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Leavenworth County declares 2210 Ottawa Street uninhabitable after fire; owner given weeks to comply
Summary
After a March fire destroyed the primary residence at 2210 Ottawa Street, the Leavenworth County Board of County Commissioners, sitting as the Board of Health, declared the property an imminent hazard and unfit for habitation. A contractor volunteered to clean the site; county staff gave the owner a short window to present a plan for compliance.
The Leavenworth County Board of County Commissioners, convening as the Leavenworth County Board of Health, voted to adopt Board Order 2025-4 declaring the property at 2210 Ottawa Street, Leavenworth, Kansas 66048, to be an imminent hazard to the public and uninhabitable following a March fire.
The order, presented at the county meeting, blocks habitation of any structures on the parcel until the owner either demolishes the remaining structures or remodels them to comply with county zoning, subdivision and sanitary codes. Planning and zoning staff told commissioners the property has been in repeated violation of county regulations since about February 2015 and that the primary residence was destroyed by fire on the night of March 13–14.
Planning and zoning staff said county inspectors posted notices on March 20 on both the primary residence and an outbuilding, declaring them unfit for human habitation. County legal staff told the board the declaration does not by itself authorize the county to use public funds to demolish the property; separate action would be required for the county to assume demolition expense and those funds could not be assessed back to the property.
At a public hearing on the order, contractor Daniel Esterline told the board he and volunteers will clean debris and help the owner, identified in the meeting as Mr. Haddock. Esterline said the cleanup will be done pro bono, that he will secure the site while work proceeds and that he plans to submit rebuild plans within about 30 days. Planning staff said the owner will be given a reasonable compliance period and that the county typically asks for a timeline within 14 days and expects substantive progress within 14–30 days; if the owner fails to act, the county may return the item to the board for further action.
The board moved and seconded adoption of Board Order 2025-4; the roll call showed the commissioners present voting in favor and the order passed.
The action prohibits anyone from occupying structures on the property until the owner brings the site into compliance or the structures are demolished. County staff said the order opens enforcement and remediation options but does not itself obligate county funds to demolish the buildings.
