Institute for Economic Development

What it reported doing in 2024

Economic developmentin the last fiscal year, radc made a good deal of progress on improving streetscapes and trails along the chester waterfront and enhancing the connection between residents and the Delaware river. This progress includes completing the remaining concrete work on the unit and 100 blocks of reaney street now that the utility poles have been relocated, finishing the design of the complete streets on highland avenue and substantially completing the design work for the norris street connector to the east coast greenway. Now that the design of the highland avenue improvements is finished, the improvements and trail installation has been put out to bid and will soon be under construction. -west 2nd street (route 291) improvements chester waterfront trailradc is working on design and financing for construction of a multi-use, off-road path and green stormwater landscaped strip along route 291 (west 2nd street) from highland ave to norris st to enhance pedestrian and bicycle safety and connect residential neighborhoods to the Delaware river waterfront. The current land, located on the south side of route 291, will be reclaimed to complete a fully constructed 2.9-mile loop of public recreation space. The new trail loop segment, the route 291 connectivity corridor, will connect with the existing trail segments along highland avenue and norris street that connect with the east coast greenway trail along the Delaware river waterfront to create this loop.the project will add a trail along the existing 4-lane corridor with center turning lane, transforming it from a high-speed, bare concrete roadway to a multi-use transportation corridor with options which will fuel the growth of the chester waterfront area while also improving the safety and quality of life for the people who work, live, and visit the city.using waterfront tax credits and other sources of financing, radc is funding the land acquisition piece as well as managing the design process. -waterfront programming, community workdays & eventsin the spring of 2025, radc in conjunction with the partnership for the Delaware estuary (pde) and other local community-based partners planned its third Delaware river festival. This festival has been held in philadelphia and in camden for a number of years and pde decided to expand it to the chester waterfront. Radc played a significant role in organizing and promoting the event that was held this year in the union yards location near the subaru park soccer stadium. While the event has an environmental focus, it also includes food trucks, local dance troupes and a d.j. The goal is to bring local residents to the waterfront.in addition to the chester river festival, radc supported volunteer tree planting activities with the chester shade tree commission. This year, the chester shade tree commission worked with a contractor to install sidewalk tree pits. Bare root trees, provided by the Pennsylvania horticultural society (phs), were planted by volunteers in partnership with willing property owners.

Financial Efficiency

• Mission deployment rate: 37.6%; rating input score 38
• Program expense ratio: 30.4%; rating input score 30
• Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

• Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
• Pay-setting controls: Limited
• 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; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
• Governance controls: 7 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 100
  • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
  • Whistleblower policy: Pass
  • Document-retention policy: Pass
  • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
  • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
  • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
  • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
  • Audit committee oversight: Pass
  • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

• Operating margin: 23.9%; rating input score 77; 77th percentile among comparable filings
• Total-asset coverage ratio: 8.19; rating input score 87; 87th percentile among comparable filings
• Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.06; rating input score 31; 31st percentile among comparable filings
• Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 69; 69th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

• Program expense growth: 8.4% per year; rating input score 100; 66th percentile among comparable filings
• Revenue growth: 10.8% per year; rating input score 100; 74th percentile among comparable filings
• Asset growth: 15.9% per year; rating input score 100; 79th percentile among comparable filings