it wouldn’t be beneficial to have a home security system, however. Overall Crime Rate The overall crime rate for the city is 6 percent higher than the U.S. average, with residents having a 1 in 33 chance of becoming the victim of some type of crime in any given year. This makes it safer than about 30 percent of other cities in the country. There are about 19.87 crimes per 1,000 residents committed in the city each year or about 65 crimes per square mile. This is more than twice the national average of 32 crimes per square mile, but this higher number is partly due to the higher concentration of people in the city. Violent Crime Rate The violent crime rate in Manhattan is below the national average of 3.8 crimes per 1,000 residents at 1.94 crimes per 1,000 residents due to the recent drops in violent crime. The potential risk of a resident of the city becoming a victim of some type of violent crime in any given year is 1 in 517. Property Crime Rate The property crime rate is also below the national average of 24.9 crimes per 1,000 residents at 19.87 crimes per 1,000 residents per year. The potential risk of a resident of Manhattan becoming a victim of some type of property crime in any given year is 1 in 50. The most common property crime is typically theft, followed by burglary. You can lower your risk of becoming a victim of burglary by one-third by installing a monitored alarm system and posting the signs that state that you have an alarm system. This is because almost two-thirds of burglars will pass by homes with alarm systems in favor of homes that are easier targets. In about 30 percent of all burglaries, the criminals are able to waltz right into the home through an open door or window, so be sure to secure all potential entrances. Other steps homeowners can take include getting a dog, using motion-activated lights by all entrances, taking part in a neighborhood watch program and not having bushes or trees right next to the home that burglars could use to help them sneak up to the door undetected. Rear sliding glass doors and front doors tend to be the main points of entry, and most burglars head right to the master bedroom to look for valuables, so store them someplace else. Safest Areas Within the city, there are some areas that are safer than others. These neighborhoods include Riley/Leonardville, Anderson Avenue/Kimball Avenue and Fort Riley Boulevard/Eureka Drive. Avoid purchasing a home in the neighborhood of Fort Riley Boulevard/Yuma Street, as this is the most dangerous neighborhood in the city. Those who’d like to move to a nearby town with a lower crime rate may want to consider Riley, Ogden or Grandview Plaza. Don’t move to St. George, as it has an even higher crime rate. Police Presence Manhattan has an agreement with other towns in the county so that they are all served by the Riley County Police Department, which has 205 employees, including 107 police officers. This means that there is a ratio of about 1.4 police officers per 1,000 residents in the county, which is lower than the average ratio for Kansas of 2.5 officers per 1,000 residents and the national average of 3.3 officers per 1,000 residents. Having fewer officers can mean that response times are longer and case clearance rates are lower than average. Response time in Manhattan can be as long as 20 to 30 minutes for calls that are deemed as being lower priority, which would include most unverified burglar alarm reports. To get a quicker response time to a burglar alarm at your home, consider getting a video verified system so the police will know that they are responding to a true burglary in progress and not a false alarm. More than 95 percent of burglar alarms turn out to be false alarms, wasting the time and money of the police department. As most burglars aim to be in and out of the home in less than 10 minutes, a fast police response time is key to catching them and potentially getting any stolen property returned. At the very least, an alarm system that takes videos can be used to try to help find and prosecute the burglars after the fact. The national case clearance rate for burglaries is just 12 percent. Alarm Considerations Residents of Manhattan that wish to have an alarm system need to register it with the police department and get a permit, which involves a one-time fee of $25. The first three false alarms in any calendar year will be free of charge, but the fourth false alarm will cost you $50 and the fee will increase by $50 with each subsequent false alarm until it reaches the maximum fee of $250 each for the eighth and any subsequent false alarms. Don’t forget that alarm systems aren’t just good for limiting the risk of burglary. They can also be turned on while you’re at home to limit the risk of violent crimes and be connected to smoke and carbon monoxide alarms so should these alarms go off, help will be sent right away. |
