SLDC Commissions Digital Twin of MLK Corridor, Unveils Name of Campus for Economic Mobility
Earlier this year, SLDC engaged an urban planning and geospatial design firm, Houseal Lavigne, to develop a hyper-local digital twin of the MLK Corridor, which has been identified as a priority demonstration area in the Economic Justice Action Plan. The twin highlights several initiatives including the former Killark Electric site that will become home to the Campus for Economic Mobility, AMICSTL and the 4theVille Cultural Boulevard neighborhood plan helping to articulate a vision for the future that residents and stakeholders can interact with more effectively.
The digital twin leverages new technologies to deliver evidence-based decision-making along with graphically compelling and effective storytelling. This development of a hyper-local digital twin has several intended purposes:
Socioeconomic Development benefits include a better understanding of the community based on population characteristics, an understanding of development opportunities and their large and small-scale impacts.
Allow SLDC and its partners to model development opportunities and specific projects to see what they will look like in 3D and the impact it will have throughout the project lifecycle.
Establishing a digital twin creates situational awareness and a common operating platform for SLDC and partner organizations. It can also enhance coordination and collaboration between all infrastructure growth and modernization stakeholders (power, water, sewer, gas, transportation, roads, communications, etc.) and provide an assessment and understanding of the current state of infrastructure.
This pilot project will enhance urban planning by both public and private entities.
The Monarch on MLK – Campus for Economic Mobility
In October 2023, the Land Clearance for Redevelopment Authority of the City of St. Louis (LCRA) — a development board staffed by the St. Louis Development Corporation (SLDC) — purchased a 150,000-square-foot industrial building at 3940 Dr. Martin Luther King Drive in North St. Louis, along with 29 surrounding vacant parcels. Once redeveloped, the 15.39-acre site will transform into an innovative transit-accessible workforce and training campus for manufacturing and other high-paying, in-demand careers: The Monarch on MLK – Campus for Economic Mobility.
Powered by SLDC, the campus will become a connection point for the community. Small and minority-owned business support will convene at the campus alongside workforce development and training opportunities. Coupled with a collection of community resources and collaborators, the campus is a beacon of change for North St. Louis — a tangible, vibrant manifestation of St. Louis’ investment in advancing equity and improving economic resiliency for residents of predominantly black neighborhoods as envisioned in the Economic Justice Action Plan.