Capital Area Development Corporation of West Virginia
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 556024192
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2020–2025
- Forms available
- Form 990 2025
- Location
- Charleston, WV, USA
- Phone
- 3043404253
- Rating
- 90
- Verdict
- STRONG
- Rating confidence
- Standard
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $5,538,147
- Expenses
- $5,942,994
- Assets
- $14,464,811
- Liabilities
- $6,715,575
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
39 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- Mara C Boggs (President and CEO)
Highest reported compensation
- Mara C Boggs (President and CEO): $179,251 total reported compensation
- Debra S James (CFO): $148,484 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
Capital Area Development Corporation of West Virginia dba Charleston Area Alliance serves as a catalyst for change for Charleston, Kanawha County, and the surrounding area, leading with innovative and collaborative approaches to shape a prosperous economy that fosters growth and attracts people and investment. We are a community and economic development organization that connects businesses, entrepreneurs and young talent with the resources needed to succeed. Our strategic initiatives stimulate job creation, attract new industries, bolster the region's economic resilience, and support energetic and effective local efforts to renew our capital city as strong and vibrant.
What it reported doing in 2025
Economic Development - We drive sustainable growth in target industries by advancing innovation, fostering strategic partnerships, and increasing visibility. Programs and projects focus on: business recruitment, expansion and retention by providing site selection assistance, facilitating foreign direct investment, assisting with import/export needs, supporting innovation, research and development, linking suppliers and customers to promote local economic growth; talent attraction and retention through promoting workforce development opportunities, providing talent attraction incentives to increase population, hosting an internship program; encouraging public investment in supportive infrastructure, and developing entrepreneurial networks and support systems. In 2023, the organization began a major real estate redevelopment project, the Charleston Lift Center, funded by a federal grant matched with other public and private support. Capitalized redevelopment costs as of 12/31/25 were $2,778,640. In support of the Ascend West Virginia Charleston Area Remote Work Location, the Alliance pledged the sum of $3 million over five years, recorded at net present value in financial statements and in this return. The Alliance contributed $1 million to the West Virginia Department of Tourism in support of their Air Services Agreement.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
- Distribution model
- Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 73% of its reported program spending out as grants.
The verdict
STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Expenses are high relative to revenue and some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 96
- Transparency & Controls: 85
- Accountability: 95
- Sustainability: 33
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
- Program expense ratio: 94.2%; rating input score 94
- Fundraising efficiency: $47.46 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 78; 78th percentile among comparable filings
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 93.8%; rating input score 94; 21st percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: 3 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 50
- Compensation committee: Pass
- Independent consultant: Missing
- Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
- Written employment contract: Pass
- Compensation survey or study: Missing
- Board or committee approval: Pass
- Foreign activity oversight: Limited
- Grant itemization coverage: 96.4%; rating input score 96; 37th percentile among comparable filings
- Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
- Related-party transparency: Yes; rating input score 100
Accountability
- Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
- Governance controls: 8 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 89
- Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
- Whistleblower policy: Pass
- Document-retention policy: Fail
- CEO compensation review process: Pass
- Other executive compensation review process: Pass
- Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
- Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
- Audit committee oversight: Pass
- Independent financial-statement audit: Pass
Sustainability
- Operating margin: -7.3%; rating input score 12; 12th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.43; rating input score 64; 64th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.46; rating input score 17; 17th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 5.5%; rating input score 53; 53rd percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 28.6% per year; rating input score 100; 91st percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 17.9% per year; rating input score 100; 84th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 18.6% per year; rating input score 100; 82nd percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 94.2% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 37 of 37 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
- Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $5.6M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $179K · 39 people listed · 3 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
- Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $1.6M reported
- Consistency: 45 of 46 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
- Schedules: 8 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, executive pay, and related organizations
- Filing history: 5 filing years from 2020 to 2025
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 7 filed money-flow records
- Related organizations: 5 filed related-organization links
- Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
- People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.
Key Signals
Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.
- High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 12/100.
- Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Document-retention policy not reported.
- High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 17/100.
- Review — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 53/100.
- Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.