A stretch of 95th Street near US-69 closed Wednesday, Oct. 14, for stormwater improvements and is expected to remain closed through Thursday, Nov. 12.

The $8.5 million project is the final phase of a years-long effort to reduce flooding in an area where homes have flooded in the past, according to the Johnson County Post.

The road is shut down between Moody Park Drive and the 95th Street cul-de-sac, east of Switzer Road. A city Facebook post confirmed the closure dates.

What's being replaced

Workers are pulling out a reinforced concrete box culvert, a large underground structure that channels water through the city's stormwater system. The culvert runs directly beneath 95th Street.

That's why the road had to come up, Adam Alani, project manager and city civil engineer, told the Johnson County Post. Crews plan to install a larger culvert, replace nearby stormwater inlets and repave the road.

Why it matters for homeowners

The culvert swap is the fourth and final phase of stormwater improvements concentrated around 95th Street over the past decade. Alani said the combined projects aim to reduce flooding risk and remove some homes from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) floodplain.

The improvements could support FEMA map revisions that remove some homes from designated high-risk flood areas. That could eliminate federal flood-insurance requirements for affected mortgages, although lenders may still require coverage.

"The goal of it is really to improve public safety around flooding," Alani told the Johnson County Post.

Northern Overland Park has seen reports of home flooding in the area, Alani said, adding that the city takes those incidents seriously.

Detour route

Drivers should follow posted signs to 103rd Street. From there, Quivira Road or Antioch Road connect back to 95th Street. The city asked motorists to stay off neighborhood streets, which cannot handle the traffic volume 95th Street normally carries.

Construction fatigue

Councilmember Drew Mitrisin, who lives in and represents the area, said residents may be feeling what he called "construction fatigue" after years of street reconstructions and the 69Express project nearby.

"A lot of our streets were built in the '50s and '60s, and so were our sewer ditches and our storm drains, and all of those are kind of coming up for … repair at the same time," Mitrisin told the Johnson County Post.