RAISE Grant

The City of West Monroe (the “City”) is requesting $17.9 million in federal funds from the Department of Transportation RAISE Grant Program that will be matched with $4.46 million from the City for the Street Corridor portion of the West Monroe Revitalization Project. This federal funding will leverage previous investments along with planned improvements to increase community connectivity, encourage non-motorized transportation, increase safety, and revitalize key infrastructure in this rural city. Specifically, the City is seeking RAISE funding for improvements to six components:

 1) Highland Park

2) Trenton Street Corridor

 3) Downtown

 4) Stella/Mill Gateway

 5) Natchitoches Street

 6) Coleman Corridor

The RAISE Projects address underutilized and historically disparate areas of the City in a unified manner, and will reconstruct deficient roadways, add shared use pedestrian facilities including bike paths, improve drainage to reduce flooding, bury aging utilities, and redesign streetscapes to increase foot traffic, improve connectivity throughout the community, and comply with ADA accessibility standards. The RAISE Projects will improve resiliency, address environmental issues, and ensure the overall state of good repair of key infrastructure, thereby increasing connectivity and multimodal transportation options for the residents of this region. 

The RAISE Projects are a vital component of the West Monroe Citywide Master Plan and Downtown Master Plan revitalization projects, which arose from a comprehensive master planning process in 2021 - 2022 that included studies, stakeholder meetings, and extensive public input (the “Revitalization Project”).  The Revitalization Project is a collaborative effort that includes funding from state, federal and local sources to strategically implement projects that transform the City into an economically diverse and highly livable community. Together, the RAISE Projects within the Revitalization Project will bring economic growth and stability to the region, improve the quality of life of residents, and provide innovative and sustainable solutions to mobility issues that encumber this rural region.