CBN Member Bright Spots
Members of the St. Louis Association of Community Organizations (SLACO) teamed up with Americorps VISTAs to build 13 Lil Libraries to place along the Hodiamont Greenway!
If you’re interested in a little library for your community, contact the Change and Action for Racial Equity (C.A.R.E.) Group for more information.
Photo courtesy Tashara Earl
The City of St. Louis has announced it is investing $500,000 in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds in the St. Louis Real Estate Tax Assistance Fund (RETAF) to help keep families in their homes before 2022 tax sales start in April.
CBN members Park Central Development, Prosperity Connection, and Legal Services of Eastern Missouri announced in the fall that they were partnering with the City of St. Louis Collector of Revenue’s Office to launch RETAF. RETAF’s goal is to help economically distressed families save their homes from real estate tax foreclosure.
Image by International Institute of St. Louis
CBN member the International Institute of St. Louis has partnered with Arch Grants founder Jerry Schlichter and local business and religious leaders on the Afghan Support Program, which is expanding the St. Louis region’s refugee resettlement efforts. Their goals and accomplishments include:
Providing funds to address immediate housing needs of Afghan immigrants
Establishing an Afghan Chamber of Commerce
Establishing an Afghan newspaper
Funding tuition and translators for computer coding classes at Claim Academy
Furnishing iPads for 200 Afghan families, thereby decreasing the technology access gap
Providing entrepreneurial grants
Offering free use of indoor soccer minifields for kids at Futbol Club STL
Establishing an Afghan Community Center
Logo by FOCUS St. Louis
FOCUS St. Louis has announced their 2022 What’s Right with the Region Award Honorees, a slate that includes several CBN members:
Enhancing Regional Prosperity - Midwest BankCentre
Improving Equity and Inclusion - St. Joseph Housing Initiative
Emerging Alumni Award - Neal Richardson, Executive Director of St. Louis Development Corporation
Congratulations to all of this year’s awardees!
BJC HealthCare is introducing its community health improvement strategic plan, leadership team, and first regional partnerships in an effort to alleviate health inequities across the St. Louis region. Two of their initial partnerships are with CBN members Midwest BankCentre and St. Louis Community Credit Union, both financial institutions that have a shared mission of improving health and economic wellbeing. BJC recently developed a depository relationship with these two local financial institutions to address a historic lack of investment in the City of St. Louis and North St. Louis County. The deposits will be used to create loans to invest in these communities, including support for entrepreneurs to start and grow businesses and for individuals to realize the dream of home ownership.
Read the full press release >>
Read more about St. Louis Community Credit Union’s Community Impact Deposit Program >>
Justine PETERSEN has partnered with NISA Charitable Fund to launch DRIVE, a pilot auto loan refinancing program with wraparound financial credit counseling. The program allows participants to refinance their auto loans at an annual interest rate of 6%, significantly below the average 20% that borrowers with subprime credit typically pay for their auto loans.
The latest edition of North County Incorporated’s (NCI’s) Equity Connect newsletter is available! NCI has made a commitment to helping advance equity in North St. Louis County. Through their NoCo Equity Connect newsletter, they hope to:
Image from NCI’s NoCo Equity Connect newsletter
Increase awareness and understanding around the economic and human cost of racial inequity to the community
Catalyze others toward cultural change within their workspace by sharing relevant articles and resources pertaining to racial equity
Disseminate information about upcoming training opportunities and transformative resources necessary to make applying the racial equity lens a part of every organization’s culture
Urban Strategies, Inc. (USI) recently released their 2021 Impact Report, which shares how USI is celebrating the power in communities by supporting their staff to assist children and families in becoming stable and thriving.
Image by Urban Strategies, Inc. (USI)
Photo by Rebuilding Together St. Louis
Every spring, Rebuilding Together St. Louis participates in National Rebuilding Day, during which hundreds of volunteers head out to up to 50 homes throughout the St. Louis Metro Area to make needed repairs for residents in the communities we serve.
