Downtown Austin Development Corporation
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 742862219
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2022–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024, Form 990-EZ 2021, Form 990-N 2019
- Location
- Austin, TX, USA
- Phone
- 5124691766
- Rating
- 82
- Verdict
- STRONG
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Fund Raising and/or Fund Distribution
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $392,207
- Expenses
- $500,360
- Assets
- $617,946
- Liabilities
- $28,182
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
6 people listed
People named in this filing
- Kevin Brown (Director)
- Jenny Wiebrand (Director)
- Dewitt Peart (Secretary)
Selected names, not a complete roster or a statement of current roles. Open leadership details for the complete filed list.
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
To enhance the downtown area of Austin, Texas, and to support and implement the Downtown Vision of the Austin DMO, Inc. d.b.a. Downtown Austin Alliance and implement services and projects benficial to Downtown Austin, including parks improvement projects and other large scale projects.
What it reported doing in 2024
The Foundation's mission is to ignite the potential of downtown-through art and creative spaces that capture the spirit of Austin-by and for everyone. The Foundation is charged with implementing key projects that support the Downtown Alliance's vision. That includes holding the management contract to operate, program and fund Republic Square, as well as leading place-based activations. The drive-in format was used to host creative community events such as slam poetry nights. In addition to commissioning murals, during the fiscal year the Foundation held a mural art and park tour bike ride, showcasing a curated collection of inspirational and iconic murals in and around downtown. In addition, Republic Square was activated with a weekly farmer's market as well as a diverse array of other culturaland community-focused events. Expanded partnership with Mexi-Arte including increased cultural programming and education at Republic Square and targeted efforts (block canvassing and 2 open house events) to engage the buisness community in the creation of a Cultural Heritage District. "Launched Downtown Austin Space Activation (DASA) program at 506 Congress with 500+ activations in FY 24-25 supporting artists, creatives and community organizations with affordable space. "
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Grant-funded. 64% of the money available for current operations came from government grants.
- Distribution model
- Direct operator. The filing allocates 81% 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.
The verdict
STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 86
- Transparency & Controls: 81
- Accountability: 82
- Sustainability: 30
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
- Program expense ratio: 84.2%; rating input score 84
- Fundraising efficiency: $4.87 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 21; 21st percentile among comparable filings
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 78.6%; rating input score 79; 0th percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: Limited
- Foreign activity oversight: Limited
- Grant itemization coverage: 98.1%; rating input score 98; 58th percentile among comparable filings
- Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
- Related-party transparency: Limited
Accountability
- Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
- Governance controls: 4 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 57
- Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
- Whistleblower policy: Fail
- Document-retention policy: Fail
- CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
- Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
- Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
- Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
- Audit committee oversight: Pass
- Independent financial-statement audit: Pass
Sustainability
- Operating margin: -27.6%; rating input score 10; 10th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.24; rating input score 46; 46th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.05; rating input score 33; 33rd percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 69; 69th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 58.7% per year; rating input score 100; 96th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 22.2% per year; rating input score 100; 89th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 16% per year; rating input score 100; 79th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 84.2% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 5 of 5 board members independent · 4 of 7 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $421K in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 6 people listed
- Consistency: 32 of 35 current checks pass · 3 findings to review
- Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors and grants
- Filing history: 3 filing years from 2022 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 2 filed money-flow records
- Related organizations: 4 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.
- Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 3 of 7 not reported.
- High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 21/100.
- High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 10/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 46/100.
- Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
- Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.
- Review — Transparency & Controls: Schedule G fundraiser detail did not reconcile in the filed values.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 33/100.