Existing Conditions Summary

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Past redlining is tied to current vacancy in St. Louis.

The Ville was one of the few unrestricted zones in St. Louis in the 1940s and did not have regulations about who could rent or buy property there. In the 1950s The Ville was 95% African American.

Walnut Park East was a predominantly White neighborhood until the mid 1960s when it became a majority Black neighborhood. Construction of Interstate 70 through the area in the early 60s was largely responsible for this shift.

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Many air pollution sources in St. Louis are located in neighborhoods with high concentrations of non-white and/or Hispanic residents.

The darker areas show higher percentages of individuals in a block group who list their racial status as a race other than white alone and/or list their ethnicity as Hispanic or Latino.

The white dots represent stationary air pollution sources in and around the city.

Clusters of air pollution sources are especially prevalent in industrial zones.

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Share Your Ideas With Us:

We want to know that past policies have caused harm in our city - how do we use that to think land use (what happens with buildings and lots) can help repair or address this history?

Historic segregation is still a challenge in our city's present - how do you think land use (what happens with buildings and lots) could help us heal and build connections across differences for a better future?

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Stormwater flooding happens throughout St. Louis, but raingardens, detention ponds, and other “soft” solutions are concentrated in north St. Louis, where land is more abundant.

Stormwater isn't the only source of flooding: the city's flood zones flank its rivers, which are the source of storm surges.

In many cases, the potential for flooding is contained by the Mississippi flood wall.

“Soft” stormwater solutions are concentrated in the north.

There are fewer rain gardens where MSD problem areas are located in the south. Instead, underground engineer solutions are being expanded.

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Share Your Ideas With Us:

Map: Stormwater flooding happens throughout St. Louis, but raingardens, detention ponds, and other solutions are concentrated in north St. Louis, where land is more abundant.

1. How does stormwater or flooding impact you or your neighbors? How could changes in our land use (buildings and lots) help?

2. Have you seen any of the “soft solutions” to manage water, such as raingardens or detention ponds? What do you think of these? Do any specific areas come to mind for you, where that kind of water management would be useful?

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There is less heat severity where green space is.

Severe heat is most pronounced in industrial areas and mixed-use areas.

As in which numbers are in the map, the heat island effect is pronounced in industrial areas and mixed-use areas.

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Share Your Ideas With Us:

Green space may be an important way to keep our city cool. Would you want that green space to be like? Does anything come to mind for you?

How does heat impact you or your neighbors? How could changes in land use (buildings and lots) help?

Existing Conditions that Informed the Land Use Plan

St. Louis city stands on an area with a rich history of land use and development. That history has shaped the current context, form, challenges, and opportunities in St. Louis. Given the current conditions, what are some positive trends that St. Louis can build upon? What are the negative trends that St. Louis should strive to reverse? This section highlights some excerpts from the existing conditions analysis, which seeks to answer these important questions, and was used to inform decision making throughout this planning process. You’ll also find references that point to how these existing conditions have informed the land use plan.

Existing Conditions Categories:

• Population Change and Demographics
• Housing Needs
• Historic Character and Culture
• Transportation Options
• Economic Opportunity and Resiliency
• Walkability and Public Realm
• Issues Impacting Racial and Economic Inequality
• Access to Open Space
• Vacancy
• Climate Resiliency
• Procedural Processes

Population Change and Demographics

Population and demographic trends emphasize the urgent need to improve quality of life in disinvested parts of the city to retain current residents while continuing to welcome and leverage pockets of growth to improve opportunities for all residents.

Since the mid 20th century, the city of St. Louis has faced among the most dramatic demographic shifts in population loss of any city in the United States. While the 2020 census reported the total population of the city of St. Louis to be 301,578, this population figure follows a seventy-year trend of profound population change that has resulted in an over 64% decline in the city’s population. Since 2010, trends of population decline have continued; in the last 14 years, it is estimated that the population decreased by over 37,000.

Throughout the 19th century, the city experienced significant population growth. Beginning in 1840, the city’s population dramatically increased over several decades with the arrival of many new immigrants from Germany and Ireland. In the first half of the 20th century, population growth through immigration continued and was further fueled by African Americans moving to the city as part of the Great Migration. As a result, the population of the city reached its peak in 1950 at around 856,000 people. However, since 1950, the population has declined by 67%, or about 574,000 residents. This profound decline has been primarily attributed to White residents leaving the city to settle in the surrounding suburbs.

In recent years, population change has been characterized by a slowing rate of population loss. However, the rate at which residents are leaving the city is not proportional among demographic groups. Between 2010 and 2022, there has been a net loss of about 7,000 Black households and net increase of about 4,000 white households across the city. Of the 38,685 Black residents that left the city between 2010 and 2022. At the same time, there has been population growth among college-educated young adults to the south-central portion of the city. The maps below show some of these trends over time and how they played out in different parts of the city.

Continued population loss is the primary demographic challenge facing the city. For the city to stabilize its population, it must retain more residents—especially young families with children and Black residents—while also attracting and retaining young people and new migrants.

How does the SLUP address this?

The SLUP aims to enhance and create an urban environment that makes people want to stay in the city and attracts new residents. For example, neighborhood areas encourage small-scale businesses and amenities mixed in with residential buildings to allow people to access essential goods and services more easily.

St. Louis Population Change: 1970–2020

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Map Key:

• ● Black Population
• ● White Population 1 dot=15 people

Pie Chart Key:

• White (Non-Hispanic)
• Black (Non-Hispanic)
• Asian (Non-Hispanic)
• Multi-racial (Non-Hispanic)
• Hispanic or Latino
• Other

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Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

Development at the region’s fringes continues to be a challenge for the city and the region, contributing to intra-regional competition and expanding infrastructure maintenance needs. Land use and development in St. Louis city need to consider this regional context for its future and embrace qualities that set it apart in positive ways.

The growth of exurban counties outside of St. Louis has negatively impacted the city by contributing to population decline, economic disinvestment, and urban fragmentation. Suburbanization has drawn residents, businesses, and resources away from the city, leading to economic disparities, particularly between predominantly white, affluent suburbs and predominantly African American, lower-income urban neighborhoods. Additionally, suburban growth has exacerbated racial segregation and urban sprawl, making it harder for St. Louis to maintain its urban infrastructure and services.

After the City of St. Louis reached its peak population in 1950, population declined by over 64% in the past 70 years. While the city’s population shrank, the St. Louis Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA), which includes the City of St. Louis, seven additional counties in Missouri, and eight counties in Illinois, nearly doubled in population from 1,407,000 in 1950 to around 2.8 million today. Throughout the second half of the 20th century, white flight and suburbanization contributed to the decline in the city of St. Louis. More recently, the Black population has been leaving the city and moving into the surrounding counties or to other states. The maps on the next page show how regional population has sprawled since 1950.

While the population of the St. Louis metro area grew in comparison to St. Louis since the mid 20th century, the MSA’s population growth has become stagnant in years. Between 2020 and 2023, the MSA saw a net loss of around 3,250 residents. It dropped from being the 21st-largest US metro area to the 23rd-largest, behind both Charlotte, NC-SC and Orlando, FL. However, not all of the region’s counties lost population; St. Charles, Jefferson, Lincoln, and Warren counties saw their populations rise during the same period. Both white and Black populations have decreased in the metro area, and a significant portion of this population decline is from people under 18.

The region has diversified, with Asian, Hispanic, and multiracial populations increasing in nearly every part of the region in the period between 2013 and 2023. Yet, foreign-born residents make up less than 5% of the population of the St. Louis MSA, which is lower than the national average of 13.6%. The foreign-born population is concentrated in the central and southeastern areas of St. Louis County.

The map below shows the expansion of the City’s boundary as it grew from a small trading post town in 1780 to its existing boundaries established in 1876.

Evolution of the City of St. Louis Boundary

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Source: St. Louis Mercantile Museum

St. Louis MSA Population Over Time 1950–2020

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Source: IPUMS NHGIS, University of Minnesota NAD 1983 State Plane Missouri East FIPS 2401 (US Feet).

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Source: IPUMS NHGIS, University of Minnesota NAD 1983 State Plane Missouri East FIPS 2401 (US Feet).

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Source: IPUMS NHGIS, University of Minnesota NAD 1983 State Plane Missouri East FIPS 2401 (US Feet).

Source: IPUMS NHGIS, University of Minnesota NAD 1983 State Plane Missouri East FIPS 2401 (US Feet).

St. Louis has a rich history of immigration and cultural diversity. Becoming an increasingly welcoming place for the full breadth of cultures in St. Louis today, and for future immigrants, will build on this legacy and strengthen the city’s prospects for growth.

St. Louis has a rich cultural tapestry and ethnically diverse population. Historically a gateway for immigrants from Europe, it is now home to many different cultures, with thriving African American, Bosnian, Vietnamese, and Hispanic communities, among others. Each group has left its mark on the city’s neighborhoods, food, music, and traditions, creating a unique blend of influences.

As St. Louis grew throughout the 19th century, immigrants that moved to the city created their own distinct neighborhoods, which added to the city’s diverse architectural character. Many of the first immigrants to St. Louis in the 1800s were German, and by the 1850s the Soulard neighborhood, known ironically as Frenchtown at the time, had become predominantly German with the establishment of numerous churches, breweries, and a turnverein. Other neighborhoods, including Benton Park, Hyde Park, Dutchtown, and Baden, became known for their German cultural heritage as well. Bohemians came to St. Louis starting in the 1850s and established the Bohemian Hill community, which included parts of Soulard and LaSalle Park, as well as the area where Highways 44 and 55 now intersect. Irish immigrants mostly settled in the Old North St. Louis area and present-day Carr square, then known as the “Kerry Patch.” Other historic ethnic enclaves that have disappeared following new development or infrastructure include the original Little Italy (north of downtown), the Jewish Quarter (around Carr Square), and St. Louis’s Chinatown, known as Hop Alley.

During the period after WWI into the late 20th century, the Great Migration brought thousands of African Americans to St. Louis from southern states. African American St. Louisans formed distinct neighborhoods in the city but not necessarily by choice. Restrictive covenants and other housing regulations prevented African Americans from living anywhere but certain neighborhoods such as Mill Creek Valley and The Ville. Despite the racist constraints imposed on the African American population, these neighborhoods developed a distinct and thriving culture with local and national impact. For more information, see “Issues Impacting Racial and Economic Inequality in Land Use” (page 203).

Between 2022 and 2023, the St. Louis metro area recorded the highest growth rate of foreign-born population among the top 30 metro areas in the U.S., experiencing a 23.2% increase in its foreign-born population by adding over 30,000 residents in that period. This was the largest one-year percentage increase in the region’s history, bringing the total foreign-born population to around 160,000. The growth reflects a significant influx of immigrants and refugees, as well as family reunifications. Despite this growth, the region has the third-lowest total foreign-born population among the 30 biggest metro areas.

However, New Americans sometimes find it difficult to remain in the city long term. Many new Americans arrive in St. Louis for a job or because of family connections, and even if families want to stay in St. Louis city, the difficulty of navigating housing, transportation, education, and services can be challenging, leading people to move elsewhere in the region.

Highest Percentage Increase of Foreign Born Population in U.S. Metropolitan Areas 2022–2023

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Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 1-Year Data

There is limited quality affordable housing available in places where new Americans are also able to access necessary services for transition, grocery stores, public spaces, and transit. There’s also few housing options that support multi-generational living, which is critical for families moving together. As one person who supports new Americans said, to retain people in the city after a transitional period, it “has to go beyond ‘here’s some keys to a house, some money, and we’ll help you find a job’ — they need to develop some sense of community and connectivity through program opportunities.” Many new Americans are comfortable with interacting with others in public spaces like gardens, courtyards, and libraries, and having these spaces nearby can support connection and a sense of safety for new Americans.

How does the SLUP address this?

The SLUP seeks to build on the cultural legacy of the city’s rich history and diversity through context-sensitive development and strategies that aim to activate vacant spaces and buildings.

St. Louis has modest signs of domestic migration from higher-cost cities. Continuing to capture and strategically leverage this growth can help improve conditions for current residents.

St. Louis has seen some notable inbound migration from coastal regions in recent years (though the trend is not as pronounced as in larger cities like Austin or Denver). From 2018 to 2020, the top 3 states that St. Louis drew residents from besides Missouri and Illinois were New York, California, and Texas.

Data from housing search engines also give an idea of where new residents are migrating from. In the third quarter of 2021, St. Louis saw 21% of housing searches coming from outside of the area. In addition to Chicago, high-cost coastal cities were at the top of the list of where searches came from. Some of these searches, however, may be from prospective investors exploring potential purchases.

Percentage of People Searching for Housing in St. Louis from Elsewhere

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Source: Redfin search data

How does the SLUP address this?

The SLUP focuses on improving walkability, connectivity, and mobility choices throughout the city as part of a competitive strategy to further attract new residents looking for a vibrant urban environment.

Historic Character and Culture

A rich ecosystem of diverse cultural institutions can anchor and strengthen communities.

St. Louis is rich in museums and cultural institutions, making it a vibrant hub for arts, history, and cultural experiences. The city boasts a diverse range of venues that cater to a wide array of interests, from fine arts and history to science and botanical studies. Many are free to the public!

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Saint Louis Art Museum, Forest Park, St. Louis Source: Wikimedia

St. Louis has an opportunity to embrace the full spectrum of its arts and culture community — from large institutions to grassroots individuals and groups — to strengthen its economic vibrancy.

