The non-profit organization Places for People broke ground today on a 23 unit apartment building that will provide housing for the chronically homeless in St. Louis. Organizers say it's Missouri's first affordable development funded by the state's housing commission.
Ground has been broken for Places at Page, an apartment complex in North St. Louis on Page Boulevard that will provide housing for the chronically homeless and mentally ill.
The $5.7 million historic renovation will provide 23 secure residential apartments equipped with on-site staff.
Missouri State Treasurer Clint Zweifel is a member of the Missouri Housing Commission. He says the new apartment building makes sense financially.
"This is a model that works, folks," Zweifel said. " It's a model that's fiscally responsible because it saves our community tax dollars by reducing the burden on emergency rooms, shelters, jails and prisons."
Zweifel says the construction process is creating 71 part-time and eight full-time jobs.