Neighborhood Transformation Grants

Neighborhood Transformation Grants NOFA (Notice of Funding Availability) from the Community Development Administration is seeking project proposals in Qualified Census Tracts (QCTs) and Economic Justice Index areas in the city. Non-profit organizations, Community Development Corporations (CDCs), home builders, construction contractors, and neighborhood associations are encouraged to submit a wide range of proposals like gardens and parks on vacant land, construction projects, hiring staff, back office support, minor to medium home renovations, home repairs, and more.

DRAFT NOFAs are available to review for public comment now.

The 2025 Neighborhood Transformation Grants funding cycle is coming soon!

SAVE THE DATE: CDA 2025 Neighborhood Transformation Grants NOFAs Workshop

CDA will host an all-day Neighborhood Transformation Grants NOFA Workshop for housing-related NOFAs to provide guidance on the 2025 Spring funding opportunities.

NOTE: Mandatory Attendance for First-Time Housing NOFA Applicants! Organizations applying for any of the housing funding opportunities for the first time must attend this workshop. These include: Affordable Housing Production: Rental and For Sale NOFA, HOME-ARP, and PRO Housing. This workshop will be helpful but optional for Neighborhood Plan and Neighborhood Beautification & Green Community Spaces applicants. 

Date: April 24, 2025
Time: 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM
Location: 1520 Market Street, St. Louis, MO 63103
In-person attendance is strongly encouraged. Lunch provided!
Event details: CDA 2025 Neighborhood Transformation Grants NOFAs Workshop

Stay informed! Stay up-to-date. Sign up for CDA e-newsletter here.

NOTE: Applicants for Neighborhood Plan Implementation and Community Development Grants (Vacancy to Vibrancy Large Grants DO NOT need to attend on April 24. A separate workshop will be announced TBD.

Available funding: 

• Affordable Housing Production: Rental and For Sale NOFA ($6M) – Supports new construction, rehabilitation of residential and mixed-use developments, and homebuyer assistance. Priority given to CDA and LRA properties.
• HOME-ARP Permanent Supportive Housing NOFA  ($4.89M) – Funds housing and services for vulnerable populations, including those experiencing homelessness.
• PRO Housing NOFA  ($3.25M) – Supports rehabilitation of city-owned residential properties in the Dr. Martin Luther King Drive Demonstration Area to increase affordable housing and reduce blight in The Ville.
• Neighborhood Plan Implementation NOFA ($1.5M) – Provides funding to activate projects aligned with Neighborhood Plans adopted by the City of St. Louis from January 2019 to July 2025: Design downtown, North Central, Skinker-DeBaliviere, and WeCollab (West End).
• Community Development Grants: Neighborhood Beautification & Green Community Spaces NOFA ($500K) – Grants ranging from $50K–$100K for vacant lot beautification, clean ups, green spaces, recreation projects, public art, and activation projects. NOTE: Due May 9, 2025

Proposals are due on June 13, 2025!

Application Resources

Grant categories are guided by City of St. Louis' ARPA Needs Survey [public.tableau.com] and the City’s 2022 Economic Justice Action Plan’s three strategic pillars: economic empowerment, equitable & inclusive development, and neighborhood transformation.

• 

  Question and Answers - 2025 Neighborhood Transformation Grants

   
  Access NOFA resources, featured properties list, and appendix documents, resources links, the 2024 Housing NOFA Workshop & Public Hearing slides

•   Watch the 2024 Housing NOFA Workshop & Public Hearing recording Youtube.
   
•  Watch the Pre-Submittal meeting on Youtube for Neighborhood Plan Implementation, Neighborhood Capacity Building (RFP), Community Development Grants Program Administration (RFP).
   
• 
  Click here to access Pre-Submittal meeting slides, a transcript, and Q and A.
•  Watch the CDA Training Workshop: Salesforce Grants Management Portal on Youtube.

