SUPPORTING PLACE-BASED INITIATIVES:
PLANNING IN WELLSTON, MISSOURI
JAKE COWAN
AUGUST 2015
Why are data critical assets and tools for place-
that enhance the effectiveness of initiatives in
based initiatives? What are the specific ways
many fields.2
data can help in developing and implementing
Organizations in the National Neighborhood
WELLSTON AND THE CHOICE
NEIGHBORHOODS INITIATIVE
Indicators Partnership (NNIP) are providing data,
In 2013, Wellston, Missouri was invited to
training, and technical assistance to place-
participate in the Choice Neighborhoods
based initiatives across the country. The
Initiative, a major neighborhood revitalization
following case study provides insights from the
program by the US Department of Housing and
experience of Rise, the NNIP partner in St. Louis,
Urban Development (HUD). Wellston is a city of
in support of the Choice Neighborhood in
2,600 residents located in St. Louis County on the
Wellston, Missouri. Rise is a leading community
western border of the City of St. Louis and is well
development organization in the St. Louis region.
positioned for this new investment.
NNIP partners are organizations (or units within
Leaders in the St. Louis region consider Wellston
organizations, as is the case with Rise) that help
an important economic link between the city
people find and use information to improve
and the county. Because of its strategic
communities. Their activities range from
location, two rapid transit stations, and major
preparing analytic reports to informing
commercial corridors that connect the area to
discussions and public meetings to helping
the regional economy, Wellston’s revitalization
grassroots groups collect and understand data.
could trigger revitalization in the surrounding
All NNIP partners build information systems
areas. Wellston has major investment partners
containing data from multiple agencies on
and assets, including the Wellston Housing
conditions and trends for small areas in their
Authority’s approximate 200 units of scattered-
cities and regions. NNIP partners such as Rise
site public housing and approximately 90
work directly with communities to interpret and
affordable housing units managed by Rise.
use the data that they manage and maintain.1
Maintaining and redeveloping these assets are a
Collaborating with a range of other local
critical piece to revitalization.
a plan? Who can do data work locally?
organizations, NNIP partners apply data in ways
1 See
www.neighborhoodindicators.org for more
information about the network and its partners.
NNIP | www.neighborhoodindicators.org
More complete descriptions of NNIP and its work are
found in Kingsley, Coulton, and Pettit (2014).
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SUPPORTING PLACE-BASED INITIATIVES: PLANNING IN WELLSTON, MISSOURI
Wellston also faces challenges—high vacancy
Data are critical to developing sound
rates, persistent poverty, and prevalent crime.
Transformation Plans. The participants of the
These are challenges the Choice Neighborhoods
planning process need neighborhood, housing,
Initiative seeks to address. The initiative provides
and services data to understand community
a planning grant to communities to convene
conditions, select appropriate interventions, and
stakeholders and resident leaders to create
set goals. To implement the plan, the initiative
locally developed plans to revitalize
also needs to create a reporting and data-
neighborhoods with distressed public housing.
management system to track and monitor
These plans, known as Transformation Plans,
programs and activities. This work requires a
outline strategies and expected changes in
strong data partner for advice and guidance.
neighborhood conditions and quality-of-life
outcomes for neighborhood residents.
Choice Neighborhoods is also an inclusive
initiative. Rise, as the data partner, supports this
PLANNING AND THE ROLE OF DATA
by enabling organizations, residents, and other
The St. Louis County Office of Community
strategies for the Transformation Plan. This
Development, along with the Wellston Housing
technical assistance allows those with limited
Authority convened stakeholders in Wellston to
experience working with data to fully participate
apply for the Choice Neighborhood planning
in the planning process.
grant, which was awarded in late 2013. The twoyear planning process to develop the
Transformation Plan began in the summer of
2014. The plan will address strategies to make
Wellston a sustainable, mixed-income, healthy,
and safe neighborhood where families choose
to live.3 The Office of Community Development
and co-grantee Wellston Housing Authority are
working closely with organizational partners (like
Rise, a longtime partner and collaborator with
the agencies) and residents to engage in a
robust, comprehensive planning process.
stakeholders to use data to inform the vision and
Rise fills this critical data leadership role on the
Wellston Choice Neighborhood team,
leveraging the capacities it has built following
the model of NNIP.4
DATA FROM RISE MOVES THE
PLANNING WORK TOWARD
IMPLEMENTATION
A crucial data role for Rise in the Wellston
Choice Neighborhood is developing a
dashboard to track data on neighborhood
conditions. The dashboard will include indicators
Rise selects that address housing conditions,
See “FY 2013 Planning Grant Award Information” at
http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/documents/huddoc?
id=ChoiceGrant11142013.pdf.
