$400M in Federal Funding Advances Manufacturing Innovation in St. Charles County, North-South MetroLink Line Anticipated to Have $2.9B Economic Impact, and More
Not rendering correctly? View this email as a web page here
$400M in Federal Funding Advances Manufacturing Innovation in St. Charles County
One year after completing $300 million in capital improvements to its O’Fallon, Missouri, manufacturing facility, silicon wafer manufacturer MEMC and parent company GlobalWafers Co., Ltd. announced this week that they have secured $400 million in competitive investment made available by the federal CHIPS and Science Act. This new funding will create 500 construction jobs and an additional 130 high-paid permanent jobs at the site — all while continuing to bring manufacturing jobs back to the U.S.
“One of the incredible strengths of this region is our ability to get products in and out across the country and across the globe,” said Maggie Kost, GSL’s Chief Business Attraction Officer. “And that's why you're seeing companies that are critical in supply chains located here in this region. It’s not just folks putting that final product together, it’s the folks along that supply chain as well.”
To support workforce development efforts, MEMC is developing an apprenticeship program for Maintenance Technicians with the National Institute for Industry and Career Advancement and local high schools. Further, MEMC is collaborating with St. Charles Community College on a program named MegaTech, which supports dual-enrolled high school students as they step into careers involving advanced manufacturing and automation.
North-South MetroLink Line Anticipated to Have $2.9B Economic Impact
A new study from Citizens for Modern Transit shows that the proposed St. Louis MetroLink Green Line could have a $2.9 billion economic impact and create an additional $58.5 million in statewide economic activity. Running from Jefferson Avenue at Chippewa Street to Natural Bridge, with stops including CITYPARK and the new NGA campus, the Green Line would connect the city’s north and south sides — as well as an estimated 5,500 people per day.
Affordable Housing Spurring a Revival in North St. Louis
Through the efforts of small organizations and the impact of innovative city programs, affordable housing is changing the trajectory of north St. Louis. Both North Grand Neighborhood Services and Prop NS have helped to improve vacancy rates, encourage neighborhood stability, and boost the city’s population by increasing access to home ownership.
New Empowerment Center Emerges from Old Bank Branch
A former bank branch in north St. Louis has a new life as the Entrepreneurship and Women’s Business Center, thanks to donations from Commerce Bancshares, Inc., an executive-level member of the GSL Chair’s Council, to the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis, an Investor Council member. “To me, real success would look like entrepreneurs opening businesses in scores of tens and dozens and planting the seed for really substantial businesses in the years to come. If you’re not cultivating that new pipeline of new businesses, you stagnate as a region. This is the lifeblood of a healthy community to being able to create those new businesses,” said John Kemper, President and CEO of Commerce.
WashU’s Martin: Eads Bridge Exemplifies the Power of Regional Collaboration
In a recent opinion for the St. Louis Business Journal, Andrew Martin, Chancellor of Washington University in St. Louis, an executive-level member of the GSL Chair’s Council, compared the collaboration necessary to build the Eads Bridge — a 150-year-old symbol of innovation and engineering — with the collaboration our metro needs to grow today.
Writes Martin: “I believe that when anchor institutions like ours commit to leverage our strengths and coordinate our efforts, we can bridge the gap between our current realities and the overarching goals of economic equity, vitality and vibrancy that we all share for this great city we call home.”
Eisenhower Fellowships has named GSL’s Chief Strategy Officer Sam Murphey one of only 10 2024 USA Fellows. The program offers participants unique opportunities to travel overseas to exchange ideas with top global experts in their areas of expertise. Murphey will visit France and Chile to explore public-private partnerships and their role in addressing social challenges, seeking to implement successful models in the St. Louis metro.
Thanks to the Downtown Retail Incentive Program announced this year by GSL and the St. Louis Development Corporation, mobile bar company Pour Decisions STL will open The Passport, a cocktail bar and bottle shop, on Washington Avenue later this summer. “The retail incentive program is designed to attract high-quality businesses like Pour Decisions to the heart of the St. Louis metro and increase vibrancy Downtown,” Kurt Weigle, GSL’s Chief Downtown Officer.
The St. Louis Business Journal recently honored the innovation and success of the region’s startup scene with the St. Louis INNO Fire Awards, recognizing 11 St. Louis startups across four categories. The awards honored community builders like the Taylor Geospatial Institute and 39 North, as well as “startups on fire,” like STLMade Geneoscopy. Jerry Kent, Chairman and CEO of TierPoint, an executive-level member of the GSL Chair’s Council, was honored with a Legacy Entrepreneur Award.
MO & IL move up on CNBC's list of 'Top States for Business'
Both Missouri and Illinois have moved up CNBC’s list of “Top States for Businesses,” with Illinois coming in at 15 from 17, and Missouri coming in at 18 — rising from 32 last year. CNBC scores all 50 states based on 128 metrics in 10 categories, ranking states on attributes they use to sell themselves.
TIME Ranks Two Midsize St. Louis Companies Among Country’s Best
TIME Magazine has ranked two St. Louis-based businesses — Amdocs and GSL Chair’s Council Member Cass Information Systems, Inc. — among the best midsize companies in the country. Based on positive revenue growth, employee satisfaction, and sustainability transparency, rankings included companies making between $100 million and $10 billion in revenue.
In just three years, the St. Louis region has gained three world-class music festivals, bringing national and local artists to stages across the metro.