St. Louis has a thriving and diverse arts and culture scene, with world-class museums, performing arts institutions, live music venues, and neighborhood galleries. The city's rich cultural offerings, including a strong tradition in music, theater, and visual arts, as well as festivals and public art, make it a dynamic hub for creativity and expression.

How does the SLUP address this?

The SLUP's Allied Policies include recommendations for streamlining and clarifying permitting processes for small businesses, urban agriculture, art and artisan manufacturing, and other types of diverse businesses or organizations in order to build on this strength.

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Fox Theater, Midtown, St. Louis Source: Google Street View

St. Louis’s distinctive architectural and cultural legacy can be seen as a competitive asset to be cultivated and expanded.

St. Louis is renowned for its historic architecture, which reflects its rich cultural history and urban development dating back to the 19th century. The city's architectural landscape features a wide array of styles, from grand Victorian homes and intricate brickwork to early skyscrapers and Art Deco landmarks. Many neighborhoods in St. Louis are known for their preservation of historic buildings, and some areas are even designated as historic districts.

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Lafayette Square, St. Louis Source: Wikipedia

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Cabanne House, Forest Park, St. Louis Source: City of St. Louis

St. Louis was one of the first cities in the United States to adopt a preservation ordinance after the National Historic Preservation Act was passed by Congress in 1966. In the 1990s, St. Louis began to develop its own local preservation laws and created a review board certified by the state, which gives the City the power to designate City Landmarks and Local Historic Districts, to deny demolition of buildings or sites with local or national historic status, and to deny building permits that conflict with Local Historic District standards. The City of St. Louis Cultural Resources Office and the Preservation Board handle many decisions and approvals related to cultural resources and historic preservation.

Now St. Louis has many sites and areas that are considered nationally or locally important to the history and character of the city. These include 14 national Historic Landmarks, 97 National Register Historic Districts, 385 National Register Historic Sites, 132 City Landmarks, 10 Local Historic Districts, and 8 Certified Local Districts.

However, historic character is not determined solely by the official designations of buildings and neighborhoods; it is also the communities, events, and people that shape a place over time and create a distinct character. It is important to look outside of St. Louis’s historic designations to understand the true complexity of the city’s historical composition.

Before European colonization, the land on which St. Louis stands was the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territory of the Illini Confederacy, a group of 12 to 13 Native American tribes in the upper Mississippi River valley of North America. The indigenous people in the area built numerous temple and residential earthwork mounds on both sides of the Mississippi River, the Cahokia mounds being the regional center. These mounds made up the largest pre-Columbian settlement north of Mexico. The mounds located in the city were mostly demolished during the city’s development.

In the early 1800s, the architecture of St. Louis was mostly French, consisting of wooden buildings covered with whitewashed plaster. This style evolved into a more American style in the following decades. In the late 1800s, downtown St. Louis grew taller and denser with high-rise buildings. The Wainwright building, built in 1891, was the city’s first “skyscraper.”

After significant fire damage in the mid-1800s, there was an effort to use more fire-resistant construction materials and brick architecture became predominant,

making beautiful and intricate brickwork one of St. Louis’s most notable architectural characteristics. St. Louis is located near some of the richest clay deposits in the United States, and this clay was ideal for brick construction and helped St. Louis get its nickname as the “brick city.” By the 1800s, there were over 50 clay mines across the city and the first brickyard opened in 1813. Many of these sites employed immigrants and African Americans in the dangerous and physically demanding job of creating bricks. By 1900, St. Louis was the largest brick-making city in the world, shipping bricks across the United States and overseas. Now, historic St. Louis brick is in such high demand that brick thievery has become an issue, where historic buildings are damaged to collect the bricks.

Cahokia Mounds, Collinsville, IL

⬚ figure Source: World Atlas

Historic Designations

⬚ figure Source: City of St. Louis

The Central West End became a Certified Local Historic District in 1974 and today it boasts some of the best examples of residential architecture from the turn of the century.

The Lafayette Square District was entered in the National Register of Historic Places in 1986. The area is known for its historic Victorian townhouses and other examples of 19th- century architecture.

The Ville was designated as a Local Historic District in 1987 and was expanded in 2006. The Ville has historically been home to nationally significant African American culture and many prominent Black figures.

Recognizing, celebrating, and preserving St. Louis’s rich legacy of African American culture and history can also help support and amplify current and future contributions.

St. Louis is a significant hub of African American history and culture. The city has a rich and deep- rooted connection to African American heritage, reflected in its historic sites, cultural institutions, and vibrant community traditions.

African American history and culture is especially represented in certain neighborhoods of the city, but this was not necessarily by choice. Restrictive covenants and other housing regulations prevented African Americans from living anywhere except certain neighborhoods such as Mill Creek Valley and The Ville (for more information, see “Issues Impacting Racial and Economic Inequality in Land Use” on page 203). Despite the racist constraints imposed on the African American population, these neighborhoods developed a distinct and thriving culture that greatly contributed to not only the city’s historic identity but the country’s as well. Many icons of Black culture also came out of St. Louis, including Maya Angelou, Josephine Baker, Chuck Berry, Tina Turner, Henry Armstrong, James “Cool Papa” Bell, Katherine Dunham, Cornell “Nelly” Haynes, Jr, Redd Foxx, Jackie Joyner-Kersee, Dick Gregory, Scott Joplin, Harriet Scott, and Dredd Scott.

The Ville is an especially important neighborhood for the history of African American education, business, entertainment, and culture. In the mid-20th century, the Ville was 95% African American and held prominent Black institutions such as Simmons Elementary, Sumner High School (the first high school for Black students west of the Mississippi River), Poro College, Lincoln University Law School, Stowe Teachers College, Tandy Recreation Center, Annie Malone Children’s Home, and Homer G. Phillips Hospital.

⬚ figure St. Louis Wall of Fame Mural Source: Regional Arts Commission of St. Louis

These illustrations depict some of the styles of housing that can be seen across the city of St. Louis. These styles represent only a slice of the architectural diversity present in St. Louis.

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Art Deco House

These buildings feature stylized and geometric forms, often with ornamental elements that reflect the Art Deco movement of the 1920s and 1930s.

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Brick Row House

Characterized by their red brick construction due to the availability of local materials.

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High-Rise Apartment

Contemporary housing with high density.

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Historic Mansion

Grand and ornate, these mansions showcase architectural styles ranging from Victorian to Beaux-Arts.

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Contemporary Mixed-Use

These structures represent a modern urban trend, combining residential spaces with commercial and retail areas, often featuring contemporary design and amenities.

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Loft Apartments in Converted Warehouse

Loft apartments often feature high ceilings, exposed brick, and large windows.

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Postwar Townhouse

Featuring multi-story layouts, contemporary materials, and shared amenities.

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Modern Multi-Family Apartment

Ranging from low-rise buildings to large complexes, these structures cater to diverse income levels and often feature communal amenities.

Craftsman House

These homes are known for their low-pitched gable roofs, overhanging eaves, and hand-crafted stone or woodwork, reflecting the early 20th-century Arts and Crafts movement.

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Flat Roof Bungalow

Compact and efficient, these homes often feature a single story, a low-pitched roof, and a front porch, reflecting early 20th-century residential design.

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Gingerbread

These cottages are recognizable by their steeply pitched roofs, pointed arch windows, and ornate wooden trim, reflecting the Gothic Revival style

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Queen Anne Style House

These homes are elaborate and ornate, often featuring asymmetrical facades, decorative gables, and large porches. They are a symbol of the city's prosperity in the late 19th century.

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Shotgun House

A shotgun house is a narrow, rectangular dwelling, with rooms arranged one behind the other. This style is common in many southern cities and is present in St. Louis due to historical migrations.

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Second Empire Shotgun

These two story second empire style homes are composed of a shotgun style first floor with a mansard roof on top.

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French Colonial House

Inspired by French colonial architecture, these houses often feature steep roofs, tall, narrow windows and the use of stone or brick. They reflect the early European influence in the region

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Four Square House

American four-square homes are characterized by their boxy shape, two to two-and-a-half stories, large front porch, and simple, clean lines. They were a popular housing choice for the growing middle class in the early 20th century.

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Victorian Townhouse

These townhouses are known for their ornate detailing, steeply pitched roofs, and bay windows, representing the city's Victorian-era growth.

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Ranch House

These single-story homes are known for their long, low-to-the-ground profile, and minimal exterior and interior decoration, reflecting post-WWII suburban development.

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Economic Opportunity and Resiliency

St. Louis can leverage growing economic sectors to expand opportunity and quality of life for all residents — especially in historically disinvested areas and for historically-excluded communities.

St. Louis has a diverse and well-rounded economy, with key industries spanning a wide range of sectors, including healthcare, biotechnology, manufacturing, education, financial services, and transportation. This diversity helps to provide economic stability and resilience, supporting a broad base of employment opportunities and fostering innovation across multiple fields.

Management, business, science, and arts occupations were the most commonly represented jobs in St. Louis city in both 2012 and 2022. These occupations made up 36.3% of jobs in 2012 and 46.5% in 2022.

Between 2012 and 2022, service occupations decreased from 24.5% to 19.5% of the workforce and similarly, sales and office occupations decreased from 22.8% to 18% of the workforce. Occupations in natural resources, construction, and maintenance operations, as well as those in production, transportation, and material moving occupations, remained consistent over this timespan.

About 156,000 people are employed within the city of St. Louis. With 3,230 jobs per square mile, the density of economic activity in St. Louis is 28 times that of the rest of the region. The average wage for jobs within city boundaries is $61,200, more or less identical to the average for jobs in St. Louis County and about $4,000 more than the average for all U.S. jobs.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics showed that as of 2024, the St. Louis Metropolitan Area ranked third of all large metro areas in the country for rate of job growth. Over one year, employment increased by 2.6%. The area’s top industry cluster, healthcare and social assistance, saw a 14% growth in employment between 2013 and 2023.

In 2024, the State of the St. Louis Workforce report showed that 68% of employers in the St. Louis MSA were hiring new full-time employees, and nearly 30% of companies had hired new employees over the past year. While companies reported a shortage of workers with knowledge or skills, many employers are working to address this problem. 59% of companies reported hiring less experienced workers and providing on-the-job training, and 45% of companies offered increased wages in order to compete for skilled employees.

The unemployment rate in St. Louis city decreased from 14.2% in 2012 to 5.4% in 2022. The city’s unemployment rate in 2022 was slightly higher than that of the St. Louis MSA at 4.4%.

Several emerging and established industries are projected to see growth and provide job opportunities in St. Louis over the next three to five years. For example, St. Louis has established itself as a major hub for life sciences and biosciences innovation, with bioscience businesses in the region receiving over $1.5 billion in venture capital since 2015. Over 200,000 workers are employed in biosciences and health companies in the St. Louis metropolitan region, representing over 10 percent of non-government employment in the region. St. Louis has one of the highest concentrations of plant scientists in the world, with over 400 specialists in the region.

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Occupations of City of St. Louis Residents: 2012

Key

• Management, business, science, & arts
• Natural resources, construction, & maintenance
• Production, transportation, & material moving
• Sales & office
• Services

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5 Year Estimates

Occupations of City of St. Louis Residents: 2022

Key

• Management, business, science, & arts
• Natural resources, construction, & maintenance
• Production, transportation, & material moving
• Sales & office
• Services

Advanced manufacturing has also been an area of focus and growth, with efforts currently dedicated to develop an innovation center (AMICSTL) to attract innovative manufacturers and develop a skilled workforce. Geospatial technology has had similar attention.

Other important industries include the existing and expanding financial services and financial technology companies and the brewing industry.

How does the SLUP address this?

The SLUP recognizes that the economy of St. Louis and the United States is changing, and there is a need for opportunities for economic growth and jobs to be located in a greater variety of locations, with more accessibility to places where people live and need to go. For this reason, the SLUP recommends more areas that support a wide mix of uses across the city. For more information about how the SLUP and its Allied Policy recommendations support the growth of businesses and jobs, see Thriving Goal 3 (page 372). At the same time, the SLUP preserves many industrial spaces, particularly those that are well served by rail, road, and barge.

Industry for the Civilian Employed Population 16 Years and Older in St. Louis and Cincinnati (Hamilton County), OH

Cincinnati, OH | St. Louis, MO

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Source: US Census Bureau, 2023 American Community Survey 1-Year Estimates

The city plays a critical economic role as a hub for the whole region, making its success critical to surrounding counties and states.

St. Louis is a regional economic center and plays a crucial role as a hub for business, transportation, education, and innovation in the Midwest. The city has a diverse economy that extends its influence across several states, including parts of Illinois, Missouri, and beyond. St. Louis serves as a central point for trade, commerce, healthcare, and various industries in the region.

St. Louis’s relative affordability is a potential competitive asset. Yet, it must also be understood that many residents are in daily struggle to afford basic needs; their needs, opportunities, and quality of life must also be part of any economic growth strategy.

St. Louis has a relatively low cost of living compared to many other major U.S. cities, particularly those on the East and West Coasts. This affordability is one of the city's key attractions for both residents and businesses, offering a relatively high quality of life without the high price tags often associated with larger metro areas.

