ST. LOUIS – After the feeling of a lack of transparency in how ARPA funds are awarded and granted, the St. Louis City comptroller is calling on the St. Louis Development Corporation for more integrity within the process.
Comptroller Darlene Green mailed a letter to Neal Richardson, the SLDC CEO and President. According to a release, Green has expressed worries surrounding the funding process within the program that have led to a loss in trust from the public.
She has also voiced that if there is a failure to comply by a federal deadline, the city could lose millions of dollars.
The letter from Green to Richardson reads, in part:
“As comptroller, I urge you to remove all doubts concerning the integrity of the grant and award process, fix any problems, and immediately address the glaring questions about the appearance of improprieties and lack of transparency regarding the process.
“I strongly support Mayor Jones’ intention to target this $37 million in ARPA funding to help uplift long-distressed areas of north St. Louis City, which have suffered from disinvestment and economic exclusion for decades.
“I call on you to be open and transparent about the process by revealing the details of how it was determined that those particular final grant awards, in question, were selected to then be presented to a selection committee for approval of the federal funds…failing to respect these deadlines will result in the loss of federal funding for this program and may impact future funding opportunities as well.”
Green disclosed that this informational request must be obligated by Dec. 31 of this year, and must be liquidated by Dec. 31, 2026.
