Neighborhood Transformation Investments

Over the past four years, the Community Development Administration (CDA) has partnered with a wide range of public and private partners to make unprecedented investments into community driven projects and initiatives which are transforming neighborhoods across the City.

Overview

Over the last four years, the City has committed over $250M towards the implementation of the City’s Economic Justice Action Plan (EJAP). The diverse initiatives mapped below have leveraged over $1Billion in privately funded development. Combined with over $300M committed towards transportation infrastructure upgrades in St. Louis between 2024 and 2027, these investments are growing a regenerative ecosystem designed to slow and reverse the city’s population loss.

The City’s neighborhood transformation strategy is rooted in a recognition that generations of racial segregation, restrictive covenants, redlining and discriminatory appraisal practices have left scars like the delmar divide, collapsed homes, and vacant lots etched into the fabric of St. Louis. Today, under Mayor Jones’ leadership, the City’s development agencies recognize that reversing generations of public disinvestment is not just a moral obligation, but an economic imperative. Our city cannot grow as long as half of it is left behind.

Of course, these scars did not emerge overnight, and healing communities takes generational work, but we hope you will use this map to learn more about city programs and projects and join us in investing towards a more equitable and sustainable future. 

Neighborhood Transformation Investments (2021-2025)

Interactive features allow users to filter investments and generate reports by program, funding source and geography.

Additional Information

Please find additional information regarding the mapped programs below and reach out to us at cda@stlouis-mo.gov if you have questions or can’t find what you’re looking for. Additionally, a full screen version of the map is available. Finally, CDA wishes to thank staff at the Information Technology Services Agency, Planning & Urban Design Agency, St. Louis Development Corporation, Vacancy Collaborative & UMSL for invaluable support in creating this map. 

Housing

Housing Production & Preservation (For Sale & Rental)

Thanks to an investment of over $40M in ARPA funds, the city has dramatically expanded and diversified our housing development pipeline.

Between 2015 and 2019, the city subsidized the development of 1261 units, including 65 for sale homes, and 39 extremely affordable units (see page 73 of the 2023 Affordable Housing Report). Between 2021 and 2025, the City is subsidizing the development of over 3700 units, including 244 for sale units, and 944 extremely affordable or permanently supportive units, totalling over $850M in development. Interested developers can apply to CDA’s annual Notice of Funding Availability, which opens in March, and/or the Affordable Housing Request for Proposals, which opens in September.

Note: the mapped data does not include funding by the Department of Human Services to support shelters.

City subsidized development of rental and for-sale units
City Subsidized Development Rental Units For Sale Units TOTAL
30% AMI/PSH 912 13 925
40/50% AMI 500 24 524
60% AMI 1492 28 1520
80% AMI 30 158 188
Market 446 21 467
Total Units 3380 244 3624
Total Projects 59 63 122
Total City Subsidy $62,280,849 $42,609,254 $104,890,103
Total Dev. Cost $782,939,863 $85,053,935 $867,993,798
Per Unit Subsidy $18,037 $174,628 $28,943
Per Unit Cost $226,742 $348,582 $239,513

Home Repair

Thanks to an investment of $15M in ARPA funds, CDA, in partnership with Mission St. Louis and dozens of contractors, has dramatically expanded the home repair program over the past 4 years, as detailed below. Eligible homeowners can apply to the Healthy Home Repair Program.

Note: The city has not historically geocoded home repair projects, we are committed to mapping these investments moving forward, but currently the map reflects partial data. 

Home repair expenditures by year and funding source
Funding Source 2022 Closings 2022 Expenditures 2023 Closings 2023 Expenditures 2024 Closings 2024 Expenditures
CDBG/HOME

$1,869,279

$2,002,303 $1,649,843 $1,379,875 $1,084,084 $1,190,774
Lead $121,021 $121,021 $953,266 $953,266 $938,828 $938,828
ARPA $462,746 $20,773 $5,922,240 $3,212,795 $4,040,302 $4,192,969
TOTALS $2,453,046 $2,144,097 $8,525,349 $5,545,936 $6,063,214 $6,322,571

Homeownership Assistance

CDA & SLDC leveraged $4.5M in ARPA funds to stand up our first ever downpayment assistance program. Due to overwhelming demand, funds are fully committed, but we are seeking additional funding sources to meet this need.

