From a new-look city council to preparing for the World Cup, 2025 was a time of evolution and promise for the city of Shawnee, with more changes on the way.
That was the message articulated by Mayor Mickey Sandifer during the annual State of the City address, delivered Thursday, Feb. 26, at the B&B Theatres Shawnee 18 in Shawnee’s Midland Entertainment District.
It was Sandifer’s third address in his tenure as mayor.
Even the location of this year’s address was meant to convey a message: solidarity with businesses in the area of Midland Drive and Interstate 435, which have faced challenges over the past year and a half amid ongoing highway construction.
Here are four takeaways from Shawnee’s latest State of the City address, which can be viewed in its entirety at the city’s Facebook page here.
A new-look governing body takes over
In November, Shawnee voters elected four new city councilmembers to its governing body, ousting two conservative-leaning incumbents on the city council (two more conservatives did not run for reelection), completely remaking the ideological bent of that governing body.
Those elected included Steele Reynolds, Eric Persson, Morgan Rainey and Erin Aldridge.
In his speech last week, Sandifer celebrated the changes to the Shawnee City Council, noting that the councilmembers’ platforms aligned with some of his top priorities when it came to housing and infrastructure, including adding “missing middle” housing in the city.
“The vote made it clear that (voters) want more diverse housing options in our city. They want more economic development in our city, and they want local leaders, both public and private, to work together to make sure that growth benefits all of Shawnee,” he said.
Shawnee is preparing for the World Cup
With the World Cup coming to Kansas City this summer, the city of Shawnee is preparing for both an influx of tourists and celebrations, including the Americana and Ales festival, a music and beer festival planned for June 20, in downtown Shawnee during one of the group stage matches that will be played in Kansas City.
As part of last week’s State of the City event, business owners and city leaders discussed their preparations and excitement for the 2026 FIFA World Cup and how it could impact the city.
“We’re lucky to be in a very sports-forward city with the Chiefs and Royals having a lot of success. But if you travel to Europe and experience football in those cities, and the passion of those fans, it pales in comparison, and that’s what’s going to come to our city,” said Nathan Ryerson, co-founder of Friction Beer Company in downtown Shawnee and organizer for Americana & Ales.
Restaurants in Shawnee are preparing for a potential bump in business by looking into new menu items, as well as technology to serve customers, including handheld card readers, city officials say.
Bars and restaurants, like Friction, which already hosts Soccer Saturdays watch parties on Saturday mornings, are planning to host events during the World Cup.
In addition, Theatre in the Park at Shawnee Mission Park, within the city’s limits, will be hosting World Cup watch parties, with the aid of Johnson County Park and Recreation District’s recently purchased screen.
Shawnee underwent a lot of development
The city’s decision to move the annual State of the City event to the newly dubbed Midland Entertainment District was no mistake.
In his speech, Sandifer acknowledged the hardships businesses in that area have faced over the state’s project to build a new bridge on I-435 over Midland Drive. That replacement project lasted 16 months and cut off traffic to many of the district’s businesses.
While that project finished in August, new work to widen lanes and add sidewalks along Midland Drive is expected to kick off this month, which will prompt more road closures.
Sandifer encouraged people to continue supporting businesses in that part of the city.
“Customers may have been slow to return to this area. I encourage all of us to make sure we support the businesses in the Midland Entertainment District,” Sandifer said.
The speech also celebrated other projects completed over the past year in other parts of the city, including the opening of a free fitness park near Garrett Park and the re-opening of a revamped Garrett Park itself, which is set to be unveiled with a ribbon-cutting this Saturday.
“Garrett Park was one of the very first parks that was developed through the Parks and Pipes Sales Tax. Now, there will be a brand new destination playground added to this location,” Sandifer said.
Local high schoolers in the spotlight
Sandifer took time in his address to highlight a number of Shawnee high school students who have been recognized recently for their academic and athletic achievements.
That included:
- National Merit Scholarship semifinalists Rachel Joseph, Nathan Turvey and Ian Weatherman of Mill Valley High School and Andrew Crainshaw of Maranatha Christian Academy.
- All three student media outlets at Shawnee Mission Northwest High School earned Top 10 Best of Show honors from the National Scholastic Press Association, including its video production program KUGR, Lair Yearbook and Northwest Passage newspaper.
- Northwest Passage co-editor and SM Northwest senior Sofia Ball also won the 2026 Kansas High School Journalist of the Year.
On the field and on the court, Sandifer acknowledged local athletic achievements, including:
- Mill Valley High School Girls Track & Field team winning the Kansas 6A State Title.
- 115 students from Shawnee Mission Northwest and Mill Valley High School athletes signing letters of intent to continue their athletic careers in college.
He also recognized four city departments in Shawnee that continued their streaks of being nationally accredited, including the police, fire, public works and parks and recreation departments.
Closing out his speech, Sandifer expressed hope that the city’s current and future leaders will be good stewards and representatives this summer when an unprecedented influx of visitors is expected to come to the metro for the World Cup.
“Now, the current generation of our Shawnee leaders and future generations have an opportunity this summer to grow those connections and make new ones as we welcome an even larger international community to our city,” he said.
