On Monday, Tonganoxie City Council members approved the de-annexation of four tracts of land on Rogers Road, which is in the extreme southeast portion of the city. The property owners told city officials that they wanted to leave the city because they don’t have access to city water or sewer service. They said they pay full city taxes to receive only police and fire protection.

They live on the west side of Rogers Road, which is in the city. The east side of the road — which is known as 214th Street — is in the county.

And their road is generally not well-maintained. The street is narrow, with deep drainage ditches on either side. The city has looked into laying asphalt, but officials have determined it was cost-prohibitive.

But the property owners hope that might change — once they join their neighbors on the west side of the street who are in the county.

“I believe it will be better maintained,” said Richard Lenahan, one of the property owners. “The maintenance will be better.”

Lenahan said he and other property owners will donate ground, if it would help improve their road.

“We didn’t want to force local taxpayers to fix the road,” he said.

Both Lenahan and property owner Bob Hunter previously had asked the city to de-annex their property, but the requests had been rejected.

Shaun and Monica Gee are taking a wait-and-see attitude about the road, but they’re hopeful they will find strength in numbers as they approach the county about road work.

“The only thing that’s going to change is we’re going to pay less taxes,” Shaun Gee said. “We’re going to have the same service we had before. The other fire department is only a couple of miles away.”

The owner of the fourth piece of property, Jim Rogers, said he’s hopeful the road will improve.

“At least we’ll probably get something done one way or the other now, instead of bouncing back and forth between the county and the city, and the city and the county,” Rogers said.

The council unanimously OK’d the de-annexation, contingent on the city receiving a legal description from Hunter.

“Your action tonight, I consider binding,” Mike Crow, city attorney, told the council. “They’re depending on it.”