The 15-county bi-state St. Louis metropolitan area enjoys a significantly lower cost of living compared to U.S. averages, especially for an area its size. With 100 serving as the average score for metro areas, the overall composite score for St. Louis in 2023 is 88.9, compared to New York City (Manhattan), which came in at 227.8, San Francisco, which scored 169.5, and Chicago, which scored 113.4. St. Louis scored particularly well for housing (74.1), transportation (90.3), and health care (88.9) costs.

Note, however, that this low cost of living does not equate to "affordability" for all residents in the city; many residents struggle to make ends meet and afford the basics like housing, health care, and food. For more information about housing costs, see Housing needs (page 219).

Cost of Living Index

The cost of living index compares the relative cost of living, including the cost of goods and services, in different regions.

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Source: C2ER – The Council for Community and Economic Research.

While median household income has increased, there are still substantial disparities between racial groups. All St. Louis residents must have access to opportunities like jobs and homeownership and other supports to help them thrive.

Overall, median household income in St. Louis city increased from $34,000 in 2012 to $53,000 in 2022, a 54% leap. However the city’s median household income remained lower than that of the St. Louis MSA ($75,000).

Despite this income growth, stark disparities exist. In both 2012 and 2022, Black or African American households had the lowest median household income, whereas whites had the highest median household income. Median African American household income was about 45% and 56% of median white household income in 2012 and 2022, respectively. The greatest percent change in median household income from 2012 to 2022 occurred among Hispanics/Latinos in St. Louis city, with an 80% increase. Almost all racial groups saw a reduction in their poverty rate between 2012 and 2022. However, some amount of these trends may be attributable to in-migration of higher-income residents and/or out-migration of lower-income residents rather than to actual income growth among households in St. Louis.

Median Household Income by Race in St. Louis City, 2012 and 2022

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Median Household Income in St. Louis City, St. Louis County, and US

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Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5 Year Estimates

Percent of St. Louis City Residents Living Under the Poverty Line by Race, 2012 and 2022

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Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5 Year Estimates

The St. Louis region’s location and infrastructure are clear assets in strengthening its industrial and logistics sectors. In the city, these growth opportunities should be strategically located to complement other goals related to walkability, economic opportunity, and environmental health.

Due to its central location in the U.S., St. Louis is a major hub for transportation and logistics. The city benefits from access to key transportation infrastructure, including the Mississippi River, extensive rail networks, and major highways, making it a natural center for freight and shipping companies.

While the St. Louis region’s (including Illinois) industrial real estate inventory has dropped since 2013, it has remained stable since 2022, supported by strong demand for logistics, e-commerce, and manufacturing. Construction of industrial buildings (also known as deliveries) increased from 75,000 square feet in 2021 to 225,000 square feet in 2023.

How does the SLUP address this?

The SLUP identifies both Core and Flex industrial areas where new industrial development can occur and where vacant properties can be put back to productive use in order to support new jobs and economic growth that benefit the city. The location of these areas balance access to rail, highways, and the Mississippi River with residents’ needs and environmental health.

Industrial Space Deliveries

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Total Industrial Inventory

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Education, medicine, and the innovation economy have driven a lot of growth in the central corridor. It is critical that this growth aligns with other community needs and that more people and more parts of the city have a meaningful opportunity to participate in this momentum.

St. Louis has seen significant regional growth in the education, health services, and construction sectors, driven by the city’s role as a medical and educational hub, ongoing investments in healthcare and biotech, and demand for new infrastructure and — in some neighborhoods — housing.

The education and health services sector, often referred to as “Eds and Meds,” has seen significant growth in St. Louis, primarily driven by the city’s prominent universities, medical research institutions, healthcare systems, and civic redevelopment efforts. The construction industry in St. Louis has been experiencing sustained growth driven by several key factors, including infrastructure development, commercial real estate projects, and residential demand.

In addition to being a hub for medicine and education, St. Louis is a significant hub for biotechnology (biotech) and agricultural technology (agtech). The city has become a center of innovation and research in these sectors, attracting companies, research institutions, and startups from around the country.

How does the SLUP address this?

Both Industrial areas and Institutional Campuses are designated in the SLUP, offering opportunities for further growth in these important sectors, supporting further job and economic growth in these industries. The SLUP designates where development spurred by this growth should happen in order to create economic opportunity that serves the St. Louis community.

St. Louis has strong institutions. Sustaining and restoring the presence of institutional anchors in the city can help strengthen neighborhoods, provide jobs, and stimulate economic growth.

St. Louis is home to several strong academic and research institutions that contribute significantly to the city’s reputation as a hub for education, innovation, research and as an attractive place to live and work. These institutions are key drivers of the region’s intellectual and economic growth and are involved in cutting-edge research across various fields.

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Ranken Technical College

Source: by Paul Sableman - Ranken Tech, CC BY 2.0

How does the SLUP address this?

The Campus designation indicates unique land uses that often follow their own development or land use plans. These campuses also offer opportunities for concentrated hubs of development that serve institutions’ employees, students, and staff, as well as the surrounding community in some cases.

The City is making important progress in reducing violent crime; sustaining this progress is key.

St. Louis has a high crime rate, particularly in terms of violent crime, which is concentrated in specific areas, particularly in North St. Louis. Needless to say, crime and public safety issues make life in St. Louis very difficult for some people and are contributing to out-migration, especially of families with children. One reason for the high numbers is the city’s administrative separation from the county, which is atypical among similarly sized cities. But economic decline, poverty, social inequality, and disinvestment are also key factors contributing to the city’s crime issues. However, the perception of crime often does not reflect reality. Overall crime in 2024 decreased 15% from 2023 and 24% from 2021. But, importantly, there has been a 43% decrease in homicides since 2020, and 2024 saw the lowest total number of homicides (150) in St. Louis since 2014. Compared to August 2023, there was a 2.2% decrease in violent crimes more broadly, a 12.6% decrease in property crime, and a 6.3% decrease in crimes against society as of August 2024.

Note: Percent changes include August 2024 data as the comparison period.

Issues Impacting Racial and Economic Inequality in Land Use

The lasting legacies of historic segregation, subjugation, and disenfranchisement of Black residents continue to exacerbate racial inequity in St. Louis. It is clear that great inequality exists across racial and socioeconomic lines in the city and is deeply embedded in land use patterns across the city.

There are many historical policies and practices that have shaped segregation. While these practices were used in many places across the United States, the legacy in St. Louis has caused deep harm and shaped the city, communities, and individuals’ lives. This history is an important reminder that biases (whether overt or implicit) can seep into policy and create lasting damage. The SLUP and subsequent policy updates must affirmatively seek to repair these harms and advance equitable outcomes.

This history also illustrates how land use should not be understood as “a given” or as the result of some natural order, but rather decisions should be questioned and adjusted to meet today’s needs.

For more information about these practices, see “The Making of Ferguson: Public Policy at the Root of its Troubles,” by Richard Rothstein, published October 15, 2014, by The Economic Policy Institute.

Some racist practices involved legal tools to maintain or establish segregation. These included:

Redlining: Redlining designated certain neighborhoods and areas of the city as “high risk” for investment, limiting residents’ access to loans and other financial resources. This practice was supported by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), and limited the ability for potential homeowners to acquire a home.

Racial Covenants: Racially restrictive covenants were legal instruments that took two forms. In one, homebuilders attached clauses to property deeds committing the first and subsequent buyers of a house never to sell that property to a person of a specific race or permit the property to be occupied by one. In the other, associations of homeowners in particular neighborhoods signed mutual agreements that no member of the association would sell to, or permit occupancy by, an African American. Exceptions were typically made for live-in domestic servants.

Although the Supreme Court had upheld the legality of covenants themselves in 1926, in 1948 it ruled Shelley v. Kraemer, a collection of cases named after a St. Louis-based lawsuit. In the case, a white homeowner, Fern Kraemer, objected to the purchase of a home near hers by the African American Shelley family. The area had been covered by a restrictive covenant organized by a neighborhood group that

Text adapted from “The Arsenal of Exclusion and Inclusion” by Interboro, published by Actar Publishers, 2021. Excerpted from “The Making of Ferguson: Public Policy at the Root of its Troubles” by Richard Rothstein, published by The Economic Policy Institute, 2014.

Redlining

Redlining was a practice that designated certain areas as “high-risk” for investment, limiting access to loans and other financial resources. This was supported by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) and was used across the United States, including St. Louis.

In 1937, the Home Owners’ Loan Corporation (HOLC) labeled neighborhoods as one of four categories: A “Best,” B “Still Desirable,” C “Definitely Declining,” or D “Hazardous.”

The HOLC ratings were primarily based on who was already living in the area. Neighborhoods with existing Black residents were assumed to have little to no property value.

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The areas of St. Louis designated as D “Hazardous” were mostly where Black residents lived, exacerbating racial inequality and segregation by preventing Black people from accessing loans or other financial resources.

Many areas where land clearance occurred as part of urban renewal, for example the Pruitt-Igoe site, were given C or D ratings by the HOLC.

Source: Created by the Federal Loan Agency, Federal Home Loan Bank Board and Home Owners' Loan Corporation. City Survey Files, 1935–1940, National Archives Catalog.

included property owners and religious institutions. The Supreme Court found that state courts could not enforce covenants without violating the 14th Amendment to the Constitution.

Many policies and practices were developed and implemented by government, at both the federal and municipal level. Some of these included:

Racial Zoning: St. Louis appointed its first City Plan Commission in 1911 and hired Harland Bartholomew as its full-time planning engineer in 1916. According to Bartholomew, a St. Louis zoning goal was to “preserv[e] the more desirable residential neighborhoods,” and to prevent movement into “finer residential districts ... by colored people.” He noted that without a previous zoning ordinance, such neighborhoods have become run down, “where values have depreciated, homes are either vacant or occupied by colored people.”

Simultaneously, in 1916 the St. Louis Real Estate Exchange sponsored an organization to draft and campaign for a ballot referendum to prohibit Black people from moving onto blocks where at least 75% of existing residents were white (and white people from moving onto blocks where at least 75% were Black). The referendum passed, but before it could have much effect, the US Supreme Court overturned a similar ordinance in Louisville, Kentucky.

Bartholomew’s process to develop zoning rules included detailed surveys and data collection, attempting to understand the potential movement of the African American population expansion to prevent movement in the city. The first zoning ordinance was adopted in 1919, two years after the Supreme Court banned explicit racial zoning. St. Louis ordinance, with no explicit mention of race, was apparently in compliance. The new ordinance designated zones for future industrial development if they were in or adjacent to neighborhoods with substantial Black populations. These types of policies continued through the middle of the 20th century.

In addition to promoting segregation, zoning decisions contributed to degrading St. Louis’s African American neighborhoods into slums. Not only were these neighborhoods zoned to permit industry, even polluting industry, but taverns, liquor stores, nightclubs, and houses of prostitution were allowed to locate in African American neighborhoods while prohibited in residential districts elsewhere.

Public Housing: Like in many cities, Depression-era public housing built in St. Louis separated white and Black residents, and required employment for placement. At times, these segregated developments replaced integrated neighborhoods. This practice continued into the mid-century, with the construction of the Pruitt-Igoe towers and other high-rises. Pruitt had been intended for Blacks and Igoe for whites.

Urban Renewal: Beginning in the 1930s, the city’s urban renewal projects condemned and razed slum housing occupied mostly by African Americans and constructed monuments and other institutions in place of those homes. Neighborhoods were razed for the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial (which includes the Gateway Arch), a museum, a sports stadium, interstate highways (including ramps and interchanges) to bring suburban commuters into white-collar city jobs, new industry, hotels, university expansion, and middle-class housing that was unaffordable to the former residents of the redeveloped areas.

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In the mid 20th century, Interstate 64 was constructed through the central part of the city.

Source: Next STL

Historic Restrictive Covenants

Restrictive covenants legally limited who could buy, lease, or occupy a property. In St. Louis, many covenants were used to restrict African Americans from acquiring property.

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Resident signatures were collected door to door to create Petition Restrictions that banned property from being purchased or occupied by people of certain races. These restrictions were mostly used to constrain Black residents to The Ville Neighborhood.

Subdivision Restrictions were formed during development and included racial restrictions as part of a range of use and ownership regulations. These types of restrictions were attached to newer, usually suburban-style developments.

The map shows restrictive covenants recorded between 1850 and 1950. Racially restrictive covenants were legally protected until 1948, when they were ruled unconstitutional. However, they still appear in many deeds today as a legacy of this practice.

Subdivision restrictions accounted for about 43% of all restricted parcels in St. Louis.

Legend

• Petition Restrictions
• Subdivision Restrictions

Source: Gordon, Colin, Bowen, Jay. Dividing the City: Race-Restrictive Covenants in St. Louis and St. Louis City. 2024.

One significant example is Mill Creek Valley. Mill Creek Valley, a community at the heart of St. Louis’s African American life, was demolished beginning in 1959, displacing 20,000 residents, 95% of whom were Black. Some 40 churches were razed as their parishioners scattered to developing ghettos in inner-ring suburbs. The Mill Creek area was then used for an expansion of St. Louis University, an expressway, a private market-rate housing project, and a subsidized public-private project. In some cases, as was true elsewhere in the country, after African American neighborhoods were demolished, planners’ designs for redevelopment never materialized, and the cleared land remained vacant.

