Downtown Denver Partnership Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
841222797
IRS 990 coverage
2012–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
Denver, CO, USA
Phone
3035346161
Rating
51
Verdict
MIXED
Rating confidence
Moderate

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$7,581,970
Expenses
$7,315,486
Assets
$11,225,255
Liabilities
$2,557,948

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

23 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • KOURTNY GARRETT (PRESIDENT &)

Highest reported compensation

  • KOURTNY GARRETT (PRESIDENT &): $629,491 total reported compensation
  • KATE BARTON (CHIEF EXT AF): $306,551 total reported compensation
  • MATTHEW KARNES (CFO): $273,866 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Ddp focuses on creatively planning, managing, and developing downtown denver as the unique, diverse, vibrant, and economically healthy urban core of the rocky mountain region.

What it reported doing in 2025

Downtown environment and the public realm: ddp developed an interactive digital kisok system for the center city. This system allows visitors to receive and share information, get directions, learn about downtown amenities and activities. The organization provides management support for the business improvement district and the general improvement district. Member and civic engagement: the downtown denver leadership program develops downtown denver's future leaders, educates participants about the economic importance of downtown denver, informs participants about the unique leadership opportunities and challenges that exist in a downtown environment, and engages participants in creating the downtown denver of the future.

Operating model

Revenue model
Earned-program. 86% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program revenue.
Distribution model
Cannot be determined from the filing. The filing does not provide enough consistent spending detail to tell whether the nonprofit works directly or through others.

The verdict

MIXED - The filed numbers largely add up and most voting board members are independent. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and a relatively small share of total spending goes to programs.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 0
  • Transparency & Controls: 94
  • Accountability: 96
  • Sustainability: 37
  • Growth: 40

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 0%; rating input score 0
  • Program expense ratio: 0%; rating input score 0
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 6 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 100
    • Compensation committee: Pass
    • Independent consultant: Pass
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
    • 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: 94.1%; rating input score 94; 25th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 9 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 100
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • 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: 3.5%; rating input score 38; 38th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.53; rating input score 49; 49th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.23; rating input score 33; 33rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 27.6%; rating input score 9; 9th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -25.9% per year; rating input score 0; 1st percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 15.3% per year; rating input score 100; 80th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: Limited

Details

  • Where the money goes: 0% of revenue deployed · 0% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 16 of 17 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $7.3M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $629K · 23 people listed · 6 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 14 of 15 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 14 filing years from 2012 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 7 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 1 filed related-organization link
  • 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 — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 0/100.
  • High — Financial Efficiency: Program expense ratio scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 38/100.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Functional expense sum did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 49/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 9/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 33/100.