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Owner told county can reopen vacated Canary Road but must pay for engineering and construction under state law
Summary
Landowner Steve Conley told commissioners a vacated segment of Canary Road has left his recently purchased parcel landlocked. County staff explained an existing statutory petition process allows reopening, but petitioners must pay damages, engineering and construction costs, and meet county road standards, including a paved road requirement.
Landowner Steve Conley asked the Leavenworth County Board of County Commissioners to reopen a vacated portion of Canary Road that he said left his newly purchased parcel landlocked.
County staff explained a statutory process exists for reopening roads that have been vacated. Staff cited KSA 68-102 and the county’s local service-road policy: a petitioner may request the county to open a road but is responsible for the cost of acquiring right of way, paying damages to affected landowners, engineering and design, meeting county road-construction and stormwater standards, and ongoing maintenance. County staff said the county’s roadway construction standards currently require a paved road as the minimum for residential development and that the county does not maintain a gravel-road standard.
Staff told commissioners the parcel’s previous vacation dates back to about 1952, when Reno Township requested the west portion be vacated; the remaining portion was later vacated, which resulted in Conley’s parcel being landlocked. County staff said petitioners typically must provide engineered plans that conform to Leavenworth County Public Works and Planning & Zoning standards and that right-of-way acquisition would be required to widen an existing 40-foot travelway where necessary (staff noted the current historic-road width of 60 feet vs. the 40-foot standard cited for new openings).
Commissioners asked staff to gather maps, survey data and regulatory references and bring the item back; staff said the normal process is the petitioner files a formal application and pays the statutory costs, or the petitioner may pursue a private legal remedy. The board did not take immediate action and asked staff to present more detail at a future meeting so commissioners can evaluate options and costs.