Highway Division: The construction of highways in the mid-20th century disproportionately targeted primarily Black and immigrant neighborhoods in St. Louis. Highways were often routed through these communities, resulting in the displacement of residents and the fragmentation of cohesive neighborhoods. The result of these practices not only includes the physical destruction of these neighborhoods but also the social destruction of established communities. For more information see Disconnection between Neighborhoods (page 232).

The real estate industry also utilized practices that furthered and reinforced segregation. Some of these included:

Contract Selling: With Federal Housing Administration (FHA) mortgages mostly unavailable due to redlining, families were sometimes forced to purchase homes through contracts with very short repayment periods, forfeiting the accumulation of equity, and with harsh penalties for late payment.

Racial Steering: Until passage of the Fair Housing Act and continuing more covertly afterwards, real estate agents openly steered Black home buyers away from white neighborhoods, helping to prevent the emergence and retention of a solid Black middle class in the city.

Real estate and government coordination: Real estate agents’ practices and government action to create and support racial segregation were inseparable in St. Louis and elsewhere. Overlapping with zoning rules adopted by the City Plan Commission in 1919, the St. Louis Real Estate Exchange surveyed its members in 1923 to define zones in which property could be sold to African Americans. City government worked hand in glove with the Exchange, providing it with data on changing racial residential patterns so the Exchange could adapt its restrictive practices accordingly. By 1930, the City Plan Commission estimated that 80% of the city’s African American population was contained within the zones established by the Real Estate Exchange.

Blockbusting: Real estate speculators assisted the conversion of areas from white to Black by creating panic among white homeowners with the message that unless they sold quickly, their property values would deteriorate. Often the real estate agent would arrange an initial sale to an African American family, perhaps subsidizing it himself. Once the family moved in, the agent would convince nearby owners to sell quickly at below-market prices.

Code of Ethics: Racial segregation and discrimination was baked into documents like the St. Louis Real Estate Exchange’s code of ethics, which stated in the mid-1920s, with language taken verbatim from the 1924 code of the National Association of Realtors: “A realtor should never be instrumental in introducing into a neighborhood ... members of any race or nationality ... whose presence will clearly be detrimental to property values in that neighborhood.” Both the St. Louis Real Estate Exchange and the Missouri Real Estate Commission deemed sales to African Americans in white neighborhoods to constitute professional misconduct that could result in loss of license. While the codes were revised in the 1950s, racist practices continued for many years after.

In addition to these policies inside the city of St. Louis, policies in St. Louis County and other surrounding municipalities have further the persistence of racial segregation within the city. For example parts of St. Louis County have adopted zoning ordinances preventing multifamily buildings that are accessible to voucher holders.

Historic disinvestment has impacted the conditions people experience in neighborhoods, especially on the north side of the city. Land use should support reversing decline and improving conditions for residents.

St. Louis has experienced neighborhood disinvestment, particularly in North St. Louis and other historically underserved areas. Redlining, racial zoning, racial covenants, and other racist policies combined with white flight and deindustrialization contributed to the decline of many neighborhoods (read more about these policies in the previous section). These neighborhoods experience disinvestment in many ways, including conditions like high vacancy rates, lack of access to amenities like grocery stores or pharmacies, as well as challenges like appraisal gaps, where the cost to acquire and renovate a home is far higher than the appraised value, making it difficult to acquire sufficient financing. Efforts are being made to revitalize these areas through community development, urban

redevelopment projects, and grassroots initiatives. Yet, challenges remain, and many neighborhoods have high levels of vacancy, crime, and crumbling infrastructure.

How does the SLUP address this?

The SLUP designates Higher- and Medium-Intensity Nodes and Corridors throughout the city both where it makes sense structurally and in areas that are in high need of reinvestment.

Long-standing inequity has disadvantaged people with disabilities, and their access to the resources needed to thrive have been limited across the city.

Compared to the United States as a whole and to the surrounding region, the city of St. Louis has a higher percentage of non-institutionalized individuals with a disability. Sixteen percent of the population, and nearly 6% of individuals under 18 are living with a disability. However, people living with disabilities face substantial challenges in housing, employment, and access to the basics of living in St. Louis. Nearly 60% of people with disabilities are either unemployed or not in the labor force. People with disabilities are below the poverty level at nearly twice the rate of people without disabilities, with almost 36% of people with disabilities earning income over a 12-month period that puts them below the poverty level. Similarly, the median income for people with disabilities was about half the median income for people without disabilities.

In addition to challenges accessing jobs and economic opportunity, very few housing units in the city are accessible, particularly given the local culture of

putting entrances a few steps up, regardless of the local topography. There are few, if any, requirements for accessibility and universal design in housing for small developments (under 4 units). Given the poverty level for people with disabilities, many require affordable or subsidized housing. In 2023, 38% of people in St. Louis’s subsidized units have a disability. Many people with disabilities also need access to core services and amenities, such as healthcare, food, and recreation, within a near radius to their home.

How does the SLUP address this?

The SLUP supports amenities close to where people live, in Corridors, Nodes, and Neighborhoods. In addition, the SLUP recommends future efforts to create more universally designed, aging-friendly, accessible housing; see Equity Goal 1 on page 264.

Strong schools are important to families and, in many cases, are important community anchors. Land use policies should seek to address the conditions that inhibit the success of schools, students, families, and the communities surrounding the school buildings.

The educational landscape in St. Louis is complex, offering families choices between many public schools within the city, as well as dozens of parochial and independent private schools in the city and nearby communities in St. Louis County. Schools across the city are in competition for limited resources and students, and the outcomes for students in these schools widely vary when measured by test scores, graduation rates, and other figures.

Schools are recognized as an important asset of community life, providing not only critical educational services for our youngest residents but also meals, health services, community building, and other supports. However, the perception of our city’s schools as underfunded and attaining below-average academic achievement is often cited as a concern by residents and as a challenge in attracting as well as retaining residents with school-age children. Schools are often also perceived as contributing to race- and class-based community segregation. For example, in Saint Louis Public Schools (SLPS), the racial makeup of the student body was primarily composed of African American students (76.9%), followed by white students (12%), Hispanic students (7.2%), Asian students (2.6%), multiracial students (1.1%), and American Indian students (0.2%). Yet in 2023, 30 schools in the system were enrolled with 95% or more African American students while 7 schools in the system contained nearly half of SLPS’s white student population.

St. Louis Public Schools (SLPS) Student Body Racial Makeup

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Source: St. Louis Public Schools

Among the city’s student population, a significant proportion can currently be described as students in transition (meaning they live without a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence.) In SLPS, 4,771 or 26% of students in SLPS are currently classified as students in transition, meaning that these students are either unhoused or housing insecure, which includes a variety of non-ideal living situations.

How does the SLUP address this?

The goal of offering housing options that meet the diverse needs of the St. Louis community is a key component to moving toward the vision expressed by the SLUP. While relevant to all residents, achieving this goal will be particularly impactful for these students and their families.

As the overall population of the city has declined (see Continued Population Loss, page #page), so has the number of students and school enrollment, prompting many schools to close. This has left many neighborhoods without schools acting as community anchors, but vacant school buildings remain as assets that could be repurposed for any number of uses that meet community needs, including the needs of students and families. Currently, there are 20 listed vacant schools for sale on its Surplus Property Website and many more parochial schools and other educational buildings ready to be reused.

How does the SLUP address this?

The SLUP designates many schools as Neighborhood, as they are surrounded by and support primarily residential uses. If a school building were vacant and a reuse proposed, a variety of Neighborhood uses would be allowable, potentially at a larger scale than the surrounding area. For more information, see the Neighborhood designation on page 74.

Poor environmental conditions are not equally distributed across St. Louis, contributing to distressing health disparities. Land use decisions should seek to reverse this environmental injustice.

Environmental contamination occurs when the air, water, or land contains potentially harmful substances. When certain chemicals are found in higher amounts than exist naturally, they can become contaminants. People and communities are exposed to contaminants from a variety of residential, commercial, and industrial sources. Some contaminants also occur biologically, such as mold and toxic algae.

Environmental racism is the disproportionate impact of environmental hazards on people of color. In St. Louis, Black residents are exposed to considerably greater environmental risks than white residents, which contributes to racial disparities in health, economic well-being, and quality of life.

The 2019 Environmental Racism in St. Louis report prepared by the Interdisciplinary Environmental Clinic at Washington University School of Law outlines some of the main ways that these disparities manifest, including lead poisoning, asthma, mold, air pollution, home energy costs, limited access to healthy food, vacant properties, and illegal trash dumping.

Lead poisoning: St. Louis is a high-risk area for lead poisoning in children because homes built before 1980 are more likely to contain lead paint. From 2017 to 2021, 4.9% of children in the city of St. Louis had elevated blood lead levels, compared to 1.5% of children in St. Louis County. But Black children are nearly twice as likely as white children to test positive for elevated blood lead levels. Lead poisoning can cause a wide array of chronic health issues, including high blood pressure, cardiovascular problems, and kidney damage. It is also known to cause reproductive health issues in pregnant women and can permanently inhibit childhood brain development.

Asthma: Asthma is one of the most prevalent and severe chronic health issues for children, and it is the top reason for a child to be hospitalized in Missouri. The City’s Equity Indicators Baseline Report showed that Black children are far more likely than white children to visit the emergency room for asthma-related complications. A study published in 2019 by Washington University showed that over a dozen north St. Louis neighborhoods have high rates of childhood asthma using census and health data from multiple government agencies. These neighborhoods contain clusters of the city’s highest rates of the illness, and these hot spots mostly consist of Black and low-income residents. Environmental risks such as mold and air pollution, combined with poor quality housing and limited access to health care, contribute to the significant racial disparity for asthma.

Mold: In 2018, St. Louis’s majority-Black wards had higher rates of interior mold complaints than non majority-Black wards. Mold exposure can cause or worsen harmful symptoms and can trigger asthma attacks. It can be especially dangerous to those with allergies or pre-existing health conditions.

Asthma

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Air Pollution

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Air quality: Industries and power plants, vehicles, and building demolitions all contribute to poor air quality in St. Louis, and most sources of air pollution are in neighborhoods that have higher percentages of residents of color. Building demolitions permits are issued more frequently in majority Black neighborhoods, which can contribute to air pollution by spreading harmful dust and asbestos. In 2023, St. Louis was ranked the 27th most polluted city in the United States in terms of year-round particle pollution.

Home energy costs: Poor energy efficiency as a result of poor housing quality can cause certain households to have high energy burdens, especially during extreme weather patterns of heat or cold. Nearly 52% of low-income households and 46% of Black households in St. Louis face energy burdens that are more than twice the citywide median.

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Louis are almost twice as likely to have limited access to healthy food as white residents – 11.9% of Black residents compared to 6.3% of white residents. Lack of grocery stores and markets with fresh produce as well as limited access to transportation and low car ownership contribute to this disparity. Limited access to healthy food can increase risk of diet-related chronic diseases.

Illegal trash dumping: Complaints of illegal trash dumping have been higher in majority-Black neighborhoods. Environmental and health risks associated with illegal trash dumping include harmful chemicals from the trash, disease-carrying animals and insects attracted to the trash, and nails or other sharp edges that can cause cuts and infections. Addressing vacancy and enforcement and monitoring efforts are all needed to address this complicated issue.

Brownfields: Brownfields are areas of abandoned industrial or commercial land that can present threats to human health and the environment, encourage crime such as theft and dumping, and contribute to sprawl and destruction of sites that have not been developed. The redevelopment or reuse of brownfields can be complicated by the presence or potential presence of hazardous substances, pollutants, or contaminants. However, brownfields can be great opportunities for reuse when properly cleaned up. The City of St. Louis Brownfields Program supports brownfield remediation projects, turning contaminated sites to new uses. One example of the program’s success is the historic Arcade building in Downtown. After 30 years of vacancy, the building was cleared of all contaminants, including toxic building materials such as asbestos and lead. It has since been redeveloped into a mixed-use structure that includes low-income housing, market-value housing, and offices and classrooms for Webster University.

How does the SLUP address this?

The SLUP reimagines some existing industrial areas as Flex Industrial in between Core Industrial areas and Neighborhoods, helping to buffer polluting-land uses from residential and public ones. For example, Flex areas might include green spaces or trees that can help filter negative byproducts of industrial activity. The SLUP also embraces the Economic Justice Index and Economic Justice Demonstration Areas as guides for directing investment to re-establish core services that can help mitigate and address environmental health issues.

Brownfields

Brownfields are areas of abandoned industrial and commercial land that can present threats to human health and the environment. Often these sites require remediation before redevelopment can occur, where the harmful contaminants on the site are removed.

In 2023, St. Louis received $500,000 from the EPA for community and environmental cleanup efforts in the city through the EPA’s Brownfields Assessment Grant program. The grant focused on the neighborhoods of Fountain Park, Greater Ville, The Ville, Jeff Vanderlou, St. Louis Place, College Hill, Fairground Neighborhood, Wells Goodfellow, Walnut Park East, Hamilton Heights, and Chouteau’s Landing.

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Source: City of St. Louis, Missouri Department of Natural Resources E-Start

Climate Resiliency

The growing frequency and severity of flooding must inform land use decisions.

St. Louis is vulnerable to flooding due to its location near the Mississippi River and the River des Peres, as well as due to flash flooding when there is heavy rain. The city has experienced significant flooding in the past and will likely flood more in the future as a result of climate change. In July 2022, the city made national headlines for a record flash flooding event when upwards of 8” of rain fell in just over 7 hours. This storm amounted to 25% of St. Louis’ normal annual rainfall in just 12 hours, resulting in the declaration of the city’s first ever Flash Flood Emergency. This flash flood caused tens of millions of dollars in destruction and resulted in the damage of 750 homes. In addition, 500 more homes were affected by the high water.

