[8][4][5] In 1905, William B. Strang Jr.[9] arrived and began to plot subdivisions along an old military roadway, which later became the city's principal thoroughfare.

[clarification needed][13] Overland Park's last annexation attempt, in 2008, garnered widespread news coverage after massive outcry from affected residents.

has a combined land area of 75.37 square miles (195.21 km2) and spans nearly the full north–south length of Johnson County.

[20][21] Overland Park is located in northeastern Kansas at the junction of Interstate 435 and U.S. Route 69 immediately east of Olathe, the county seat.

[22] The city lies on the northern edge of the Osage Plains, a few miles south of the Kansas River.

[22] One of the river's tributaries, Turkey Creek, flows northeastward through the extreme northern part of the city.

South of Turkey Creek, the majority of the city lies in the watershed of the Blue River.

[35][36][37] It has a lower detached single family housing rate than Kansas City and has more people commuting into it than out making its daytime population 235,000.

Health care, retail trade, professional and technical services, finance and insurance, and information technology are the city's five largest industries.

The three industries employing the largest percentages of the working civilian labor force were: educational services, health care, and social assistance (22.5%); professional, scientific, management, administrative, and waste management services (17.4%); and retail trade (10.7%).

[46] T-Mobile (former Sprint headquarters) is the largest employer in the city followed by Shawnee Mission School District, Johnson County Community College, Blue Valley School District, Black & Veatch, OptumRx, the City of Overland Park, Yellow Corporation, Overland Park Regional Medical Center, and Waddell & Reed.

[54] The city council consists of 13 members popularly elected every four years with staggered terms in office.

[54] Overland Park lies within Kansas's 3rd U.S. Congressional District, which is represented by Sharice Davids.

The portion of the city north of Interstate 435 lies within the Shawnee Mission School District (SMSD).

[59][62] The extreme southwestern part of Overland Park lies within the Spring Hill School District.

[68][69] Overland Park also hosts one Jewish school, Hyman Brand Hebrew Academy (K–12).

[74] Interstate 435, the Kansas City area's beltway, and U.S. Route 50 run concurrently east–west through central Overland Park.

[75] Johnson County Transit, also known as "The JO", provides public transportation via multiple bus routes throughout the city.

Several of these routes connect Overland Park with other suburbs and downtown Kansas City, Missouri.

[76] Kansas City International Airport is located approximately 22 mi (35 km) north of central Overland Park.

[75] Johnson County Executive Airport, a public general aviation facility, is located immediately west of the city in Olathe.

[75][77] BNSF Railway and Union Pacific Railroad each operate a freight rail line through Overland Park.

[23] Kansas City's Union Station, which is a stop on Amtrak's Missouri River Runner and Southwest Chief passenger rail lines, is located approximately 8 mi (13 km) northeast of central Overland Park.

Google Fiber, AT&T, Spectrum, and Consolidated Communications offer cable television, landline telephone, and broadband internet service.

[47][78] WaterOne, an independent public utility, oversees water provision, distribution, and infrastructure maintenance.

[79] The Johnson County Wastewater department manages waste water collection, transportation, and treatment.

It also hosts the Strang Carriage House and is home to the Overland Park Historical Society.

[citation needed] Large Baptist, Methodist, Nazarene and Pentecostal churches dot the landscape of Overland Park as well as its neighboring suburbs.

[98] There is also a growing Hindu, Sikh, and Buddhist population in Overland Park and surrounding areas.

People who were born in, or have lived in, Overland Park include film directors Michael Almereyda (Hamlet) and Darren Lynn Bousman (Saw), actors Rob Riggle, Tom Kane, Paul Rudd, Jason Sudeikis, Sarah Lancaster, John Lehr, David Dastmalchian, and eSports player Johnathan Wendel.