In St. Louis, a half-dozen public agencies teamed up with scores of private donors to fund the $380-million CityArchRiver 2015 project. One of the agencies is the Great Rivers Greenway District, created by St. Louis voters in 2000, with a mandate to connect and integrate the iconic 630-ft-tall, 630-ft-wide Gateway Arch with downtown.
In Kansas City, voters approved in 2012 a transportation development district consisting of public and private interests to build a $102-million 20-mile streetcar project. The goal: Connect growing areas of the city to downtown.