Olathe has started finalizing the details for its pending 119th Street “missing link” connection project.
The plan is to build out 119th Street where it currently gaps for roughly a mile between Northgate and Woodland Road.
Last week, the Olathe City Council voted 4-0 to approve two items related to the 119th Street improvements project. Those actions formalized the contracts for construction and other services related to the project with an estimated price tag of $55.7 million.
Councilmember LeEtta Felter asked to have the items removed from the consent agenda (which comprises multiple procedural items typically approved in a single vote without discussion) in order to recuse herself. She did not publicly state her reason for recusal.
Councilmembers Kevin Gilmore and Matt Schoonover were absent from the meeting last Tuesday.
119the St. is a gap in Olathe’s transportation system
Currently, as motorists travel west on 119th Street, it stops at Northgate. It picks up about a mile later at Woodland Road. The gap exists because of the BNSF railroad crossing, Mill Creek and the Gary L. Haller Trail.
Filling in the “missing link” will require a complete reconfiguration of the road in the area with a roundabout as well as a roughly 800-foot-long bridge that will cross the railroad tracks, trail and creek.
The city’s transportation master plan placed a high priority on this project, in part because of its ability to improve eastward travel in Olathe and the improvements in the connectivity between Interstate 35 and Kansas Highway 7.
Olathe plans other corridor improvements too
While the city reconfigures 119th St. with the roundabout and builds the bridge, other updates are planned in the corridor as well. That includes:
- Updates to the intersection at Northgate and Nelson
- Improvements to the intersections along 119th Street at Lone Elm Road, Cherry Lane, Iowa and Cherry streets.
- Pedestrian and bicycle safety upgrades in the corridor.
Next steps:
- Olathe is still on track to get work underway this fall, according to the project page.
- Construction will take years to complete, with an estimated full finish date in 2027.
- Find more information about the project, its timeline and other details here.
Keep reading: Olathe nixes rail grant for 119th Street ‘missing link’ project
