After more than three years of work by 17 municipalities in North St. Louis County, a new transportation development district (TDD) received a green light in the Aug. 5 election.
Voters signaled their support for a 1% capital improvement sales tax to fund public infrastructure, with 74% voting in favor. The tax will create a pool of approximately $2 million annually for 40 years to help the communities maintain their streets, sidewalks and curbs. It also strengthens their capacity to undertake larger multi-jurisdictional projects.
“The vote was an excellent showing, and it lets you know that the people understand the challenges that you face when you’re trying to fix roads and build infrastructure for your community,” said St. Louis County Councilwoman Rita Days, whose district includes the 24:1 Community. “Passing the TDD was tremendous, and I’m very proud of Beyond Housing for being able to support that.”
As part of its comprehensive community development effort, Beyond Housing assisted the municipalities with expenses related to the TDD initiative, from legal counsel to election canvassing. It also donated staff time toward the extensive legwork to keep the multi-year project moving forward.
Beyond Housing President and CEO Chris Krehmeyer noted that the process of creating a new taxing district was more complex in this case because the TDD will cover 17 cities representing 31,000 residents. “First the contiguous municipalities had to pass resolutions and ordinances by their city councils, which had to be certified by the court,” he explained. “The ballot language had to be written and sent to the board of elections, then voted on—and the measure had to win. It now goes back to the court to put the wheels in motion to start generating the sales tax.”
The TDD is structured so 80% of the funds go toward general maintenance and 20% are put into a pool for joint projects, Krehmeyer said.
The sales tax will start to accrue on Jan. 1, 2026, and the first quarterly payment will be made on April 1. In the meantime, the 19-member board of directors, made up of each mayor as well as representatives from St. Louis County and Metro Transit parent Bi-State Development, will hire an administrator to oversee the district and the funds.
“In a perfect world, we wouldn’t have to raise taxes, because this community is already taxed pretty heavily,” he added. “But folks understand we’re in this together. To make the 24:1 Community vibrant, it needs good streets and sidewalks.”
The 17 cities in the district are Bellerive Acres, Bel-Nor, Beverly Hills, Greendale, Hanley Hills, Hillsdale, Normandy, Norwood Court, Pagedale, Pasadena Hills, Pasadena Park, Pine Lawn, Uplands Park, Velda City, Velda Village Hills, Vinita Park and Wellston.
