Decades ago, the Meachum Park neighborhood in Kirkwood, Missouri was a thriving, vital African-American community. Located in the St. Louis Metropolitan Area, over many years it was overwhelmed by the same social and economic problems that overwhelmed countless other neighborhoods across the country. In community after community, intractable problems led to neglect and flight, accelerating the neighborhoods' decline and spreading its decay.

In 1998, the DESCO Group, a private development company, began construction on a 500,000 square-foot retail building adjacent to the Meachum Park Neighborhood. Using Tax Increment Financing (TIF), enacted by the City of Kirkwood, the TIF provided approximately $21.2 million in bond proceeds for the proposed redevelopment. Of the $21.2 million, $17 million was used for commercial development and finance-related items; and $4 million was earmarked for neighborhood and residential development.

In addition to the $4 million from TIF for neighborhood improvement, the Housing Authority of St. Louis County (HASLC) partnered with the City of Kirkwood, St. Louis County and the Missouri Housing and Development Commission to acquire an additional $11 million for the 85-unit development. Funding was secured by obtaining $1 million in HUD HOME funds, from St. Louis County, a HUD Entitlement Grantee; $6.96 million in state and federal low income housing tax credits (LIHTCs); and a $2.98 million loan from the Missouri Housing and Development Commission (MHDC). US Bank (formerly First Star) purchased the LIHTCs and Fannie Mae purchased the $1.68 million total mortgage obligation sealed project financing.

Nancy Farmer, Missouri State Treasurer; Bishop Willie Ellis, Chairman, Housing Authority of St. Louis County; Beth Stohr, President, US Bancorp CDC; Kirkwood Mayor Mike Swoboda; and St. Louis County Executive Buzz Westfall.

Today, the Townhomes at Stonecrest are 100 percent leased. The old public housing complex it replaced provided homes for 53 families, while the Townhomes at Stonecrest is home to 85 families. Seventy of the 85 units are occupied by families earning 60 percent or less of the area medium income. The townhomes include 44 two-bedroom and one bath units; 31 three-bedroom, one and one-half bath units; and 10 four-bedroom, two and one-half units. Square footage ranges from a minimum of 865 to 1,520. And the units are affordable: rents begin at $484 for a two-bedroom unit; $553 for a three-bedroom unit; and $610 for a four-bedroom unit.

As part of the neighborhood revitalization strategy plan, the housing authority forged additional partnerships with DESCO, MHDC, the City of Kirkwood, and St. Louis County, that enabled construction of 27 new single-family homes and renovation of 35 existing homes in the Meachum Park neighborhood. Using a variety of funding sources, the homes were made affordable. They were offered first to displaced former residents, and then to families with direct ties to Meachum Park. New homes in the area began with a base price of $87,000 for a three-bedroom ranch, and $93,000 for a three-bedroom, one- and one-half story home. Income-eligible buyers received home buyers assistance funds that further reduced a home's selling price. In addition to HASLC, other private developers are now building homes in the Meachum Park area, and the City of Kirkwood is investing thousands of dollars to fund owner-occupied rehabilitation, new infrastructure, and neighborhood beautification projects. HASLC committed more than $2 million to the construction and renovation of the 62 single-family homes.

The St. Louis Housing Authority believes that Meachum Park is a good blueprint for hundreds of other neighborhoods across the nation. They also praised HUD's St. Louis Field Office Public Housing staff for their knowledge, expertise, and patience in working with them to make the Townhomes at Stonecrest and other new affordable housing in Meachum Park a reality. Everyone agrees that the reborn neighborhood looks nice today, and will look nice ten years from today.