The 2022 flash flood differs from other regional floods from the surrounding rivers. In July 2022, there was limited flooding along the Mississippi River due to incidentally dry conditions in the preceding weeks that left river levels very low at the start of the storm. Most significantly, the upper River Des Peres flooded dramatically, increasing from a depth of an inch prior to the flood to as much as 16 feet at the height of the event.

The city’s urban landscape contributes to flooding issues due to large amounts of impervious surfaces like roads, parking lots, and buildings, which prevent water from being absorbed into the ground. This results in increased stormwater runoff during heavy rains. Moreover, in certain parts of St. Louis (for example, in most of north St. Louis), the drainage infrastructure is outdated or insufficient to handle heavy rainfall, leading to frequent localized flooding. Climate change trends indicate increased heavy precipitation will result in more frequent and severe flash flooding and sewer overflows.

St. Louis has significant flood-vulnerable infrastructure due to its location along the Mississippi River and an aging network of levees, floodwalls, and stormwater systems. Highways like 70, 64, 44, and 55 are all located in low-lying areas, making them susceptible to flooding during heavy rains. Several local roads in floodplains are frequently closed during heavy rains, disrupting transportation and commerce.

Parts of the city’s MetroLink light rail system are also vulnerable to flooding due to their low elevation, and the system has experienced service disruptions due to flooding in the past.

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Flood Vulnerable Infrastructure Source: USACE St. Louis District

The city currently has multiple means of managing flooding. For instance, large underground detention basins immediately collect stormwater from heavy rain events. Floodwalls protect St. Louis from flooding along the Mississippi River, adjacent to industrial parts of the city. Currently the Army Corps of Engineers is responsible for maintaining 35,614 feet of levees, 25,700 feet of floodwalls, and 28 pump stations along the Mississippi River.

Currently the Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District (MSD) provides wastewater and stormwater management for St. Louis city and county. MSD maintains two utility systems: a wastewater system for collecting and treating water generated by residential, commercial, and industrial activities and a stormwater system. In 2007, the State of Missouri and the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) filed a lawsuit against MSD regarding the overflow of wastewater (known as combined sewer overflows or CSOs) into local waterways during intense rainfall, leading to an agreement known as a consent decree. MSD agreed to make an estimated $4.7 billion of improvements to its sewer systems and treatment plants to remedy illegal overflows of 13.4 billion gallons of untreated raw sewage in rivers and streams. MSD agreed to dedicate $100 million in green infrastructure to reduce stormwater runoff to the Mississippi River and update drainage infrastructure.

MSD employs multiple stormwater retention and filtration strategies, including open channels that direct the flow of stormwater through a network of swales and rainscaping, where low-impact development optimizes the retention of rainwater in plantings, catch basins, and permeable pavements. The Project Clear Initiative is a long-term public effort to improve water quality, ensure rain does not enter the sanitary sewer system, repair and maintain existing stormwater lines, and construct new sewer and wastewater infrastructure. Some of those funds are available to residents and organizations through MSD Project Clear Grants to implement green infrastructure.

How does the SLUP address this?

The SLUP proposes an Other Open Space designation, which can be applied to areas where there’s an opportunity to absorb flooding. Read more on page 126. In addition, the SLUP recommends additional steps to consider flooding in future neighborhood, district, and green infrastructure planning (see Growing Goal 3, page 322).

Blocks Impacted by the 2022 Flood

In July 2022, the city made national headlines for a record flash flooding event when upwards of 8” of rain fell in just over 7 hours. This storm amounted to 25% of St. Louis’ normal annual rainfall in just 12 hours.

Many pieces of important infrastructure, including the Forest Park MetroLink station, parts of the MetroLink tracks, and many roads were closed or rerouted, resulting in some substantial damage.

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The flood caused tens of millions of dollars in destruction and resulted in the damage of 750 homes.

There was limited flooding along the Mississippi River due to incidentally dry conditions in the preceding weeks that left river levels very low at the start of the storm.

However, the upper River Des Peres flooded dramatically, increasing from a depth of an inch prior to the flood to as much as 16 feet at the height of the event.

Source: The City of St. Louis

Increasing risk of extreme heat requires mitigation through green infrastructure, smart planning, and more trees.

St. Louis, like many other cities in the United States, is experiencing increasing heat severity due to climate change. Several factors contribute to this trend, including rising global temperatures, urban heat island effects, and increasingly frequent extreme heat events. The entire state of Missouri is considered part of the "Extreme Heat Belt," a region that is anticipated to be particularly vulnerable to high heat, with at least one day per year anticipated to be over 125°F by 2053.

Many areas of St. Louis experience the urban heat island effect, characterized by elevated temperatures in comparison to surrounding areas with less development. This phenomenon is primarily attributed to the prominence of hard, heat-absorbing surfaces, such as asphalt or concrete. As a result, some areas of the city experience higher temperatures, impacting the well-being of its residents and straining energy demands for cooling. Efforts to mitigate the urban heat island effect in St. Louis include urban planning strategies that promote green infrastructure, tree planting and preservation initiatives, and sustainable architecture, all aimed at fostering a more resilient and climate-conscious urban landscape.

Urban trees help provide shade, cool the environment, and mitigate stormwater runoff — but they must be protected and cared for across the whole city for this positive impact.

St. Louis has historically faced issues with a lack of shade and street trees in certain neighborhoods, particularly in lower-income areas. Part of the reason for this is that when vacant properties are cleared, large mature trees are also removed, creating gaps in the canopy that take a long time to fill. There are also concerns about the expenses around maintaining and pruning trees, which impacts low-income neighborhoods disproportionately. Tree Equity Score, which measures how well critical benefits of urban tree canopy are reaching those who need them most, gives St. Louis a composite score of 81 out of 100, with 100 representing equitable tree canopy cover. Additionally, this source reports that St. Louis neighborhoods with higher poverty rates also have less tree canopy cover. This has contributed to inequitable environmental and social challenges, such as higher temperatures, reduced air quality, and less aesthetically pleasing urban environments.

Urban reforestation initiatives represent a strategic way of enhancing the city's environmental resilience. For instance, the planting of trees on vacant lots not only increases the urban canopy but also contributes to the reduction of the urban heat island effect by providing shade and flooding by absorbing stormwater. These planted green spaces can act as carbon sinks, aiding in the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and aligning with the city's broader sustainability goals. Such enhancements may also improve the overall quality of life for the city's inhabitants, creating more resilient and vibrant urban landscapes.

Tree Canopy Comparison

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Source: Tree Equity Score; Civic Graphics

Tree Canopy Coverage

Establishing and maintaining trees across St. Louis supports resilience to extreme weather patterns and climate change, particularly heat and flooding. However, trees are not even distributed across St. Louis — with some neighborhoods having a robust canopy while others lack shade and cover.

Tree canopy coverage is related to extreme heat. Areas with less trees experience more extreme heat.

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More densely developed areas like Midtown and industrial areas have the lowest tree canopy coverage.

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Source: Tree Equity Score; Civic Graphics

Housing Needs

Housing in St. Louis remains relatively affordable, which is a potential asset. But prices have more rapidly risen in certain areas, and far too many residents do not have access to quality, affordable housing.

St. Louis housing costs still remain relatively low compared to many other large metropolitan areas. St. Louis often ranks as one of the more affordable large metros in the Housing Affordability Index, which measures the ability of a typical family to afford a home by taking into account median home prices, income levels, and mortgage rates to determine how accessible housing is for average residents. However, this relative affordability does not mean that there is sufficient supply of quality housing affordable to all St. Louisans.

At the same time, in recent years, St. Louis has seen some increase in housing costs due to growing demand and rising costs of new developments, particularly in certain desirable neighborhoods. These neighborhoods include the Central West End, The Grove, Soulard, Tower Grove South and Tower Grove East, Shaw, Lafayette Square, and South Hampton. This trend indicates strong demand for walkable urban neighborhoods.

Housing Affordability Index

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Source: National Association of Realtors

How does the SLUP address this?

The SLUP expands the conditions for walkable neighborhoods to more parts of the city through Neighborhoods, Corridors, and Nodes.

The cost of quality housing surpasses what many can afford, and efforts must continue to expand the availability of quality, diverse, affordable housing that meets the full range of housing needs in the city.

Quality, affordable housing is a significant issue in St. Louis, as it is in many urban areas across the United States.

Affordable housing and rent burden The city has around 168,352 housing units, and the median year in which these properties were built was 1946. Out of 136,298 occupied housing units, 44% are owner-occupied while 56% are renter-occupied. Properties with mortgages account for 64% of owner-occupied housing units, and the median value of a home with a mortgage is $170,000. In general, housing costs in St. Louis are around $900 per month.

The City of St. Louis’s Community Development & Housing Strategy 5-Year Consolidated Plan for 2025–2029 reports that approximately 16% of all households in the city are affected by housing cost burden, meaning that they pay between 30% and 50% of their income to housing costs. An additional 17% of households report severe cost burden, meaning they pay 50% or more of their income. In addition, the 2021 St. Louis Affordable Housing Report Card revealed that the need for affordable housing among Black households, low-income families, and renters far exceeds the demand. While there is a surplus of housing available to the highest four out of five income brackets (households with 30%–100% of the Area Median Income), there are about 35,000 residents in the lowest-income bracket that don’t have access to affordable units. The 2021 St. Louis Affordable Housing Report Card showed that since 2022, the City of St. Louis’s affordable housing development pipeline included over 3,000 rental units and 236 for-sale units completed, under construction, or in pre-development.

There are a variety of City departments and partner agencies that support the production and preservation of affordable housing options. This includes:

• The City of St. Louis Affordable Housing Commission, a City board that reviews and approves funding for affordable housing projects. The Commission funds a range of projects to help preserve and produce affordable, accessible housing and support services that enhance the quality of life for those in need. These projects include things like home repair services, accessible home modifications, homelessness prevention and shelter services, transitional housing, and emergency eviction prevention.
• Community Development Administration (CDA), which also funds a wide range of public and nonprofit entities that support affordable housing production. The CDA channels federal grant funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development for renovating abandoned properties and developing vacant land.
• The St. Louis Development Corporation is also taking a more active role in expanding affordable housing opportunities through incentives and proactive development.
• In addition, through federally funded Public Housing and Housing Choice Voucher (Section 8) programs, the St. Louis Housing Authority (a non-City agency) reports providing affordable housing to more than 20,000 residents. The St. Louis Housing Authority currently operates 45 properties across the city, including 38 family developments, 5 mixed population developments, and 5 senior developments.

Housing cost burden is a serious issue in St. Louis, and the City needs to address these issues by expanding the supply and diversity of housing options while also expanding economic opportunity.

How does the SLUP address this?

The SLUP supports development of a diverse range of housing types. It also expands where housing is supported, from primarily residential areas known as Neighborhoods to include many mixed-use areas that may also support housing, such as Corridors and Nodes. Additionally, the SLUP aims to reduce regulatory barriers to housing development through updates to the zoning code while also strategically using the City’s incentives tools to support mixed-income and affordable housing development.

Share of rent-burdened households

Rent-burdened households pay more than 30% of their income on rent, leaving little income to support other expenses.

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Source: St. Louis Affordable Housing Report Card

Number of households paying less than $550 in rent (affordable to 30% AMI)

Households with income less than $15,900, or 30% of the Area Median Income are considered very low income. For these households to not experience a rent burden, they must have access to housing that is $550 or less.

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Source: St. Louis Affordable Housing Report Card

In red census tracts in the above map, more than half of renters are spending 30% or more of their monthly income on housing costs.

Homeownership Homeownership has historically been the primary way for people to build wealth, which is why it is an important indicator of economic stability as well as equity. In 2023, there were 60,151 owner-occupied households, which comprises approximately 41% of all households in St. Louis.

In 2020, the St. Louis region had the fourth-highest mortgage denial rate for Black applicants. Compared to the region’s overall mortgage denial rate, Black homebuyers are about three times more likely to have a loan application denied. The persistence of disinvestment in parts of the city also creates an “appraisal gap,” meaning that conventional appraisals do not support the level of bank investment needed to purchase and adequately improve or repair a home.

Evictions A formal eviction is a legal process by which a landlord removes a tenant from their property, typically for nonpayment of rent. There may be many more cases of informal eviction, where landlords request or pressure tenants to leave without involving the court. Estimates of informal evictions are not included in this analysis. According to Eviction Lab data, 17.3 evictions are filed per day in St. Louis city, with a filing rate of 7.7%, just about at the U.S. average. Black renters are most likely to be evicted, representing 46.8% of evictions, followed by white renters, representing 43.3% of evictions.

Residential Market Value Analysis

The Residential Market Value Analysis (MVA) uses market data to classify geographic areas into various market types within the City and identify the unique needs of each neighborhood. The SLUP uses the map to understand where and how private investment can be strategically leveraged for the public’s benefit.

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Market Types A, B, and C contain 32.6% of the city’s housing units. These types have higher than average housing values, low levels of vacancy, and low levels of distressed or investor sales.

Market Types G, H, and I contain 23.3% of the city’s housing units. These types have below-average housing values, higher levels of vacancy, and higher levels of distressed and investor sales.