NOFA Resource Links:

• NOFA Resource links:2024 Income HUD Guidelines
• Adopted Neighborhood Plans
• SLDC's Economic Justice Action Plan
• Residential Market Value (MVA) 2019
• U.S. Government System for Award Management
• FY 2023 Fair Market Rent - Change to FY 2024

Eligible Applicants 

Respondents may be non-profit institutions with development capacity, construction contractors, housing developers, neighborhood associations, Community Development Corporations (CDCs), CDA Certified Community-Based Development Organizations (CBDO), and organizations engaged in development activities. Respondents focused on the same geography are encouraged to submit joint applications in order to present a comprehensive community-driven development plan for the target geography. Teams are strongly encouraged!

• capacity to comply with regulatory requirements; specialized experience, technical competence of the organization and staff; proposed work plan & KPIs: neighborhood transformation strategy; budget, sources, uses & leverage

•  Economic Justice Action Plan alignment, catalytic and sustainable impact, neighborhood plan alignment, community support, and leverage.

• Economic Justice Index; City Demonstration Areas; Neighborhood Revitalization Strategy Areas; QCTs, and proximity to community assets - Schools, Transit, etc. Note: extra points will be awarded to projects in overlapping priority areas (see map).

Application Portal

Welcome to the CDA Grants Management Portal!

We are excited to introduce our brand-new application portal for Neighborhood Transformation Grants and upcoming CDA funding cycles. Designed with user-friendliness in mind, our new portal has enhanced features to streamline the application process and empower applicants like never before.

Get started today at cdagrants.stlouis-mo.gov/. What's New? 

• Multiple Applications: With our new portal, you can now submit multiple applications from one log-in.
• Team Collaboration (coming soon): New features will allow you to add team members to your applications, making it simpler to work together, track progress, and communicate with CDA.
• Mobile-Friendly: The new portal will allow access to submit applications on multiple devices. Plus, applicants can scan documents directly from mobile device cameras.
• Powered by Salesforce: The portal is backed by robust technology to ensure a seamless and efficient application process.

Portal Help

If you are having technical issues with the portal, please use the CDA Applicant Portal Technical Assistance Form. Note: this form is only for technical issues. Questions about the NOFA will not be answered from this form. Please follow NOFA instructions to ask questions about the NOFA.

AWARDS UPDATE June 26, 2024: CDA Announces $3.7m in Neighborhood Transformation Grants: Vacant Unit Turns, Neighborhood Plans, Community Small Grants, Beautifying Vacant Lots Small Grants

AWARDS UPDATE September 13, 2024: CDA Announces Neighborhood Transformation Grant Awards for Affordable Housing Projects 

Click here to see the 2024 Neighborhood Transformation Grants.

Eligible & Priority Geography

All funded activities must be located within the City of St. Louis, with priority given to projects serving communities in Qualified Census Tracts and Economic Justice Index areas. Projects located near community assets such as schools and transit will receive bonus points during evaluation.

Priority geographies include all City of St. Louis 2024 Qualified Census Tracts (QCTs) and/or areas that have an Economic Justice Index Composite Score of 40.6 or higher. CDA will also prioritize projects and programs serving census tracts with higher economic justice index scores. These tracts include some of the City’s poorest communities as well as some of the City’s most historically segregated neighborhoods. 

The Economic Justice Index was born out of the City’s Economic Justice Action Plan, and reflects the City’s development agencies’ efforts to measure need and inequities in St. Louis.The Economic Justice Index and its ten component variables can be further explored here. 

Applications will receive bonus points according to which area in Economic Justice Index they serve as well as proposed projects’ location to community assets, for example: transit and schools as detailed in the map below.
 

Economic Justice Areas

The City of St. Louis is targeting ARPA funds to communities disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The map below consolidates over 10 factors ranging from life expectancy and violent crime rates to education attainment and Internet access to identify the census tracts in the city with the most needs. You can you find additional citywide details on the Economic Justice Index Overview map.