St. Louis is defined by its local communities. OneSTL provides tools and voluntary support to our local communities to improve the diversity of housing opportunities and access to transportation and services, which in turn create a broad variety of choices about the kinds of neighborhoods where we choose to live.
The key challenge to achieving regional sustainability in the St. Louis area is providing relevant, useful, and voluntary solutions that our local communities can use based on their particular needs, capacities, and desires. These communities exist in diverse contexts, landscapes, and geographies. They each have their own assets and challenges. They each operate under different jurisdictions and governmental structures, and they each possess unique populations, interests, and constituencies. While the varied communities of the region are interconnected through regional systems, economies, and interpersonal relations, these communities are still individual and distinctive places.Local Community Types
In addition, many of the region's outlying communities are sub-regional centers with their own downtowns, business districts, and suburbs. The history, existing character, and diversity of our communities are a major asset to the St. Louis region. Regional success will capitalize and build upon the distinctive character of local communities.
OneSTL provides numerous tools to local communities. The web-based Sustainable Solutions Toolkit (www.OneSTL.org/toolkit) includes model development codes and ordinances, stormwater and runoff mitigation projects, water and air quality improvement projects, local food production, resource management, and energy efficiency programs—with implementation strategies, economic and regulatory benefits, performance indicators, case studies, and local resources. These tools are searchable by topic, user, and community type. The map on page 48 illustrates both the number of local municipalities as well as the variety of local community types. 
New streetscape design developed as part of East-West Gateway's Great Streets program (Page Avenue: Pagedale, MO).These regional community types contain characteristic descriptions which local communities can use to self-identify for the purpose of selecting the most relevant solutions and tools. Developed as part of the OneSTL planning process, the Community Types are presented in detail in Appendix D of this document.
To provide the best and most up-to-date data to all regional communities, OneSTL Network Members launched the St. Louis Regional Data Exchange as part of this planning process. Good data is the basis of good decisions, and the Data Exchange provides publicly accessible information and mapping via an interactive website (see StLouisData.org).
In addition to the tools described above, OneSTL outlines goals, objectives, and strategies to facilitate sustainability in local communities. The OneSTL related goals are outlined in the sidebar to the right. Associated objectives and strategies are presented in detail in Chapter 4 of this document.