Market Types D, E, and F contain 36.6% of the city’s housing units. These types have close-to-average housing values.

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Source: Market Value Analysis Tool, Community Development Administration

Housing Accessibility

There are also significant challenges with housing accessibility in the St. Louis region. The 2022 5-year ACS survey reports 43,123 people with disabilities live in St. Louis. Additionally, 45,925 St. Louisians are over the age of 65. These are two groups that require specific, accessibly-designed housing, which makes finding affordable housing even more difficult. In addition to limited accessible units, few of these units are subsidized or otherwise affordable. Federal Fair Housing requirements and the International Building Code require accessible features only in projects that produce 4 or more dwelling units per lot, meaning that many projects are not required to include accessible features. In addition, local St. Louis tradition in building construction often results in homes with entrances a few steps up, regardless of need. There are many opportunities to increase the availability and quality of accessible units.

Housing Quality

The City of St. Louis’s Community Development & Housing Strategy 5-Year Consolidated Plan for 2025–2029 reports that many renters and owners struggle with inadequate housing conditions. Substandard housing conditions, such as lacking complete plumbing or kitchen facilities, affect 935 renter households and 215 homeowner households. Overcrowding is another issue, with 1,335 renter households and 335 homeowner households living in overcrowded conditions. Severe overcrowding, defined as more than 1.51 people per room, impacts 640 renter households and 64 homeowner households.

Past discriminatory housing practices

Housing needs in St. Louis cannot be properly understood without recognition of public policies that caused racial segregation and inequality in the city. The continuing effects of these policies and patterns have contributed to a lack of opportunities for Black residents to own or maintain their own homes. For more about this history, see “Issues Impacting Racial and Economic Inequality in Land Use” (page 203).

Housing insecurity and homelessness

The Institute for Community Alliances reports that as of October 2024, the city had identified 571 chronically homeless individuals, meaning the individual had a documented disability and has experienced homelessness for at least a year or repeatedly over three years. In addition, nearly 1,400 people were identified as non-chronically homeless. There are also disparities in who faces homelessness. In 2020, the St. Louis Continuum of Care reported that while the city’s population is less than 50% Black, the unhoused population at the time was 73% Black

Addressing housing insecurity and homelessness is a regional issue that requires collaboration. In recent years, St. Louis City and St. Louis County have become partners in efforts to address chronic homelessness, coordinating on services provided such as shelters and temporary housing.

Transportation Options

Transportation and land use are deeply interrelated. Transit, for example, should both inform and be informed by land use decisions related to density, walkability, and mixing of uses.

St. Louis has several public transit options, though the effectiveness and accessibility can vary depending on the part of the city, time of day, and day of the week. The public transportation system is operated by regional entity Metro Transit (a division of Bi-State Development Agency, or BSD), which includes MetroLink (light rail) and MetroBus services. While the region offers a relatively comprehensive system for its size, especially around key areas and corridors, there are gaps in coverage in suburban and less dense areas, particularly outside of the City of St. Louis.

The first form of mass transit was introduced in St. Louis with the horse-drawn omnibus in 1843. By 1850 there were 90 buses along four main lines. About a decade later, tracks were built and the buses mainly shifted to streetcars. Later, horsepower was replaced by steam-powered cable lines and then by electric trolleys. These new transportation options allowed people to move farther out of the city center and commute to work. By the 1920s, bus service began to compete with streetcar lines for passengers. Over time, as more families acquired cars, streetcar usage declined and streetcar operators struggled financially. Following World War II, many streetcar lines were discontinued or converted to bus service. The last original streetcar line, the Hodiamont, converted to bus service in 1965.

St. Louis returned to rail-based mass transit with the opening of the MetroLink light-rail system in 1993. The original MetroLink route (Red Line) utilized an existing rail corridor for its initial alignment. In 1994, service to Lambert International Airport began. The line was expanded into Illinois in 2001 and reached the current terminus at Shiloh-Scott station, near Scott Air Force Base, in 2003. The nine-station Blue line alignment opened in 2006, adding service to several locations in St. Louis County, downtown Clayton, and additional service at Washington University. The Red and Blue lines share service at 16 stations between Forest Park -DeBaliviere and Fairview Heights, IL.

Today, MetroLink is one of the most efficient ways to traverse St. Louis, with 2 light-rail lines, 38 stations, and 46 miles of track. MetroLink connects residents from St. Louis Lambert International Airport, to downtown Clayton, through the central corridor and downtown in the City of St. Louis, and into key locations in Illinois. There are currently 13 MetroLink stations in St. Louis County, 12 in the City of St. Louis, and 11 in Illinois. MetroLink trains run every 10–20 minutes. An extension to directly serve Mid-America Airport, adjacent to Scott AFB in Illinois, is currently under construction and will open in 2026.

In 2017, voters in the city of St. Louis approved a sales tax increase to help fund the construction of a new, north-to-south-running MetroLink expansion. This new alignment, now called the MetroLink Green Line, has undergone several rounds of conceptual route planning. In 2024, the project entered into the Federal Transit Administration’s (FTA) Project Development Pipeline as a 10-station, street center-running light rail project using Jefferson, Parnell, and Natural Bridge Avenues. The northernmost station would be at the intersection of Grand and Natural Bridge near Fairground Park, and the southernmost station at Jefferson and Chippewa. A passenger transfer station with the Red and Blue lines would be constructed near Scott Avenue. along the existing Red / Blue line alignment. The project would extend convenient Metrolink access to many residential neighborhoods and the intersection between Downtown and Midtown St. Louis. Three station locations would be integrated into the upcoming Brickline Greenway at Market Street, St. Louis Avenue, and Grand Boulevard.

The project is currently advancing design and engineering to a point sufficient for the FTA to make a funding determination for the project. Accessing sufficient federal funding will be critical for the project to move into construction and service.

The MetroLink Secure Platform Plan is a multi-tiered security strategy to grow ridership and create a more secure environment for transit riders by creating centralized and highly secure entrances. The project involves new entrance gates and a new fare payment system at all existing stations. The project is expected to be completed by the end of 2025.

MetroBus and Madison County Transit combined operate nearly 60 bus routes in Missouri and Illinois, with buses running from every 12 minutes to every hour depending on the line. In 2021, Metro Transit introduced the first 40- and 60-foot zero-emission electric buses to the agency’s fleet. The electric buses reduce greenhouse gasses by up to 160 tons per year and offer quieter service for passengers when compared to a diesel bus.

Metro Call-A-Ride has operated since 1987 as an alternative to fixed-route options, specifically for residents who have limited access to MetroBus or MetroLink and/or disabled residents who are unable to use those services. Metro also operates Via Metro STL, which lets residents hail a vehicle directly from their smartphone using the Via app within areas with limited bus service and travel to any location within the service zone during operating hours.

The Loop Trolley is a 2.2-mile, 10-station heritage streetcar line that runs along Delmar Boulevard and DeBaliviere Avenue from City Hall in University City to the Missouri History Museum in Forest Park. It is free to use and operates seasonally from April to October.

The primary regional Amtrak station is located in the St. Louis Gateway Transportation Center, adjacent to the Civic Center MetroLink station in downtown St. Louis. The facility serves inter-city bus carriers and offers direct access to the MetroLink light rail and the local bus network. Amtrak service originating in St. Louis travels to Chicago, west to Kansas City, and south to Little Rock.

The City of St. Louis has begun a citywide transportation and mobility plan. This will be the first citywide mobility plan in St. Louis to be completed in decades and will develop a consensus around the values and vision for the future of mobility in our city. This plan will bring together major projects like the Brickline Greenway, Future64, MetroLink Green Line, and others while also establishing new priorities for a safer, better-maintained transportation network across the city. It will also give city agencies better tools to develop, prioritize, and communicate about future infrastructure projects. It is one component of many initiatives by the city to develop an expanded, contemporary comprehensive plan.

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Public Transit System

Source: City of St Louis/ Metro St. Louis

How does the SLUP address this?

The SLUP proposes Higher-Intensity Nodes and Corridors along existing and proposed transit options, allowing more people to live in areas with public transit access and increasing their ability to traverse the city without a car.

Improved bike and pedestrian infrastructure, alongside more walkable land use policies in more mixed-use areas, can help strengthen connections between neighborhoods and improve access to key services.

Traffic crashes exact an enormous toll on the quality of life for St. Louis residents. In 2022, 79 people were killed in crashes, and 52 were killed in crashes in 2023. But fatalities are only part of the story, as many more residents are injured in traffic crashes and may face life-altering consequences from injuries. The threat of a serious crash affects the way people live and travel and may prevent people from engaging in activities they enjoy, like walking or riding a bike. Children, older residents, and those with limited mobility experience constraints on where they can safely travel independently. The sense of unsafe streets also contributes to psychological barriers in traveling between neighborhoods. In recent years, both across the country and in St. Louis, pedestrians have come to be a larger proportion of total traffic fatalities. The fatality rate per capita in St. Louis is higher than many peer cities.

The city's infrastructure, traffic patterns, and certain high-traffic areas can pose risks for cyclists and pedestrians, owing to a lack of dedicated bike lanes, insufficient pedestrian infrastructure, and an abundance of high-speed roads that cut through residential and commercial areas.

Driver behavior and high-speed roads also contribute to an unsafe environment for pedestrians and cyclists. An analysis by the East-West Gateway Council of Governments revealed that there were 1,867 crashes resulting in fatality or serious injury in the City of St. Louis between 2018 and 2022. Additionally, speeding-related issues were the primary cause of serious and fatal crashes in the St. Louis metro area, accounting for 30% of all incidents.

There are many opportunities to address these safety concerns through improved infrastructure for biking and walking in St. Louis. Currently, St. Louis has 2.7 miles of separated bike lanes, around 25 miles of buffered bike lanes, 28 miles of conventional bike lanes, and over 50 miles of shared-use paths. A 2022 sidewalk assessment for The Ville and Greater Ville neighborhoods also demonstrated the inadequacy of pedestrian infrastructure in St. Louis. The study revealed over 150,000 feet of sidewalk that needed replacing, or 28 out of 61 miles of sidewalk in both neighborhoods. While this study only covered a small portion of the city's total pedestrian infrastructure, it reflects a greater pattern of an unreliable sidewalk network, especially in historically disinvested and low-income neighborhoods.

Significant transportation infrastructure improvements are planned and underway throughout the city. More than $300 million is currently being invested by the City of St. Louis and partner agencies in transportation infrastructure upgrades in the city between 2024 and 2027. The goals of these investments across the city are improved safety and accessibility for all users, new multi-modal amenities and connections, and improved state of repair and maintenance. A variety of design approaches and features are being used depending on the project context. This includes traffic calming through narrowing travel lanes, installing bump-outs to slow vehicular traffic, shortening pedestrian crossings, improving sidewalks and curb ramps, replacing bridges and increasing space for non-motorized users, and creating new multi-modal connections. Several projects include new protected bikeways, significantly expanding the bikeway network and bridging key barriers.

A signature part of this investment is the partnership between Great Rivers Greenway and the City of St. Louis to build the Brickline Greenway. The Brickline Greenway will include over 10 miles of new greenway, primarily on city streets, connecting 14 city neighborhoods and 4 major parks (Forest Park, the Gateway Arch National Park, Fairground Park, and Tower Grove Park). The Brickline Greenway is by far the most ambitious urban greenway system developed in St. Louis’ history. Many significant segments are already funded and moving into construction. The many aims of the new greenway system include creating a new, high-quality trail and public space system to connect St. Louis residents, improving safety on streets that have poor safety records, and linking parks and neighborhoods with well-designed natural systems. The Brickline Greenway will shrink perceived distance between major destinations and bridge existing physical and physiological barriers.

St. Louis has about 190 total miles of bike infrastructure, 66 of which are separated, buffered, or multi-use paths.

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Source: City of St. Louis (2022)

How does the SLUP address this?

The SLUP encourages development that creates safe, walkable spaces, with specific requirements in some areas that contribute to traffic calming such as restrictions on front-facing parking lots. The SLUP also supports mixed-use development and re-use along existing and planned greenways to ensure that land use complements that infrastructure.

St. Louis’s location within the national transportation network gives it a competitive advantage in freight, logistics, and other industries.

The location of St. Louis near the confluences of the Missouri, Illinois, and Mississippi rivers has made it a transportation hub since its founding as a fur trading center. River transportation was especially important to St. Louis’ growth in the first half of the 19th century. With the introduction of the steam-powered riverboat in 1817, river transportation was revolutionized and goods could be transported between St. Louis and other major river cities in a matter of days. By 1846, there were about 1,200 steamboats on the Mississippi River, and as many as 50 could dock on the wharf in St. Louis at one time. Today, the Port of Metropolitan St. Louis (PMSL) is the second-largest inland port system in the United States and was ranked the most efficient port system by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The St. Louis regional port system is responsible for 8% of the 855 miles of the Mississippi River but carries one-third of the river's total freight. In 2021, the St. Louis region's barge industry handled 427,000 tons per mile, moving more than four times the average tons per mile when compared to the other seven inland ports in the United States.

