Independence City Council ‘indefinitely’ postpones studying changes to Truman Connected Phase II

INDEPENDENCE, Mo. — KSHB 41 reporter Tod Palmer covers sports business and eastern Jackson County, including Independence. Share your story idea with Tod.

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The Independence City Council postponed issuing a change order for a design contract related to the second phase of the Truman Connected project along Sterling Avenue.

The city has an existing design contract with Burns & McDonnell for the 2.6-mile project, but a new concept, which calls for adding a roundabout on Sterling at the Sheley Road intersection and moving bicycle lanes onto widened sidewalks rather than on the street, expanded the scope of the project from possibly impacting 20 properties to 178.

The new proposal was revised “through public outreach,” according to an April 2026 letter from Burns & McDonnell to the city’s project engineer, Adi Al-Smadi. It would create wider shared-use paths off the roadway, which would require moving some utilities, among other changes.

The seven-member council unanimously voted Monday to delay approval indefinitely.

“It leaves it on the table that, if at some point in the future you want to bring it back and have us explore adding that multimodal, then that option exists in the future,” City Manager Troy Anderson said when explaining the council’s options.

The revised plan, the study for which would cost an additional $118,212, has drawn criticism from some residents, but others who spoke at the meeting urged the council to move forward.

Tony Sommer noted that the council approved the Independence Transportation for All Master Plan two years ago. Four current council members — John Perkins, Brice Stewart, Heather Wiley and Jennie Vaught — voted for the master plan.

“To me, these plans are no-brainers,” Sommer said. “They’re right in line with the plans that we already have in place.”

Independence Director of Municipal Services Mike Jackson said Sheley Road was chosen for a roundabout because it was an angled intersection with poor sight lines in some places.

Roughly halfway along the proposed route, from U.S. 40 north to Winner Road, Jackson said it also was an ideal place for traffic-calming measures to reduce speeding in the corridor.

Wes Epperson, a former UPS driver, also supported the project and noted that, according to a Missouri Department of Transportation report, roundabouts “reduce injuries, reduce crashes and ... save lives.”

He hoped the city council would approve the project.

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