Leavenworth residents say city drainage work has carved a channel through yards, causing ongoing erosion and safety risks

Several residents told the Leavenworth City Commission that city stormwater work or permitted subdivision construction has created a man‑made drainage channel that is eroding backyards and threatening structures.

Liberty Hazleton said, "the city's drainage construction design approved or carried out by either city crews, contractors, or under city issue permits has created a man made water channel that runs through my property." Hazleton, who gave her address as 3400 Iowa Street, said the erosion has advanced "more than 2 feet a year" and that city inspections have documented failing stormwater infrastructure feeding the problem.

Brenda Reza, a licensed in‑home daycare operator who also lives on Iowa Street, said the channel "has carved through all the properties behind Iowa Street, including mine." Reza told commissioners she has lost "more than 5 feet of land" since moving in and more than "10 feet in total" since the problem began, and warned that a transformer pole anchor near her shed is now compromised, creating a public‑safety risk.

Lori Laps, who said she lives at 3412 Iowa Street, said a structural engineer told her in 2021 that the piping carrying stormwater from Hughes into her property "is gone" and that a 10‑foot steel culvert remains partly exposed and hanging. "No one has addressed this issue," Laps said, and she asked the city at a minimum to inspect her property and to prioritize remediation.

Other residents described similar drainage failures nearby. Jeff Rutledge, who lives near Sixth and Walnut, reported a large sinkhole with a galvanized cover collapsing toward a culvert. Justin Day said about 4 feet of his creek‑side property has eroded in four years and that his fence is falling into the channel.

Speakers asked specific remedies and transparency: Hazleton requested the city disclose any public repair priority list, explain how properties are added to it, and state current funding for repairs. Reza asked the commission to "stabilize the land, protect nearby infrastructures, and do so with the smallest environmental footprint possible." Several speakers asked the city manager or staff member Scott to follow up and inspect the sites.

Commissioners did not take formal action during public comment. Staff and the city manager were asked on the record to follow up with the residents who raised the concerns.