Outgoing Mayor Lyda Krewson says the City of St. Louis should receive $500-million from the American Rescue Plan on May 11th.
Krewson released her suggested plan, "Build Back a Better St. Louis," is designed to be a starting point for consideration "so the city can urgently move to deploy these transformative and historic resources."
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Krewson said “Over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve consistently demonstrated our ability to successfully and efficiently invest critical federal funding into the community to the people and businesses who need them the most. This framework builds on that success and further shows our commitment to meeting the immediate and continued health, humanitarian, and socioeconomic needs of more than 300,000 St. Louisans.”
Some proposed investments Mayor Krewson’s framework plan includes:
$61 million to address the City’s looming housing crisis, including expanded services and shelters for the unhoused community, additional rental and mortgage assistance, and expanded affordable housing units.
$78.5 million to support various public safety initiatives impacted by the pandemic, including the stabilization of City-owned vacant buildings to help repopulate neighborhoods and create home ownership opportunities, the removal of derelict buildings that harbor criminal activity and contain significant levels of lead, the expansion of the City’s 911 diversion and Cops & Clinicians programs to address mental and behavioral health needs, and to address pay equity and competitive compensation among emergency first responders.
$34.75 million to address employment and small business, including additional grants and forgivable loans through St. Louis Development Corporation and seed capital to support various jobs initiatives within the “STL 2030 Jobs Plan: Driving a Decade of Inclusive Growth."
$80 million to address critical City infrastructure and deferred maintenance, including health and safety upgrades to recreation centers, correctional facilities, and water infrastructure.
$175 million to offset lost general revenue due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
$19.5 million to address needs at the City’s Department of Health, the possible replacement or renovation of its existing facility, upgrades and repairs to the City’s animal shelter facility, and forgivable loans to childcare providers.
Krewson says a half of the American Rescue Plan allocation will be received by mid May. The second half is due 12 months later. The funding must be invested over approximately 3.5 years with all funds expended by December 31, 2024.
Mayor Krewson previously announced that the City of St. Louis was selected by the Accelerator for America, United States Conference of Mayors, and Drexel University’s Nowak Metro Finance Lab to serve as one of the six “first-mover” Stimulus Command Center cities.
The partnership’s goal is to help cities establish command centers to coordinate the federal funds and plan for an inclusive recovery. These cities will work with the Accelerator for America, and one another, to share ideas for innovative solutions, align local priorities, and liaise with the Biden Administration to facilitate policy and governance design.
Krewson's term ends April 20th, she did not seek re-election. The general election is April 6th, with St. Louis Treasurer Tishaura Jones and Alderwoman Cara Spencer vying for St. Louis' top job.
It's not known if Spencer and Jones will except Mayor Krewson's proposed framework plan.
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