Leavenworth County’s Board of Health voted to declare a house at 20505 Tonganoxie Drive in Tonganoxie uninhabitable after county staff described extensive unsanitary conditions and a recurring utility shutdown that created a public-health hazard.

Public Health staff told the board the principal structure has been repeatedly without water and electricity, and staff documented a basement leak estimated at about 5,000 gallons per week that drains into the septic system, which is not designed to handle that volume. The board adopted Order 2025-15, which deems the structure a public nuisance and requires it be torn down or remodeled to comply with county regulations before it may be reoccupied.

The order formalizes findings from a site visit and states county staff posted an "unfit for human habitation" placard on Nov. 20. A county volunteer who entered the home with Leavenworth County Humane Society testified to the conditions: "the house was covered in feces, top to bottom," and she said there was no running water when she entered. The volunteer, Sierra Jost, told the board about helping remove roughly 10 dogs from the property. Leavenworth County Humane Society was identified in testimony as participating in the animal removal.

County staff told the board a property owner will receive a letter outlining due-process rights and may appeal the order to district court or agree to either demolish the structure or submit a remodeling plan that demonstrates compliance with minimum habitable-space criteria. Planning and zoning will review any remediation plan and inspections would be required before the structure could be reoccupied. Staff also told commissioners that, under Kansas law as explained in the hearing record, counties cannot assess demolition fees back to a property owner (a city can), so any county-led demolition costs would not automatically be billed to the property owner.

The board’s action followed staff recommendations and public testimony. Commissioners recorded affirmative votes to adopt the order; the meeting record shows the motion and second were made and that the present commissioners voted in the affirmative. The order will remain in effect until the structure is demolished or remodeled to meet county regulations; enforcement, including sheriff involvement to secure the placarded structure, was described as a possibility if people occupy the home while the order is in effect.

Next steps outlined at the hearing include written notice to the affected parties, the right to appeal to district court, and follow-up inspections by planning and zoning if the owner submits a remediation plan.