Key Johnson County bridge and roadways reopen, ending construction a year early

Midland Drive at Interstate 435 is back open in Shawnee, bringing a year of construction, road closures and detours to a close.

Last summer, the Kansas Department of Transportation embarked on completely restoring the I-435 bridge decks over Midland Drive. The phased, $1.18 billion project also improved bike lanes and sidewalks, installed new stormwater pipes and fully resurfaced Midland Drive.

During its closure, the construction also alarmed several business owners in the Midland Entertainment District, the city’s hub for dining, entertainment and recreation.

The district sits east and west of I-435 and is home to five hotels, several restaurants, a bowling alley and Shawnee Mission Park. Now that the project is over, businesses and residents can breathe a sigh of relief.

“The City of Shawnee is extremely pleased to have the Midland/435 intersection back open for our businesses, residents, and visitors,” Shawnee Communications Director Dough Donahoo said in a statement. “We especially appreciate KDOT and their contractor working hard to finish the project successfully well ahead of the original schedule.”

The project was originally slated to take almost two years. Donahoo said that KDOT and its contractor “did everything within their power” to complete the project as efficiently as possible, finishing in just about half the initially anticipated time.

Shawnee announced the project’s completion in a Facebook post, which garnered hundreds of comments, celebrating the news and expressing gratitude that the businesses survived construction.

“We also greatly appreciate the patience of our businesses, restaurants, hotels, and other entertainment venues in the Midland Entertainment District through the entire project,” he said.

“The City understands it wasn’t easy and we hope all those businesses flourish in the coming months with the full re-opening of the intersection.”

In the city’s post and Donahoo’s statement, Shawnee invited residents to continue to visit the Midland Entertainment District to celebrate the road’s reopening.

“We know folks made an effort to support all of those businesses during construction and we know they’ll continue to support those locally owned businesses now that it’s even easier to get to the area.”