Discovery Green Conservancy
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 201951465
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2009–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024
- Location
- Houston, TX, USA
- Phone
- 7134007336
- Rating
- 85
- Verdict
- STRONG
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Community Recreational Centers
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $11,051,561
- Expenses
- $10,124,915
- Assets
- $47,064,396
- Liabilities
- $965,614
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
24 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- Kathryn Lott (President)
Highest reported compensation
- Kathryn Lott (President): $260,429 total reported compensation
- Jose Leal (COO): $174,627 total reported compensation
- Susanne Theis (Artistic Director): $169,551 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
See Schedule O Discovery Green's mission is to operate and guide the evolution of an uncommonly beautiful urban green space in the heart of Houston that serves as a village green for our city, a source of health and happiness for our citizens, and a window into the incredible diversity of arts, talents, and traditions that enrich life in Houston.
What it reported doing in 2024
Discovery Green Conservancy operates a public park, open year-round at no charge to residents and visitors of the Greater Houston area. The park includes open areas for events, picnics, and sports, a playground and an interactive water feature for children, a lake, a putting green, various gardens, a jogging path, dog runs, two restaurants, performance areas and both temporary and permanent installations of art. The park hosts a variety of activities such as yoga, dance and fitness classes and performing arts events, as well as special events such as an ice rink in winter.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
- Distribution model
- Direct operator. The filing allocates 100% of reported program-service expenses outside its grant, affiliate-payment, and member-benefit lines. This expense classification does not rule out separately announced grant awards.
- Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.
The verdict
STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 81
- Transparency & Controls: 84
- Accountability: 95
- Sustainability: 68
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 83.8%; rating input score 84
- Program expense ratio: 87.9%; rating input score 88
- Fundraising efficiency: $11.07 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 41; 41st percentile among comparable filings
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: 4 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 67
- Compensation committee: Pass
- Independent consultant: Missing
- Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
- Written employment contract: Pass
- Compensation survey or study: Pass
- Board or committee approval: Pass
- Foreign activity oversight: Limited
- Grant itemization coverage: Limited
- Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
- Related-party transparency: Limited
Accountability
- Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 66th 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: Pass
- CEO compensation review process: Pass
- Other executive compensation review process: Fail
- Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
- Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
- Audit committee oversight: Pass
- Independent financial-statement audit: Pass
Sustainability
- Operating margin: 8.4%; rating input score 64; 64th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 4.65; rating input score 84; 84th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.02; rating input score 90; 90th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 8.7%; rating input score 26; 26th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 4.3% per year; rating input score 100; 36th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 6% per year; rating input score 100; 52nd percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 0.7% per year; rating input score 100; 13th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 83.8% of revenue deployed · 87.9% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 19 of 19 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
- Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $8.9M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $260K · 24 people listed · 4 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
- Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $2M reported
- Consistency: 38 of 38 current checks pass
- Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
- Filing history: 16 filing years from 2009 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 5 filed money-flow records
- 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.
- Staff and benefit plans: Retirement and health plans the organization files with the Department of Labor, and the people in them.
Key Signals
Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.
- Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 41/100.
- Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Other executive compensation review process not reported.
- High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 26/100.