In the mid-1800s, Missouri chartered the Pacific Railroad to cross the state from St. Louis with the hopes of eventually connecting with a transcontinental railroad. The initial leg of the Pacific broke ground in 1851, and by 1865 it reached all the way to Kansas City. Railroad transportation in St. Louis hit a milestone when the Eads Bridge was completed in 1874 and train cars no longer had to be ferried across the river. Union Station was built in 1895, and by 1900 it was the largest and busiest station in the US, accommodating 22 railroad lines and an average of 1,500 ticket sales every day. Today, the St. Louis region is one of the largest rail hubs in the U.S., linking six Class I, local, and short line railroads. The region's railway system serves all corners of the U.S. and supports the area’s role as a national manufacturing and distribution center.

St. Louis has access to four interstates, which allows easy connection to and from key industrial locations across the city as well as the region.

St. Louis Lambert International Airport is the largest airport in Missouri, and it can be reached via MetroLink and MetroBus. St. Louis opened Lambert Municipal Airport in the 1920s as one of the first municipally-owned airports in the United States. In the 1980s, St. Louis became a “hub city” for Trans World Airlines (TWA), one of the nation's largest carriers. Other airports serving the area include MidAmerica St. Louis Airport (BLV), Spirit of St. Louis Airport (KSUS), and St. Louis Downtown Airport (KCPS).

Regional Freight Facilities

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Source: St. Louis Regional Freightway.

Walkability & Public Realm

Much of St. Louis maintains its walkable grid pattern, which is an asset for restoring and enhancing walkability across the city.

St. Louis has many areas with a dense, walkable urban fabric. Urban fabric refers to the physical components of cities, including buildings, streets, landscapes, lighting, and other elements. In St. Louis, this urban fabric is particularly robust in neighborhoods like Central West End, Soulard, Skinker Debaliviere, the West End, The Hill, Tower Grove South, and Lafayette Square, which have not experienced significant periods of demolition or urban renewal. These neighborhoods offer a compact layout with a mix of residential, commercial, and recreational spaces. However, some parts of the city are more car dependent, especially those areas of the city developed after the mid-20th century. Fortunately, almost all parts of the city have strong “bones” for walkability and urbanism, such as relatively small parcels that are closely interconnected by streets and sidewalks. Development in the private realm and maintenance of sidewalks and the public realm both contribute to walkability. On the public side, in recent years St. Louis has been increasing funding for sidewalk and accessibility improvements and has begun to invest significantly in traffic calming across the city. Private development and investment will be guided by the SLUP, which points toward zoning reform that can help facilitate development patterns and building types which better support walkability.

One way to consider walkability in St. Louis is the idea that residents can access most or all of the essential services and amenities they need within a 15-minute walk. This nearby access has the potential to create more mobility and opportunity for everyone.

Assessing walkability means evaluating the distance to amenities like public facilities (schools, recreation centers, pools, libraries, community gardens), food (grocery stores, restaurants, cafes), health (hospitals, clinics, pharmacies), education (elementary schools, middle schools, high schools, higher education),

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Walkability to Key Spots

“Essential goods and services” include grocery stores, restaurants, cafes, healthcare facilities, schools, transportation, places of worship, and entertainment venues.

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Certain neighborhoods have plenty of walkable access to amenities while others have very little access.

Walkable access to essential amenities is especially important in areas with low car ownership, such as Hyde Park.

The Central West End is one neighborhood with a high density of essential services and amenities.

Some walkable neighborhoods are isolated with little connectivity between them. It is difficult to reach one walkable area from another.

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Source: Open Street Map, Google Maps

transportation (MetroLink stops, MetroBus stops, bike routes), places of worship, and entertainment (theaters, concert halls, galleries, art studios).

Areas with these essential amenities nearby can benefit those who do not have cars or are unable to drive, including youth, older residents, and low-income residents, and anyone who wants to spend less time in a car. Walkability and access to nearby services and amenities are concepts that current residents strongly favor enhancing and view as key strengths and differentiators between the City of St. Louis and the rest of the region. In addition to having amenities nearby, the streets and sidewalks must be safe, accessible, and adequately maintained to allow people to access those amenities.

How does the SLUP address this?

The SLUP recommends areas that concentrate amenities in Corridors and Nodes across the entire city to support development that is walkable to many areas where people live.

Too many of St. Louis’s main streets have lost their walkable fabric and pedestrian orientation. Highways have also divided the city and contributed to an automobile-centric mindset in some cases.

When the first Comprehensive City Plan was created for St. Louis in 1947, there was an assumption that St. Louis’s population would continue to grow throughout the rest of the 20th century at a similar rate as it had for the past 50 years. This meant that the expected population in 1970 was 900,000 people, and the main goal of the plan was to help the city accommodate that growth. The 1947 Plan included a comprehensive street plan with 301.7 miles of new roads, including 21 miles of 8- to 10-lane interstate highways. The plan also included extensions and rerouting of streetcar and bus lines. In reality, St. Louis’s population began to fall by the early 1950s and dropped to 622,236 in 1970 and to just 348,189 by 2000 (for more information, see Population Change and Demographics (page 182).

Implementation of aspects of the 1947 Plan were supported by the Federal Housing Act of 1949 and the Federal Aid Highway Act of 1956, which provided money for neighborhood clearance in urban areas, suburban housing construction, and the construction of highways in the city, including I-70, US 40/I-64, I-55, I-44, and I-270. This construction encouraged the use of the car and enabled suburbanization. Urban sprawl and the decentralization of retail business were other outcomes of the rise of the automobile. Ultimately, the plans for St. Louis from 1947 were greatly overscaled compared to the city’s actual growth, and the construction of major roads destroyed or divided substantial portions of existing neighborhoods and significantly changed the city’s urban fabric.

Since the post-war period, St. Louis has experienced a significant amount of auto-centric development along many of its major roads. This development style, characterized by large parking lots, drive-thru services, and highway-oriented commercial areas, reduces walkability and weakens the connections between places that make a city feel urban. While parts of St. Louis have embraced more urban development patterns, over time the city’s landscape has evolved to be more car dependent, with both development patterns and streetscapes often prioritizing vehicle access over other modes despite being a historic urban center. This type of development has also proven to be dangerous, resulting in traffic fatalities due to high speeds on overbuilt roads and poor access management, with many parcels having multiple closely-spaced vehicular access points.

How does the SLUP address this?

The SLUP calls for higher-intensity land use near existing and proposed transit and greenways, making it easier for people to live in areas with access to a variety of transportation options without relying on having a car. It also establishes clear site design principles for these areas, with the goal to move away from an auto-centric orientation and toward a development pattern that prioritizes the safety, access, and comfort of people arriving by any mode of transportation — not just cars.

Figure Ground - Examples of Auto-Centric Development

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Development with wide space between the buildings, and entrances that are further away (set back) from the street tend to be more automobile-centric.

Infrastructure like highways, major roads, and railroads create disconnects in the city and, in some cases, contribute to segregation and isolation.

Infrastructure in St. Louis contributes to a stark north-south divide and disconnection between adjacent neighborhoods. The north side and some neighborhoods to the south, which are predominantly African American, have historically suffered from economic disinvestment and high crime rates, while parts of the south side and central corridor, which are predominantly white, have fared better in terms of economic stability and infrastructure investment. Many different types of infrastructure, including major roads and railroads, act as barriers that reinforce these racial and economic divisions. St. Louis is also divided from its regional neighbors, including St. Louis County by the city limits, established in 1876, and Illinois by the Mississippi River.

Highways also create substantial barriers. Highways in St. Louis were constructed in the mid-20th century as a part of urban renewal and the development of the interstate highway system across the United States. In St. Louis, these highways were built to connect the growing suburban areas to Downtown. As in many other cities around the country, this often came at the expense of established neighborhoods, particularly those home to African American residents. For example, I-44 displaced relatively more affluent communities made up of white and immigrant residents. Highways have historically acted as dividers, both physically and socially. They have reinforced racial and economic segregation by separating predominantly Black, low-income neighborhoods from wealthier, predominantly white areas. The highways created barriers to economic mobility and social interaction and access to services, leaving lasting impacts on the city’s urban fabric.

Surface Parking Lots Downtown

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How does the SLUP address this?

The SLUP proposes Corridors that support active land uses and create a more human-oriented environment in between Nodes and Neighborhoods, allowing for more complete uses of these streets and making connections between different areas stronger.

St. Louis Interstate Intersection

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Interstate intersection bordering Gateway Arch National Park, St. Louis

Source: Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates Inc

Access to Open Space

St. Louis’s parks and greenways are a long-standing and growing asset. Land use policy and other allied efforts can help strengthen this asset, where there is still untapped potential.

St. Louis has a world-class park system, widely recognized for its variety, scale, and historical significance, with a wide mix of urban green spaces, cultural attractions, and recreational opportunities.

St. Louis has 108 parks within city boundaries covering 2,950 acres. In 1812, the first land was set aside to be used for parks, which resulted in the creation of Gravois Park, Laclede Park, and Mt. Pleasant Park. In 1836, a large common pasture south of the city named the St. Louis Commons was divided, and 30 acres were preserved to create Lafayette Park. In 1868, Henry Shaw gave the city Tower Grove Park, adjacent to his country home and west of the city limits (at the time).

The majority of the city’s parks were established from 1869 to the turn of the 20th century. In 1874, the Missouri Legislature passed ordinances to establish three parks in what was then St. Louis County: Carondelet Park in the south, Forest Park in the center, and O’Fallon Park in the north.

In the 20th century, there was an effort to establish more public space throughout the city with the 1947 Comprehensive City Plan. At the time, the city had public health issues related to density, poor sanitation, and heavy coal pollution, and one of the solutions was creating more open space. The plan reported a deficiency in parks, fields, and playgrounds and proposed the institution of a neighborhood park in each of 82 residential neighborhoods. In the subsequent two decades following the plan, over 20 additional parks were established in the city.

Access to parks The Trust for Public Land assigns ratings to city park systems based on how they compare to other cities nationally. St. Louis ranks 24 out of the top 100 most populated cities in the US for its parks. The “ParkScore” is broken down into five categories: access, investment, acreage, amenities, and equity. Each category is ranked out of 100 points, with 100 being the top score. St. Louis received 96 points for access, 32 points for acreage, 45 points for investment, 61 points for amenities, and 72 points for equity.

About 95% of St. Louis residents live within a 10-minute walk of a park. 10% of St. Louis’s land is used for parks and recreation compared to the national median of 15%. There is very little racial disparity in proximity to parks for residents.

Residents in low-income neighborhoods have access to 10% less park space per person than those in the average St. Louis neighborhood and 37% less than those in high-income neighborhoods.

Park quality The three-year average of money spent on parks in St. Louis was $113 per capita, which is higher than the national average of $108 per capita. Out of that spending, 13% was from City agencies, 38% was from other public agencies, 47% was from private organizations, and 1% was from monetized volunteer hours.

While nearly all residents in St. Louis live within walking distance of a park, those parks are of varying quality. Parks range from small corner lots with grass only, to medium-sized parks with playgrounds, to large, award-winning parks like Forest Park with many amenities. The parks in St. Louis also receive varying funding to support their maintenance. Many parks rely on city funds, including Ward Capital distributed by elected officials. Some parks have independent, private support, such as Forest Park Forever and the Lafayette Park Conservancy. Other parks are supported by neighborhood groups, such as Compton Hill Reservoir Park. Tower Grove Park is managed by a non-City Board of Commissioners, run by an independent staff, and funded through donations and grants. The Jefferson National Expansion Memorial and the Gateway Arch National Park are supported by an independent foundation as well as the National Parks Service.

Access to Open Space

Most people in St. Louis have good access to parks, but some pockets have few open spaces or open spaces that are hard to access.

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Most of the areas that lack parks and open spaces have few residential buildings.

The size and quality of parks and open spaces vary. Proximity to open space does not necessarily give the most accurate description of accessibility.

Almost 95% of all city residents live within a 10-minute walk to a park.

One area in the south of the city has a high concentration of residential blocks but low access to open spaces.

Legend

• Residential Building Footprints
• 1/2 Mile Buffer Aroud Parks (10 minute walk)

Sources: “City Parks: Parks Shapefile.” City of St. Louis. Last modified May 30, 2013.

“Building Footprints Shapefile Dataset - Building Footprints.” St. Louis Regional Data Exchange. Last modified July 2, 2020.

7 Smaller Parks in St. Louis

⬚ figure Strodtman Park

⬚ figure Berra Park

⬚ figure Hickey Park

⬚ figure Eugene Tink Bradley Park

⬚ figure Franz Park

⬚ figure Francis R Slay Park

⬚ figure Mount Pleasant Park

6 Largest Parks in St. Louis

Carondelet Park

⬚ figure Source: Explore St. Louis

Carondelet Park, established in 1875, houses the historic Lyle House, two lakes, a playground, a boathouse, and several pavilions. The facilities also include a recreation complex with an outdoor pool, baseball field, softball fields, horseshoe courts, tennis courts, and walking trails.

North Riverfront Park

⬚ figure Image Source: City of St. Louis

North Riverfront Park consists of 250 acres directly adjacent to the Mississippi River and offers one of the city’s best access points to the riverfront. The park’s amenities include walking and biking trails.

Fairground Park

⬚ figure ⬚ figure Source: City of St. Louis | Source: City of St. Louis

Fairground Park opened in 1908 and houses a playground, skating rink, swimming pool, pavilion, and the historic Bear Pits Building. Sport facilities at the park include baseball fields, basketball courts, bike trails, softball fields, tennis courts, pickleball courts, walking trails, and a football field.