This spring’s Rebuilding Day is scheduled for Saturday, April 30, 2022. If you’re interested in volunteering, please contact Jessie Klostermann at jessie@rebuildingtogether-stl.org.
Prosperity Connection is now offering credit report reviews under the umbrella of their St. Louis Builds Credit initiative. During this one-time appointment, PC’s trained staff or volunteers will provide you with an analysis of your credit report, resources, and action steps you can take to improve your credit. All of this comes at no cost to you and will not hurt your credit score.
What you’ll get:
A copy of your credit report and FICO score at no cost and no impact to your credit
20-minute 1:1 consultation with a staff member or trained volunteer
Personalized recommendations for how to improve your credit
Resources and tips to jumpstart your journey towards better credit
Trailnet has released their 2021 St. Louis Crash Report. This report documents traffic crashes last year in St. Louis City and County, as well as Trailnet’s suggested solutions for reducing deaths and injuries.
The major takeaways:
In 2021, 178 people were killed and more than 14,000 people injured in traffic crashes in St. Louis City and County.
In St. Louis City, the number of pedestrians killed in crashes increased for the fourth year in a row
In St. Louis County, the total number of traffic deaths exceeded 100 for the first time since data was available.
In both city and county, these crashes occurred at disproportionately higher rates in predominantly Black and minority communities.
High-crash corridors: Over the last 5 years in the City of St. Louis, nine roads were responsible for 40% of crashes affecting pedestrians and 46% of pedestrian deaths. These high-crash corridors make up only 1.5% of the city’s road network. In St. Louis County, over that same 5 year window, eight roads accounted for 34% of pedestrian crashes and 45% of pedestrian deaths.
Trailnet’s recommendations for governments to reduce deaths and injuries:
Address high-crash corridors
Reduce speeding through street design
Improve safety near bus stops
Adopt a comprehensive need-based approach to traffic safety
Additional highlights:
95% of pedestrian deaths in the city and county occured on streets with speed limits of 30mph or greater.
32% of deadly car crashes involved at least one car speeding.
In the city 36% of pedestrian crashes occurred within 200 ft of a bus stop.
St. Louis Development Corporation has selected Beyond the Bridge—a joint venture that includes Smith NMTC Associates LLC and CBN members Park Central Development and IFF—to administer a new $15 million revolving fund designed to grow new construction and homeownership in St. Louis neighborhoods that have struggled with disinvestment.
Screenshot from Fox 2 News story
Fox 2 News recently spotlighted the longstanding partnership between Beyond Housing and Midwest BankCentre, which is currently ramping up to invest $200 million in the 24:1 community over the next 5 years. The investment will cover supports like homebuyer education and small business lending.
ST. LOUIS, Feb. 2, 2022 – St. Louis Community Credit Union (SLCCU) has created a Business Services division that will provide much-needed capital to established business owners in their desire to build wealth.
Alex Fennoy has joined SLCCU as Senior Vice President of Business Services to lead this area. Alex came to the organization with nearly 30 years of banking experience, including a strong focus on business lending. Most recently, Alex served as Executive Vice President and Community & Economic Development Director for Midwest BankCentre in St. Louis. He also has a solid background in community development, working with an expansive network of partners and consumers to provide accessible and affordable banking services. Alex received his Bachelor of Science degree (with an emphasis in Accounting) from Fisk University in Nashville, Tennessee.
Through SLCCU’s Business Services division, up to $5 million in business loans will be offered to qualifying applicants. In addition, a key component of this entrepreneurial outreach involves strong community alliances. The Credit Union has partnered with the St. Louis Small Business Empowerment Center (SBEC) to offer established, local businesses loans between $10,000 and $250,000 for working capital.
