“Spent correctly” are the key words, Mike. I do not think we have been shown the rewards of ARPA money being spent where it has been delegated in downtown, vacant buildings, street repairs, housing, etc. , and I worry that if the Rams money is delegated it will not be administered carefully.

This is an extremely worthy idea, but there are key upgrades to the city's current 911 technology infrastructure (bringing existing software up to same standards neighboring counties and communities have been using for years) that don't require building a new center that already have a budget allocated to it. Before new funds are earmarked for a new center, it would build confidence in the citizens of St. Louis to know that the existing funds that have been earmarked for several years will actually be used to bring the current technology up to date. Otherwise, the city will be building a new center on technology that is nearly a decade old, and that doesn't feel like a great investment. Once the delayed but necessary updates happen to the existing system though, I would be all for this direction.

Agree. Make up that shortage so the 911 Center can be built. Good idea.

This technology resistant older adult thinks your suggestions are Tony the Tiger Great. Perhaps, the Water Enterprise will embrace technology by installing automatic water meters, and apps that illustrate account billing and usage. Let's spread technology everywhere.

As an add-on, if there’s something not already available, partner with local university/tech company to develop some sort of 911 system that leverages AI technology so that calls can be quickly triaged, routing only calls that really need human intervention to actual people/911 operators while other calls generate automated “tickets” based on info provided and routed to the appropriate department. This can also be integrated with a city 911 app