Frequently Asked Questions
Overview & Purpose
What is Next Move, St. Louis?
Next Move, St. Louis is a bi-state initiative that brings together civic, business, philanthropic, educational, and community leaders to identify shared regional priorities, and develop a plan for addressing them.
Why is this initiative being created now?
In 2023 and 2024, the East-West Gateway Council of Governments (Council) Board brought regional stakeholders together to address challenges including violent crime and homelessness. Those discussions illustrated the need for greater collaboration on other pressing issues, including workforce development, population stagnation, food insecurity, and airport expansion. In June 2025, Council board leadership recognized the importance of bringing regional leaders and resources together and called for the Council to support such an effort.
What are the primary goals of the initiative?
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Shared Vision & Focused Action Plan: Define a regional vision and identify a manageable number of regional priorities where collaboration makes sense.
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Broad & Inclusive Engagement: Bring leaders, practitioners, and analysts together from public, private, nonprofit, educational, and philanthropic sectors. Engage the broader community through survey and town hall opportunities.
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Long-Term Collaboration & Accountability: Establish a lasting approach to regional cooperation, with the leadership, resources, and accountability necessary to turn priorities
Distinction & Regional Context
How is this initiative different from past regional planning efforts?
Rather than producing a static report that sits on a shelf, Next Move, St. Louis is focused on creating an action plan:
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Focus on execution: Establish clear leadership, funding strategies, organizational capacity, and metrics to track progress.
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Focused priorities: Concentrate on a few shared priorities where regional cooperation can produce measurable results.
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Honest alignment: Recognize that communities have different interests and priorities while finding opportunities to work together through community input and reliance on data to inform.
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Near-term momentum: Pair long-term strategy with visible, early wins to build trust across jurisdictions.
How does this effort relate to the work of existing organizations?
The initiative is intended to build on the work already being done by individuals and organizations throughout the region, not replace or duplicate these efforts. Next Move, St. Louis provides a neutral, connective platform for these organizations to align goals, and share resources.
Is Next Move, St. Louis an effort to merge St. Louis City and St. Louis County?
No. Next Move, St. Louis is focused on strengthening regional cooperation, not merging local governments or changing existing jurisdictional boundaries. The initiative is designed to help communities and organizations work together on shared priorities while respecting their individual identities and responsibilities.
Scope & Governance
What geographic area is included?
The core focus covers the eight-county bi-state region served by the Council:
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Missouri: City of St. Louis, Franklin County, Jefferson County, St. Charles County, and St. Louis County.
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Illinois: Madison County, Monroe County, and St. Clair County.
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The broader engagement process will also incorporate stakeholders across the wider St. Louis Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA).
Who is leading and funding the effort?
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Leadership and Funding: East-West Gateway Council of Governments (Council) is the primary funder with support from Greater St. Louis, Inc. (GSL). (See below for more information)
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Role of the Council and GSL: Both organizations will serve strictly as neutral conveners and facilitators; regional decisions will be made collaboratively by participating regional stakeholders, rather than directed by Council or GSL staff.
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Steering Committee: A group (currently in formation) representing a cross-section of the region from various sectors will help guide the initiative’s vision development and strategic decisions.
How much is this initiative going to cost and is public money being used?
A total of $1M has been allocated for Next Move, St. Louis. East-West Gateway Council of Governments is the primary funder, with additional support from Greater St. Louis, Inc.
Who will ultimately decide which regional priorities move forward?
The Steering Committee will help guide the initiative and identify opportunities for regional cooperation. Input from residents, community organizations and other stakeholders will help inform the development of regional priorities. The initiative’s leadership will work with participants to determine the final priorities and commitments.
Who is providing consulting and project management support?
A team led by Fourth Economy Consulting, partnered with local organizations including Vector Communications, Urban Impact Advisors, and FOCUS St. Louis.
Timeline & Process
What is the project timeline?
The initiative is designed to produce three primary outcomes:
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Fall 2026: Formal cross-sector engagement and collaboration activities began.
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June 2025: Initial workshop where the Council’s Board agreed to establish the regional alignment initiative.
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November 2026: Public launch of the brand, "Next Move, St. Louis".
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Overall Duration: The initial planning and regional alignment process is expected to take approximately 18 months.
What will the final outcome look like?
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A regional vision for where we want to improve
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A regional action plan that identifies shared priorities, established measurable goals, and outlines commitments from participating organizations.
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A sustainable framework for regional collaboration that supports coordination of resources and metrics to track progress.
How will success be measured?
The initiative will establish clear goals and ways to measure progress on the priorities identified through public input and planning. This will help participating organizations see what’s working, where challenges remain and what additional steps may be needed.
What happens after the initial 18-month process concludes?
The goal is to build lasting regional cooperation that continues well beyond the initial planning process. By identifying shared priorities, coordinating resources and tracking progress, participating organizations can continue working together to address the region’s challenges and build on its strengths.
Participation
How can residents participate in Next Move, St. Louis?
Residents will have opportunities to participate through public meetings, surveys and collaborative working sessions. These activities will allow community members to share their perspectives, identify regional challenges and help shape priorities for the future. We look forward to hearing from residents across the region and will share opportunities for public participation as the initiative moves forward.
How will community input influence the initiative’s priorities?
Community input will help shape the priorities identified through Next Move, St. Louis. In fact prior planning efforts are being leveraged for their community inputs. Additional feedback from surveys, public meetings and working sessions will help regional leaders better understand shared challenges, identify opportunities for collaboration and develop the regional action plan.
Which sectors are being invited to participate?
Next Move, St. Louis is bringing together a broad range of voices from across the region, including local government, businesses, community development organizations, philanthropy, higher education, healthcare, labor, arts, sports, entertainment and grassroots community groups. We welcome participation from across the region and will share more information about opportunities to get involved as the initiative moves forward.
About the Founding Partners
Next Move, St. Louis was established by the East-West Gateway Council of Governments in partnership with Greater St. Louis, Inc.
About East-West Gateway Council of Governments
East-West Gateway Council of Governments (Council) is a regional council of governments (COG). As a COG, the Council provides a forum where local governments in the bi-state St. Louis region can coordinate and work together to address and solve problems that cross jurisdictional boundaries. The Council facilitates cooperative planning and problem-solving among and between any of its member local governments that believe they can accomplish better things by working together than by acting separately.
The Council is also the federally designated metropolitan planning organization (MPO) for the St. Louis region, which includes the city of St. Louis, Franklin, Jefferson, St. Charles, and St. Louis counties in Missouri and Madison, Monroe, and St. Clair counties in Illinois. As the St. Louis region’s MPO, the federal government and the states of Missouri and Illinois have vested the Council with legal authority and responsibility for implementing the federal metropolitan transportation planning process in the St. Louis Metropolitan Planning Area.
About Greater St. Louis, Inc.
Greater St. Louis, Inc. forges partnerships that empower growth across the 15-county St. Louis region. We convene and collaborate with business, governmental, and civic leaders to empower economic growth and prosperity in communities across the St. Louis metro area. Together, we act with intention to create a thriving and inclusive St. Louis that attracts and retains investment and talent for generations to come and creates more and better jobs for the region.
Contact
Who can be contacted for more information?
Cordell Whitlock, Vector Communications: cwhitlock@vectorstl.com