Infrastructure top priority for city leader's Transform STL Act

ST. LOUIS - City leaders are ready to spend $277 million of Rams settlement money after receiving community feedback for more than a year.

The Transform STL Act is still a proposal, and there could still be some changes before it is perfected.

Thousands of residents voted on 20 options ranging from protecting bike lanes to hiring code enforcement officers to subsidizing daycare for city workers.

"The Transform Act stands for turning Rams assets into strategic opportunities to revitalize and maintain St. Louis. A large part of the bill and a large part of what we want to show is that we don't live in a zero-sum game," Alderwoman Alisha Sonnier (Ward 7) said.

City leaders say end results are based on community feedback, with infrastructure getting top priority.

"We want to make sure that the funds that we've set aside for water infrastructure and transportation and mobility is used for matching funds of federal programs either with the EPA or department of transportation," Mayor Tishuara Jones said.

One question some residents are asking is why the police department didn't make the list.

"The root causes of crime are access to affordable and safe housing and access to development programs where they can make a living wage to support their families. By addressing the root causes, this makes our city safer in the long run," Jones added.

The city hasn't made a decision on groups or organizations that will receive the funds.

"We've talked with the community, but we haven't picked any winners or losers for this money. We have to get it through the board of aldermen first before we start to look at that," Jones' spokesperson, Conner Kerrigan, said.