This year, for the first time in four decades, federal dollars intended to help homeless people have a new steward in St. Louis. Peter & Paul Community Services, a service provider for unhoused people in the region, is taking over for the City of St. Louis as the “collaborative applicant” for the area’s Continuum of Care. That effectively makes Peter & Paul the executor of a crucial pot of federal money and a regional vision as well.
St. Louis’ Continuum of Care (CoC) is made up of more than 100 local organizations that provide homeless services, and the organization coordinates federal dollars from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for that work. For four decades, the “collaborative applicant” with HUD was the City of St. Louis, which many providers found challenging to work with.
Late last year, CoC members voted overwhelmingly to make Peter & Paul the collaborative applicant, with 89 percent of present voters agreeing to the plan. The organization took the helm as of New Year’s Day 2026, beating out the only other applicant to fill that job, the city’s Department of Human Services…