3
NNIP | www.neighborhoodindicators.org
Rise, as a community development organization, is
the housing partner on the development of the
Transformation Plan.
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SUPPORTING PLACE-BASED INITIATIVES: PLANNING IN WELLSTON, MISSOURI
educational outcomes, transportation access,
integrated case management systems in
health and safety, and resident engagement. By
Wellston, such as one that helps service
creating these indicators and assembling the
providers connect to residents in the
data, Rise is setting a baseline of knowledge and
neighborhood. When service providers use such
understanding of current conditions for Wellston.
systems internally (and confidentially), it can
This enables the Choice team to make informed
enable better coordination and care for
decisions and set priorities related to community
residents. It can also generate aggregate data
needs as well as to track the progress of the
that creates a better understanding of residents’
Transformation Plan as it is implemented.
current needs.
Rise does much more than develop indicators to
The data capacities that Rise brings to the table
support the planning work. Rise provides access
also have the potential to shape important
to data and make it relevant to its users, as do
planning and policy conversations. For example,
NNIP partners generally. Rise staff are in the
though a physical assessment of public housing
Wellston neighborhood working directly with
conditions is a major driver of plans for housing in
residents and participating in Choice
the Transformation Plan, housing-market data
Neighborhood planning meetings. Staff are
managed by Rise can reveal housing-market
helping residents understand and use data to
demand and what the Wellston market can
represent their perspective in the planning
support. Data can inform workforce planning by
process.
illuminating what jobs Wellston residents have,
Rise also assists the Wellston Choice team with
sharing data with HUD. Many community-based
organizations have little or no capacity to work
with data, and reporting requirements for data
where those jobs are located, and what skills
Wellston residents need to take advantage of
new industries that may move to the area as it is
revitalized.
related to grant activities and the planning
Data partners also help to provide continuity
process can represent a major burden and draw
from the planning phase to implementation. As
on resources. Rise plays a key role in the initiative
the Wellston Choice Neighborhood seeks
by providing assistance for partners that draws
implementation funding, the data framework
on their staff expertise and capacities in working
Rise manages to track and monitor the initiative
with administrative and other program datasets.
will show the progress of the Transformation Plan
In addition, NNIP partners like Rise can play an
over time.
important capacity-building role that both
strengthens the additional planning that lies
ahead and supports implementation. For
example, Rise can support the development of
NNIP | www.neighborhoodindicators.org
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SUPPORTING PLACE-BASED INITIATIVES: PLANNING IN WELLSTON, MISSOURI
IMPLICATIONS FOR CHOICE
NEIGHBORHOODS AND PLACEBASED INITIATIVES
The planning work to date highlights the
Choice Neighborhoods are strengthening the
ability of agencies, nonprofits and community
development corporations in St. Louis to use
data as a planning and decisionmaking tool.
importance of data and its value to place-
This initiative highlights that data partners both
based initiatives—from establishing foundational
provide data and develop capacity and
data about neighborhood conditions to tracking
knowledge about how to interpret and use
progress over time to framing policy
data. This is essential in contexts where
conversations. Rise is also building capacity
experience with using data often does not exist,
through its analysis and engagement work,
and it is a role that NNIP partners are well
which will inform other community development
positioned to play.
activities that they are invested in. In this way,
REFERENCES
Kingsley, G. Thomas, Claudia J. Coulton, and Kathryn L. S. Pettit. 2014. Strengthening Communities with
Neighborhood Data. Washington, DC: Urban Institute. http://www.urban.org/strengtheningcommunities Jake Cowan is an independent consultant that works with NNIP nationally,
as well as with individual local NNIP partners.
Thanks to Eleanor Tutt, data management coordinator at Rise, for sharing
her insights about the use of data in the Wellston Choice Neighborhood.
NNIP is a collaboration between the Urban Institute and partner organizations in more than two dozen American
cities. NNIP partners democratize data: they make it accessible and easy to understand and then help local
stakeholders apply it to solve problems in their communities.
This brief was supported by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation and the Annie E. Casey
Foundation. The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of the MacArthur
Foundation, the Annie E. Casey Foundation, the Urban Institute, its trustees, or its funders.
Copyright © 2015. Urban Institute. Permission is granted for reproduction of this file, with attribution to the Urban Institute.
NNIP | www.neighborhoodindicators.org
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