KSHB 41 reporter Elyse Schoenig covers the cities of Shawnee and Mission. She also focuses on issues surrounding the cost of health care, saving for retirement and personal debt. Share your story idea with Elyse.
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Officials in Shawnee will temporarily close Monticello Road at 60th Street from Monday, Aug. 4, to Friday, Aug. 8, for emergency stormwater pipe repairs.
These repairs are just a short-term fix ahead of a full-scale closure for complete repairs this September, which will close the area entirely for a few weeks.
Roadway plates cover the damage, which is near Mill Valley High School.
City of Shawnee spokesperson Doug Donahoo said the repairs couldn't be delayed any longer.
"Now, we have a situation where we have to both shore up the road in its current configuration and then replace that stormwater pipe in a few weeks," Donahoo said.
The combination of a failing stormwater pipe and July's heavy rainfall could create ideal conditions for another sinkhole to form. There's already a sinkhole further down along Monticello Road that's been there for several months.
"That is a sinkhole that is also opened up due to a stormwater pipe just reaching the end of its age limit, and that replacement will also happen in the near future," Donahoo said.
Donahoo said the failing pipes, which were corrugated stormwater pipes, have reached the end of their 20 to 30-year lifespan. He said the repairs will install reinforced concrete pipes, which should last up to 100 years.
He also said these repairs are possible thanks to a bond issue approved by voters back in 2023, known as the Parks and Pipes sales tax.
"That sales tax is very specific in its usage, and part of its creation was to replace this corrugated metal pipe," Donahoo said.
Nearby neighbors are hoping for quick repairs, especially with the school year about to begin.
"School starts in about a week," said neighbor Anthony Carlson. "The kiddos are gonna be back over here, and it's going to create a bottleneck if they're still working on it once school begins."
According to the city of Shawnee, detours will be marked along Shawnee Mission Parkway, Woodland Drive and Johnson Drive.
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