Citizens for Modern Transit announces today their achievement of multiple goals in OneSTL, a regional plan for sustainable development that provides a framework for collaboration among local governments as they adapt to the changing needs of the area’s communities.
OneSTL is sponsored by four core members — East-West Gateway Council of Governments, the City of St. Louis, St. Louis County and FOCUS St. Louis — and 11 partners. The project was funded by a $4.7 million planning grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development as part of the $100 million Sustainable Communities Regional Planning Grant Program. In addition to the project partners, more than 50 organizations, 200 committee members, and 2,000 public meeting attendees contributed to the plan.
Citizens for Modern Transit is one of the original eleven consortium partners for OneSTL, and took ownership of many of the strategies identified in the plan to move the region forward.
The linked report below lays out CMT programs under specific strategies as well as future projects planned to further the efforts that are already underway. Some highlights include:
- The launch of the CMT Try & Ride Program introducing more than 2900 new riders to transit in 15 months.
- Adoption of TOD overlay zoning in Pagedale as a pilot for other communities.
- Launch of the Metro Market program as a way to actively visualize development opportunities around transit.
- Launch of the CMT Ten Toe Express Transit to Trails program increasing awareness of the connections between transit and trails, and encouraging healthy and active lives.
- Commission of a funding study looking at possible funding sources for transit capital and operating.
The OneSTL plan outlines goals and strategies for St. Louis to become a more sustainable region, as well as quantitative measures that track progress toward sustainability over time. The goals were articulated based on extensive public outreach that solicited opinions from thousands of area residents over three years, from 2010-2013.
“CMT believes transit is key to planning with sustainability for the future. We know the benefits of an expanded, integrated transit system in our region include improved access to jobs, educational opportunities, and healthcare; greater economic development; and reinvestment in under resourced areas of our community. The OneSTL plan provides the region with the opportunity to see such benefits,” said Kim Cella, CMT Executive Director.
The East-West Gateway Council of Governments Board of Directors approved OneSTL in December 2013. The plan is voluntary, providing recommended methods for achieving a broad range of goals, and does not impose any mandates.
Along with Citizens for Modern Transit, other partner members include Trailnet, Bi-State Development (Metro), Great Rivers Greenway, Metro St. Louis Equal Housing Opportunity Council, Southwestern Illinois Resource Conservation and Development, and the Applied Research Collaborative (St. Louis University, University of Missouri – St. Louis and Southern Illinois at Edwardsville).
OneSTL is delineated in a 198-page document titled “OneSTL – Many Communities, One Future – A Plan for a Prosperous, Healthy, Vibrant St. Louis Region.” The plan is available at www.OneSTL.org
Goals delegated to CMT in OneSTL Plan: Progress Report, Summer 2015