A nonprofit in North St. Louis is making progress on a $40 million headquarters project with the help of $10 million in tax credits.
Courtesy of The Urban League
The Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis, a nonprofit organization dedicated to revitalizing the north side of the city, has made significant progress on their $40 million headquarters project. The first phase, which involved the purchase of a former Sears store on N. Kingshighway and its conversion into the Urban League’s headquarters, has been completed.
Now, the organization is gearing up for the next phase with the help of $10 million in tax credits. The city’s nonprofit economic development agency, the St. Louis Development Corp., authorized the use of New Markets Tax Credits to assist in the second phase of the project.
This phase will focus on building additional offices and meeting spaces that can be used by both the Urban League and the general public. The goal is to expand programming and increase the organization’s reach by 25%, with a specific focus on serving people of color and those with low incomes. The overall goal of the headquarters move is to create a central hub for economic development in north St. Louis, with the hopes of spurring further development in the area.
This aligns with Mayor Tishaura Jones’ Economic Justice Action Plan, which aims to address issues of inequality and promote economic growth in marginalized communities. The final phase of the project will involve the development of retail and housing in the surrounding neighborhoods.
This has been carefully planned with input from the local community, and the city believes it will have a transformative effect on the area. The new headquarters already houses several tenants, including the Vaughan Cultural Center, Head Start Program, Save Our Sons Program, Save Our Sisters Program, and the North St. Louis Outreach Center.
These organizations offer a range of services such as career counseling, college scholarships, financial literacy, and neighborhood development programs. Before consolidating its programs in the new headquarters, the Urban League operated 55 programs from 20 different sites across the region.
This created logistical challenges and inefficiencies, which the organization hopes to overcome with the new centralized location. In its most recent IRS filing, the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis reported total revenue of $45.5 million and total expenses of $40.4 million for 2022. This demonstrates the organization’s strong financial position and commitment to using its resources to benefit the community.
With the completion of the second phase and plans for the third, the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis is well on its way to achieving its goal of revitalizing the north side of the city. In closing, by creating a central hub for economic development and providing crucial services to the community, the organization is making a meaningful impact on the lives of those living in this historically marginalized area.
#urbanleague, #metropolitansl, #northstlouis #revitalization, #headquartersproject, #taxcredits, #nonprofit, #redevelopment,
