FERGUSON, Mo. — Ameren Missouri said 3,500 people have more reliable electricity in North St. Louis County thanks to its Smart Energy Plan.
The plan has huge benefits for the city of Ferguson and the state of Missouri together.
Now, if people's power in Ferguson goes out, their lights could turn back on in seconds instead of hours or days.
St. Louis County Councilwoman Rita Days described this project as essential.
"If you live in St. Louis, for more than six months, you will know that the weather has a traumatic effect on us, either in the summer or the winter," she said.
Now, that trauma may be less severe for people in St. Louis County.
Thanks to a nearly $10 million investment into the Ferguson community, according to Gateway Division Director, Jason Woodard.
"Here today, we're replacing a 67-year-old substation with state-of-the-art technology," he said.
It's all a part of Ameren Missouri's Smart Energy Plan.
Woodard said the two switchgear components, that were installed on Tuesday, will help them quickly detect and fix problems; sometimes within seconds.
"What that smart technology does is allows us to more rapidly identify and isolate outages, speeding up the restoration process," he said.
This will impact reliability for 3,500 customers in Ferguson, according to Woodard, including essential buildings like the city's Fire Department.
Mayor Ella Jones said she's thankful for this investment in her community, for more reasons than one.
"It means that they won't call me often and tell me their lights have gone out, but really, it's a big plus because of the technology that makes a difference," she said.
The project's reach goes beyond Ferguson, though.
According to Rick Eastman, Sr. Legislative Representative, Smart Energy Plan has been in place for the last three years in Missouri and has created over 4,500 jobs and provided $15 million in tax revenue.
It's something Councilwoman Days said she likes the sound of.
"Made in Missouri, by Missouri and utilized in Missouri is extremely helpful, so I'm very pleased to know that," she said.
Governor Parson recently signed a bill that will go into effect in August, which extends the Smart Energy Plan for five to possibly 10 more years.
Ameren Missouri said it is doing these projects all across the state, but are particularly focused in North County because they know it needs improvement.