Kansas City Turns a $4 Billion Wake-Up Call Into Smarter Infrastructure Management with OpenGov

New AI capabilities give public works teams a more connected way to manage infrastructure and community operations

HOUSTON, Aug. 31, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- OpenGov, the company powering the AI platform for local and state government, today highlighted how Kansas City, Missouri, transformed its approach to infrastructure management with OpenGov Enterprise Asset Management, nearly tripling annual resurfacing and reducing its projected maintenance backlog by more than half.

The results demonstrate what is possible when governments replace fragmented data and manual processes with a clearer, data-driven view of their infrastructure. OpenGov is building on that foundation with advanced public works capabilities designed to help agencies manage more of their operations through OpenGov's Public Service Platform.

Kansas City faced a significant infrastructure challenge. Its pavement condition index stood at 52 out of 100, and at its existing pace, rebuilding the city's 6,000-lane-mile road network would have taken more than 30 years. Deferred maintenance costs were projected to reach as much as $4 billion within a decade.

Street resurfacing was largely prioritized based on how long it had been since the last repair rather than actual pavement condition. Crews also spent roughly four hours a day conducting manual windshield surveys and entering findings into spreadsheets.

"Everything was spreadsheet-based and time-sensitive, since 'last resurfacing' was the only metric," said Garrett Ross, Utility Manager for Kansas City. "I'd been saying for years, 'If we just had the data to back it up, we could turn this around.' What's made the difference is having a partner that understands what we're trying to accomplish and works with us to keep improving how we manage our infrastructure."

With OpenGov, Kansas City moved beyond static maps and spreadsheet-based planning to real-time scenario modeling, shared cloud-based data, and public-facing maps updated daily. The city gained better visibility into road conditions, stronger tools to model investment scenarios, and a more data-driven way to prioritize limited funding. Kansas City and OpenGov worked closely together to translate the city's operational needs into workflows built around how public works teams actually operate.

The results have been significant. Annual street maintenance funding doubled from $20 million to $40 million, while resurfacing increased from 180 to 519 lane miles a year. Over three years, Kansas City resurfaced more than 1,500 lane miles, eliminated more than 900 hours of manual survey work annually, and reduced its projected maintenance backlog by more than half.

Building the Next Generation of Public Works Technology

Kansas City's experience reflects OpenGov's approach to building with customers: working alongside public servants to understand real operational challenges and turn those needs into capabilities that can benefit governments across the country.

At PWX 2026, OpenGov is showcasing new and expanding capabilities across its Public Service Platform, including:

• 311 Request Management: Intelligent intake, translation, and form creation that turns resident requests into actionable work tied to the right assets and crews.
• Asset-Aware Permitting: Permitting connected directly to physical infrastructure assets, with workflows that bring together location, condition, fees, work orders, reviews, and inspections.
• Network Tracing and Valve Isolation: Guided workflows that help utility crews trace networks, identify valves, and understand customer impacts using connected GIS and asset data.
• Work Planner: AI-powered scheduling that matches workers to tasks based on availability, backlogs, and operational constraints.
• Recreation Management: Online reservations, program registration, scheduling, and payments connected to the same platform staff use to manage assets and work.
• OG Assist: An embedded AI assistant that helps staff quickly check asset maintenance history, find work orders, and surface service requests by simply asking a question.

Together, these capabilities advance OpenGov's vision for public works and community operations: one connected platform spanning infrastructure, work management, resident services, permitting, recreation, utilities, and AI instead of a patchwork of point solutions.

"Public works teams shouldn't have to stitch together seven different systems to understand what's happening in their communities and get work done," said Kate Ernst, senior vice president of marketing and general manager of Enterprise Asset Management at OpenGov. "Kansas City shows what's possible when we build alongside our customers around trusted data, connected workflows, and the realities of how government operates. We're building on that foundation with AI and new capabilities that help public servants move faster and deliver high-performance government to every community."

Public Works Expo (PWX) attendees can visit OpenGov at booth #1639 to see the latest Enterprise Asset Management capabilities and AI innovations in action.

Read the full story: How Kansas City Turned a $4B Wake-Up Call into Action

For more information, visit https://opengov.com/products/asset-management/.

About OpenGov

OpenGov powers the AI platform for local and state governments across the United States. More than 2,000 cities, counties, school districts, special districts, and state agencies use OpenGov to connect finance, operations, infrastructure, and community services in one unified ecosystem, purpose-built for government. One in three people in the U.S. has better access to their government through OpenGov.

The OpenGov Public Service Platform brings together ERP and community operations including accounting, asset management, billing and revenue, budgeting, grants management, human capital management, permitting, and purchasing. Powered by OG Assist, AI is embedded throughout the platform to help teams surface insights, complete workflows, and make better decisions faster.

Learn about OpenGov's mission to power more effective and accountable government at OpenGov.com.

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SOURCE OpenGov, Inc.