Manhattan ? Kansas State University plans to help spark the revival of Aggieville, the popular shopping and entertainment district bordering the campus, university officials told Manhattan business leaders this week.

The university and its independent fundraising arm, the KSU Foundation, expect to play a role in planning for development, said Pat Bosco, Kansas State vice president for student life and dean of students.

“It’s a good time for us,” Bosco said. “We have a new president coming in. We have another record enrollment. Things are moving in a positive direction. We can come together to find a solution.”

Bosco and other leaders spoke at the Mid-Year Business Leaders’ Summit on Wednesday, calling Aggieville the “gateway to K-State,” and a “No. 1 brand” for shopping in Kansas.

The university speakers said vacancies in several commercial spaces showed that the area could benefit from development.

Kent Glasscock, executive vice president of the National Institute for Strategic Technology Acquisition and Commercialization, said he wants Aggieville to be a more comfortable environment, especially for those who have passed college and young adulthood.

“Folks like us tend to leave Aggieville at a certain time of day,” said Glasscock, a former Kansas House speaker. “This is about broadening and retaining the retail and residential properties.”

Glasscock said any such effort would affect the look and feel of the area. “What we do and do not do will frame the future of Kansas State University and Manhattan,” he said.

University officials said they plan to take action within the next couple of years. Kansas state is not proposing direct involvement in redeveloping properties, but rather in sparking discussion, officials said.