Show-Me State Times

The City of St. Louis's Community Development Administration (CDA) is set to host two community engagement events aimed at discussing long-term flood recovery efforts in the region. The events will focus on the Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) program, following severe storms and flash floods that hit the area in July 2022.

The first event, a Community Open House, is scheduled for Wednesday, March 27, 2024, from 3:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the Wohl Recreation Center. City staff will provide presentations at 5:30 PM and 6:30 PM, allowing residents to learn more about the planned use of recovery funds and share their feedback from the 2022 flooding.

According to the official announcement, HUD allocated approximately $25 million in CDBG-DR funds to aid in the long-term recovery efforts post the devastating floods. The City is keen on engaging residents impacted by the disaster in the planning process for the allocated funds, prioritizing community input.

The second event, a virtual Lunch and Learn session, will take place on Friday, March 29, 2024, from 12:00 to 1:00 p.m. via Zoom. This session will offer participants the opportunity to engage with city officials, ask questions, and discuss flood resilience planning.

Residents are encouraged to attend both events, where they can provide insights that will help guide potential City programs, including home repair assistance, subsistence grants for car replacement, floodplain management initiatives, a potential home buyout program, and flood response capacity development.

The CDA emphasized the importance of identifying unmet needs of residents through these events, with "unmet needs" referring to issues that have not been adequately addressed by existing resources or recovery programs. An Unmet Needs Assessment Survey was opened in January for city residents to share their experiences with flash flooding and help shape funding priorities.

The CDBG-DR program, a crucial federal initiative, focuses on long-term recovery, infrastructure restoration, housing, and economic revitalization following major disasters. The City of St. Louis is currently engaged in a detailed planning process to identify unmet needs and develop eligible projects and activities, with an Action Plan set to be submitted to HUD for approval.

Residents are urged to participate in these engagement events to contribute to the recovery efforts and help shape the future of flood resilience planning in the City of St. Louis.