St. Louis creates voluntary registered-neighborhood organization registry and requires targeted notices to registered groups

The Housing, Urban Development & Zoning committee voted unanimously to approve two bills creating a voluntary registered-neighborhood organization (RNO) registry and requiring targeted notice to registered groups. Board Bill 44 establishes eligibility and a public registry; Board Bill 45 lists the notices agencies must send to registered neighborhood organizations. The committee adopted a technical amendment to add conditional-use public hearing notices to the list and passed both measures with a due-pass recommendation.

What the bills do

- Board Bill 44 (registry): Directs the Neighborhood Stabilization Division (NSD) to create and maintain a public registration process and database of resident-led neighborhood organizations. Eligibility criteria are intentionally simple: a defined geographic boundary, documented meeting frequency and public-engagement practices, and a short written governance statement (bylaws or similar) so the public can understand how the organization functions. Registration is voluntary and requires annual renewal to keep contact information current.

- Board Bill 45 (notice requirements): Requires city divisions to send defined public notices (zoning filings, land-use hearings, certain permit notices and other items) to registered neighborhood organizations that represent the affected geography, plus an additional 200-foot buffer for notifications.

Nut graf: why this matters

Supporters said the package is a practical, low-cost way to centralize neighborhood contact information, reduce missed notifications and strengthen civic…