The city’s Department of Human Services, in partnership with the Collector of Revenue, Legal Services for Eastern Missouri, and Park Central Development Corporation also leveraged $1M in ARPA funds to create the city’s first ever property tax forgiveness program. Eligible homeowners can apply for property tax forgiveness at retaf.org.

Vacancy

These layers reflect a combination of ARPA, Prop NS, CDBG, and locally funded investments through the Building Division, CDA and LRA. In partnership with the Vacancy Collaborative, the city is working to deploy these funds strategically for maximum impact, targeting buildings which pose public nuisances, have absentee property owners, and have economic development potential. Learn more about the city’s vacancy strategy initiative.

Neighborhood Transformation

These layers reflect:

  1. CDA’s ARPA funded neighborhood transformation grants, awarded in 2023.
  2. A subset of CDBG funded public service programs - you can learn more about how CDBG funds serve more than 5,000 city residents every year in CDA’s Comprehensive Annual Performance & Evaluation Report.
  3. Seed St. Louis’ CDBG funded community garden projects.
  4. RAC’s ARPA funded St. Louis Mural Project.

Note: Does not include Operation Brightside’s CDBG funded beautification work, which has yet to be mapped. 

Business & Development

These layers reflect CDA & SLDC investments to support businesses & development, including:

  1. The ARPA funded North City Grants Program.
  2. The ARPA funded Small Business Grant Program.
  3. City tax incentives, whose allocation process was recently reformed to better align with the city’s economic justice action plan.
  4. CDBG funded facade improvement grants, the most recent round of which was awarded through CDA’s fall RFP

Community Assets

ARPA for the Arts

Recognizing that artists help drive economic growth and catalyze neighborhood revitalization by inspiring creative problem-solving, encouraging healthy self-expression, and bringing vibrancy to communities, the City awarded over $10M in ARPA funds to the Regional Arts Commission through CDA to deploy operating, program and artist support grants across the city

Note: the map only reflects organizational awards and does not include 195 artist support grants.

Community Wi-Fi

Based on the City’s Digital Inclusion Plan CDA has allocated $2.425M in ARPA funds to light up over 15 city parks, as well as areas downtown and on the MLK corridor. This collaborative effort between CDA, ITSA, SLDC, the Mayor’s Office, Streets, BPS, and Parks leverages the city’s fiber infrastructure by grafting wi-fi routers and access points onto city fiber to create a mesh Wi-Fi network. 8 Parks - Amberg Park, Fox Park, Gravois Park, Gregory J. Carter, Ivory Perry Park, Loretta Hall Park, O’Fallon Park and Tilles Park are already live, with the remainder expected to come online in 2025. 

Federally Qualified Health Centers

The City’s four FQHCs (Family Care; CareSTL; People’s Health Center and Affinia) provide essential public health services to low and moderate income residents across the City. The City committed $13M in ARPA funds to support FQHCs, matching an equivalent state commitment. In partnership with the Integrated Health Network, CDA has deployed these funds to support the development of two new facilities (CareSTL’s public health campus in the Ville, and Family Care’s new headquarters on South Grand), and the improvement of other existing facilities. 

Childcare

Nearly 25% of early childhood education providers closed over the course of the pandemic. In response to this crisis, CDA awarded $2M in ARPA funds to the Mental Health Board, which deployed stabilization grants to more than 50 providers. CDA also issued a separate RFP awarding funds to six partners to expand teacher’s access to scholarships, salary supplements, and accreditation supports. Data shows that investments into early childhood yield extraordinary returns in the form of improved high school graduation rates, increased employment and wages, reduced crime, and better health outcomes.

Parks & Recreation

This layer includes a subset of Choice Neighborhoods, CDBG, ARPA and Capital investments into city parks and recreational facilities, but is by no means comprehensive.

Transportation

You can find more detailed information regarding city transportation investments on the city’s friendly streets portal

Note: the projects mapped above do not include ward capital investments. 

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