“I’ve long admired St. Louis Community Credit Union’s ability to provide targeted resources that invest in the ultimate success of the entire community,” says Fennoy. “By helping business owners build and maintain wealth, we ensure that everyone has the opportunity to achieve their dreams and create lasting financial legacies. I’m honored to be part of such a vital program that will transform the lives of many.”
For eight decades, St. Louis Community Credit Union has been a true champion for the communities it serves, helping people reach their desired financial goals. To learn more about SLCCU’s business services, visit www.stlouiscommunity.com/loans/business-loans.
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About St. Louis Community Credit Union
For 80 years, St. Louis Community Credit Union (SLCCU) has been a true champion for the community. As a Community Development Financial Institution, the organization values and recognizes the importance of financial inclusion and belonging. As part of its giveback, SLCCU offers affordable account services and loans, as well as several accessible locations in the heart of the community. It also aligns with partners like Prosperity Connection helping its members receive free financial education and coaching services. Through its community-focused outreach efforts, SLCCU offers members the opportunity to connect to much-needed services that may affect their daily lives outside of banking (e.g., access to healthcare, workforce development and education).
SLCCU serves residents of St. Louis City and those of Franklin, St. Louis and St. Charles counties in Missouri; as well as St. Clair, Madison, Monroe and Jersey counties in Illinois. SLCCU is a Low-Income Designated credit union and one of the largest Minority Depository Institutions in the country (per the National Credit Union Administration). All accounts are federally insured to $250,000 by the National Credit Union Administration, a deposit-insurance agency of the federal government, and privately insured up to an additional $250,000 by Excess Share Insurance. For more information, please visit www.stlouiscommunity.com.
Revitalization of Baden Association (ROBA STL) is working to reclaim the growing number of abandoned homes in the Baden neighborhood, and they're looking for partners who care about Baden as much as they do and want to call it home. With the help of Legal Services of Eastern Missouri, ROBA STL is seeking legal control of abandoned homes through a court process. If you or your family have construction skills, financial stability, and a dream of becoming a homeowner, ROBA STL wants your help rehabilitating these homes! To learn more, click here, email Roba.org@gmail.com, or call 314-580-6811.
DeSales Community Development and Fox Grove Management have been working throughout the COVID-19 pandemic to help families access rental assistance so that they can stay in their homes. In December 2021, the DeSales and Fox Grove teams hosted their first-ever Rental Assistance Clinic and met with 15 families one-on-one to help them apply for almost $52,000 in Missouri State Assistance for Housing Relief (SAFHR) rental assistance.
North County Inc. (NCI) is hosting its 45th Annual Leadership Breakfast on Friday, May 6, 2022 from 7:30-9:30 am! The NCI team is seeking nominations for exemplary business, civic and community leadership for those who work in North County. Nominations are due February 25, and honorees will be recognized at the celebratory event. To nominate (a) worthy candidate(s) for an award, go to www.NorthStLouisCounty.com.
Tower Grove Neighborhoods Community Development Corporation (CDC) has released their 2021 Annual Progress Report. It speaks for itself!
Cover of TGNCDC’s 2021 Annual Report
DeSales Community Development’s Executive Director, Tom Pickel, has announced his plan to retire by the end of 2022. His departure will cap a 35-year career with the organization. Under Tom’s leadership, DeSales has grown to be one of the region’s largest and most respected CDCs.
Succeeding Tom as Executive Director will be Assistant Director, Becky Reinhart. Her promotion was approved unanimously by the DeSales Board of Directors. Becky joined DeSales in 2017 as Director of Community Programs and was promoted to her current position in 2019.
Photo by Lindy Drew / Humans of St. Louis
Ameren Missouri’s Neighborhood Solar Program, which launched in 2019, offers non-residential customers an opportunity to install solar panels at no cost. Their latest project is bringing a canopy of solar panels to Delmar DivINe’s parking lot, creating 20 local construction jobs and training opportunities for installation and panel maintenance.
UMSL at Grand Center
3651 Olive St., Suite 100
St. Louis, MO 63108
314-730-5449
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