The Treeline Conservancy

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
432091401
IRS 990 coverage
2018–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025, Form 990-T 2025, Form 990-N 2017
Location
Ann Arbor, MI, USA
Phone
7342244166
Rating
79
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Environmental Beautification and Aesthetics

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$156,979
Expenses
$389,831
Assets
$740,476
Liabilities
$239,747

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

Leadership & pay

16 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • CYNTHIA VANRENTERGHEM (ED OF DEVELO): $79,262 total reported compensation
  • MELISSA KESTERSON (DIR OF OPERA): $39,140 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

To foster the creation and sustainable maintenance of a 2.75-mile urban trail that becomes an integral connector of people and places in ann arbor. The trail will bring access to ann arbor's river and park system through the heart of downtown along the alignment of historic allen creek; provide safe passage and recreation from the border-to-border trail at argo dam to the um stadium area; invite community gathering and engagement with natural and cultural features; benefit current and future generations by providing positive economic impact, improved aesthetics, enriched community engagement, and improved stormwater quality.

What it reported doing in 2025

To foster the creation and sustainable maintenance of a 2.50-mile urban trail that becomes an integral connector of people and places in ann arbor. The trail will bring access to ann arbor's river and park system through the heart of downtown along the alignment of historic allen creek; provide safe passage and recreation from the border-to-border trail at argo dam to the um stadium area; invite community gathering and engagement with natural and cultural features; benefit current and future generations by providing positive economic impact, improved aesthetics, enriched community engagement, and improved stormwater quality.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 99% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
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.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. A relatively small share of total spending goes to programs and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 71
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 95
  • Sustainability: 20
  • Growth: 60

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 44.7%; rating input score 45
  • Fundraising efficiency: $1.18 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 7; 7th percentile among comparable filings

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; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 7 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 88
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • 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: -148.3%; rating input score 1; 1st percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.9; rating input score 58; 58th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.32; rating input score 12; 12th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 30.4%; rating input score 11; 11th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 25.4% per year; rating input score 100; 87th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -5% per year; rating input score 0; 9th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 14.4% per year; rating input score 100; 74th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 44.7% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 14 of 14 board members independent · 7 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $174K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $79K · 16 people listed
  • Consistency: 31 of 31 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 4 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 8 filing years from 2018 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 2 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: Filed and resolved organization relationships.
  • 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.

  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Program expense ratio scored 45/100.
  • High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 7/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 1/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Other executive compensation review process not reported.
  • Review — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 58/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 12/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 11/100.