The St. Louis Land Bank, established in 1971, is the oldest in the country and manages over 12,000 vacant properties in the city. Land banks are operated by local governments to manage properties that have little to no value to private parties, with the goal of putting these properties back into productive use. As a component of the Obama Administration’s Strong Cities, Strong Communities Initative, the city of St. Louis requested that EPA conduct an independent, third-party assessment of their land bank. The urban planning firm Asakura Robinson was hired by EPA to conduct this assessment, which was completed in Feburary 2017. The assessment report describes efforts undertaken by the city of St. Louis to address vacant properties and the process undertaken by Asakura Robinson to conduct the assessment, and also lists recommendations for improving the operation of the St. Louis Land Bank.

• St. Louis Land Bank Assessment (PDF)(66 pp, 8 MB, February 15, 2017)