Tower Grove Park

⬚ figure Source: Tower Grove Park

Tower Grove Park, opened in 1876, has been characterized as the largest and best preserved 19th-century Gardenesque style city park in the United States. The park is adjacent to the Missouri Botanical Gardens and features historic pavilions, water features, playgrounds, tennis courts, basketball courts, pickleball courts, and walking trails.

Forest Park

⬚ figure Source: Forest Park Forever

Forest Park is a regional and national destination, and is one of St. Louis’s most important amenities. The 1,293-acre park opened to the public in 1876. It houses major cultural institutions, including the St. Louis Zoo, the St. Louis Art Museum, the Missouri History Museum, and the St. Louis Science Center, all of which are supported through the Zoo Museum District (ZMD), a regional tax. Other features and amenities include the Muny Opera, Steinberg Skating Rink, the Dwight Davis Tennis Center, the Anne O’C. Albrecht Nature Playscape, and the Probstein and Highlands golf courses.

O’Fallon Park

⬚ figure Source: The Cultural Landscape Foundation

O’Fallon Park opened in 1908. The park’s amenities include the lake, boathouse, playground, spray pool, and several pavilions. It also has sports facilities, including tennis courts, basketball courts, and a football field. The park houses a recreation complex with an outdoor pool and water slides.

Improved resident and visitor connection to the Riverfront remains a major untapped opportunity.

St. Louis has a significant riverfront along the Mississippi River, which has played a crucial role in the city's history, economy, and development. The St. Louis riverfront stretches for nearly 20 miles. While the Riverfront is mostly industrial, it is also home to a mix of parks, historic landmarks, recreational spaces, and commercial developments.

While the River has been fundamental to St. Louis's urban and economic development, today the waterfront remains largely inaccessible to the public. The waterfront is composed of primarily industrial or otherwise "unspecified" land uses, including manufacturing, logistics, e-commerce, and construction, as well as water and wastewater treatment facilities. The community have widely expressed their interest in expanding public access

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St. Louis Gateway Arch Image Source: World Atlas

How does the SLUP address this?

The SLUP expands the part of the city along the River that is envisioned as being a highly mixed-use space by designating areas both south and north of the Arch Grounds as Central Areas East. For more information, see page 104.

How does the SLUP address this?

The SLUP recommends further investigation of Waterfront Windows, small parks and other access and visual connections, that would allow the public to view and engage with the Mississippi River. For more information, see page 313.

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Source: City of St Louis, Google Maps

Community gardens and urban agriculture play an important role in St. Louis and have the potential to grow as part of its future. But farmers and gardeners face challenges in operating in the city.

Community gardeners and urban farmers include a diverse range of St. Louisans, with people of many ages, races, and ethnic backgrounds growing all over the city on lots that are a wide range of sizes.

Small urban farmers and gardeners have a hard time maintaining long-term access to sites where they can make improvements to infrastructure and soil quality. Methods for leasing and purchasing land for these purposes have been complicated and have changed over time.

The costs of initial purchasing as well as taxes for vacant land can be high for those looking to use it for urban agriculture. Leasing property from the LRA can also prove difficult, as there is no guarantee that the land won't be bought out from under the tenants.

In addition to the challenges in accessing and sustaining land ownership, there are not currently robust resources within the city to help urban farmers navigate approvals processes.

“Right now, our farm has a location that is leased from a developer… but it’s not sustainable, and we don’t want to build infrastructure there and then have to move it. Permanence is a big issue.”

• St. Louis Farmer

How does the SLUP address this?

The SLUP introduces a new type of land use, Other Open Space, that supports many types of limited-access open space, including farms. The SLUP's Allied Policies also include recommendations for how the City can improve resources, processes, and other assistance to support urban agriculture, especially where vacant property can be redeveloped for agricultural use.

Vacancy

Vacancy buildings and lots have a huge impact on the experience of St. Louis for many residents. Land use policies must make it possible to reactivate vacant spaces in appropriate ways.

St. Louis has one of the highest vacancy rates in the country, with nearly 20% of all properties unoccupied. Out of all the properties in the city, up to 25,000 of them are designated as vacant, 65% of which are vacant lots and 35% of which are vacant buildings. The City defines a vacant building as any building with consistent signs of abandonment, including structural condemnation, window/door board-up services, tax delinquency, and lack of general maintenance. A vacant lot is any parcel that does not contain a building, that is not used for an explicit purpose (e.g., parking lot, park), and where there is evidence to suggest the property is not being provided with regular property maintenance.

What makes up vacancy in St. Louis?

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The St. Louis Vacancy Collaborative reports that vacancy issues have caused over $25 million in costs to the City over the last three years, including unpaid property taxes, forestry maintenance fees, and unpaid vacant building fees. However, the consequences of vacancy aren’t just economic. Abandoned and poorly maintained properties attract crime and illegal dumping, diminish community pride, and add burdens to City departments and residents. The factors that have contributed to the current vacancy problem include population loss, weak real estate markets, aging housing stock, suburban sprawl, chronic basement flooding, detrimental public policies such as redlining, appraisal gaps, predatory or negligent investors, the foreclosure crisis, and other forms of disinvestment. To understand the historical context of today’s vacancy rate, it is especially important to look at the factors that contributed to a 63% decline in St. Louis’s population from its peak of 850,000 in 1950.

⬚ figure Source: St Louis Vacancy Collaborative. “Statistics for St. Louis Vacant Properties,” 2024

Starting in the 1940s, housing regulations, mortgage policies, urban renewal, and zoning laws all contributed to a pattern of segregation and “white flight” in which the white population moved outside of the city limits to the surrounding suburbs while the Black population was mostly confined to certain northern tracts in the inner city. Between 1950 and 1970, 60% of the white population in St. Louis left the city, leaving large amounts of vacant properties. Black residents were also forced out of the city by discriminatory loan practices and other harmful policies, and many people left voluntarily to escape a city burdened by urban decline. St. Louis stands as an example of the urban crisis that affected many cities in the US.

In 1971, the City attempted to address the rising vacancy rate by creating the Land Reutilization Authority (LRA), which was the first landbank in the United States. The LRA manages vacant and abandoned properties until new private owners can purchase them and return them to productive use. Today, the LRA owns approximately 10,000 properties out of the 25,000 that are considered vacant. Most of the properties owned by the LRA are vacant lots. According to indicators identified by the St. Louis Vacancy Collaborative, the St. Louis neighborhoods with the highest relative percentage of total vacant parcels are The Ville with 63% vacancy, College Hill with 58% vacancy, and Fairground with 58% vacancy.

Vacancy is inequitably distributed across the city, with much higher vacancy rates in majority-Black census tracts than majority-white tracts. For example, the 2018 Equity Indicators Baseline Report found that there were more than nine times as many acres of vacant land and buildings in majority-Black census tracts than majority-white.

There are many ongoing efforts to address vacancy, including the Vacancy Strategy Initiative, a partnership between the St. Louis Vacancy Collaborative and City departments to prioritize efforts for vacancy prevention, maintenance, stabilization, beautification, and reuse through data-driven and community-informed processes. The City also partners with St. Louis Development Corporation, Missouri Department of Conservation, and Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District through the Green City Coalition to convert vacant and abandoned properties to new community-owned green spaces. Other tools support residents to address vacancy, such as the Vacant Property Explorer, which maps vacant properties, and the Vacant Lot Toolkit, which offers a guide to acquiring and revitalizing lots.

⬚ figure Source: City of St. Louis Equity Indicators Baseline 2018 Report

How does the SLUP address this?

The SLUP includes allied policy recommendations around vacant properties and the challenges and opportunities they present. One example of this is the recommendation to intentionally repurpose vacant land in high-flood-risk-areas into uses that can help manage flooding. Read more about this on page #.

⬚ figure Image Source: U.S. Census Bureau. Vacancy 2020. Prepared by City of St Louis.

Vacancy Categories of Block Based Occupancy

Vacancy levels in St. Louis are extremely uneven. As shown in the images below, the highest vacancy neighborhoods are located in the mid-north of the city, and the lowest vacancy neighborhoods are located in the south.

Vacancy Condition: < 25%

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EXAMPLE NEIGHBORHOODS:

1. Central West End
2. Parts of southwest City, like St. Louis Hills and Lindenwood Park
3. Parts of Downtown St. Louis
4. Tower Grove South

Vacancy Condition: 25%–50%

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EXAMPLE NEIGHBORHOODS:

1. Parts of North St. Louis
2. Dutchtown
3. Parts of South City

Vacancy Condition: 50%–75%

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EXAMPLE NEIGHBORHOODS:

1. Parts of North St. Louis:
   • Greater Ville and Wells-Goodfellow
   • Areas undergoing major redevelopment
   • Areas that have seen substantial population decline

Vacancy Condition: 75%–100%

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EXAMPLE NEIGHBORHOODS:

1. Highly distressed parts of North St. Louis
2. Some industrial areas that have been largely abandoned or are in transition

Vacant Buildings

The City defines a vacant building as any building with consistent signs of abandonment, including structural condemnation, window/door board-up services, tax delinquency, and lack of general maintenance.

Vacancy is inequitably distributed across the city, with much higher vacancy rates in majority-Black census tracts than majority-white tracts. Redlining, racial zoning, racial covenants, and other racist policies, combined with white flight and deindustrialization, contributed to high rates of vacancy in these neighborhoods.

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Abandoned or poorly maintained properties attract crime and illegal dumping, diminish community pride, and add burdens to City departments and residents.

Partnerships including the Vacancy Strategy Initiative and Green City Coalition strive to support the prevention, maintenance, stabilization, beautification, and reuse of vacant parcels.

Legend Vacant Buildings

Source: STL Vacancy Collaborative

Downtown has recently faced some headwinds, but there are signs of improvement.

Along with many downtowns in cities across the U.S., Downtown St. Louis has faced persistent challenges with high vacancy rates, particularly in its office and commercial spaces and particularly in the COVID and post-COVID era. Together, Downtown and Downtown West have around 50 vacant commercial buildings, 100 vacant lots, and 150 vacant single-family residential buildings.

Economic decline, population loss, the shift of businesses to suburban areas, and the impact of remote work have all contributed to these vacancies.

While there are ongoing efforts to revitalize the area through redevelopment and investment, significant vacancies remain, particularly in older office buildings. The city’s broader economic challenges and competition with suburban areas make the issue a difficult one to address.

The Design Downtown St. Louis Neighborhood Plan offers a vision for growth and reinvestment in Downtown, addressing both the long-standing challenges and emerging opportunities.

Procedural Processes

There are great opportunities in modernization and improvement of the City’s zoning code.

The City of St. Louis zoning code has not been comprehensively reviewed and updated since the post-war period. There have been a range of updates since that time (including both text amendments and the establishment of overlay districts) that have made important improvements, but they have also made the code increasingly difficult to administer and increasingly impenetrable to the public. The City’s zoning map has been continually revised through applicant-driven rezonings and by Planning Commission initiation (always involving forethought and research by staff), but for the most part the structure of the map remains similar to the map established in the 1950s. This means that many of the biases of that time remain embedded within the code and map (see page 203 to learn more about racist zoning practices of the past). The complexity and outmodedness of the Code causes a proliferation of variance requests that are heard and granted by the Board of Adjustment. This pattern contributes to an unpredictable, inefficient, largely inequitable, and confusing approvals process for change and development in the city.

How does the SLUP address this?

The most direct way that the SLUP informs planning is through zoning: zoning decisions such as rezoning, variances, and amendments require consultation of the SLUP as a legal guide. The SLUP also sets a foundation for a comprehensive update to the zoning code and map.

St. Louis has a robust network of organizations working to support the city’s development and stability that can support and champion future change.

St. Louis has a robust network of organizations working to support the city’s development and stability. These organizations span various sectors, including economic development, community support, real estate, education, and cultural enrichment. Their collaborative efforts contribute to the city’s overall growth and quality of life, making St. Louis a dynamic and supportive environment for residents and businesses.

A commitment to following plans and updated policies can contribute to a more predictable process for change and improvement — for developers and community members alike.

Rather than rely on planning efforts that establish a development framework based on many different perspectives and needs, much development in St. Louis relies on relationships, connections, and negotiation.

While the City wants to encourage developers to locate new projects in St. Louis, there is a fine line between minimizing development requirements and allowing the city to be shaped purely by developers instead of by government planning and community input. When too much negotiation between the City and developers occurs, there is a risk of new projects not following standard public planning processes, resulting in development that does not benefit the community in any way.

“I guess I’d rather just see the city do stuff, rather than spin its wheels (supposedly) asking the community, only to turn around and do what they want anyway. If that’s how it’s gonna be, then I hope they’d just do it instead of killing time pretending to ask.”

-City Resident

How does the SLUP address this?

The SLUP provides a core policy guide for land use in St. Louis based on a shared, community-led vision for the future of the city. When the City makes development or policy decisions regarding land use, the SLUP, alongside neighborhood plans, acts as a legal guide and decision-making tool.

“Major land use decisions seem to many residents to be a foregone conclusion, and the tradition of aldermanic courtesy means that residents may be correct in their conclusion that they cannot be effective[ly involved] in land use decisions because deals already have been made…the first priority is to… increase the lead time for residents to understand and form an opinion of a proposed land use change. At the same time, total time from a developer’s concept to approval or disapproval needs to be reduced.”

-City Resident