De Soto Local Road Improvements Project

The De Soto Local Road Improvements Project provided critical infrastructure to support the construction of Panasonic Energy Co.'s electric vehicle battery manufacturing plant in De Soto, Kansas.

This transformative project included:

• Over four miles of four-lane arterial streets
• Three multi-lane roundabouts
• Sidewalks
• Shared-use paths
• Two simple-span bridges
• Comprehensive utility upgrades, including storm sewer, water line, sanitary sewer, and lighting enhancements

Key components included the upgrade of West 103rd Street between Evening Star Road and the Lexington Avenue/K-10 interchange, along with a segment of Astra Parkway leading directly to the Panasonic site.

As the first-ever Progressive Design-Build project in the history of the Kansas Department of Transportation, this initiative marked a significant milestone for innovation in project delivery within the state. The Progressive Design-Build method allowed for unparalleled flexibility and efficiency, enabling the project to adapt to the evolving needs of surrounding developments and meet aggressive timeline requirements.

The project was driven by a bold schedule, commencing design in January 2023 and starting construction in June 2023. Despite these challenging timelines, Clarkson successfully opened the project to traffic in December 2024, ahead of schedule and before the manufacturing plant begins operations.

The collaborative approach inherent in the Progressive Design-Build model proved invaluable, fostering strong communication among all stakeholders and saving an estimated 3-6 months compared to traditional fixed-price design-build methods and at least a year compared to the design-bid-build approach.