logo
book Subscribe to our Magazine
    • Magazine
    • Membership
    • Donate
  • Racial Justice
  • Economic Justice
  • Climate Justice
  • Health Justice
  • Leadership
    • Grassroots Fundraising Journal
  • CONTENT TYPES
  • Podcasts
    • Tiny Spark
    • Women of Color in Power
  • Webinars
    • Free Webinars
    • Premium On-Demand Webinars
  • Membership

Lack of Haste Makes Waste

Bruce S Trachtenberg
October 27, 2010
Share
Tweet
Share
Email
Print

October 26, 2010; Source: Tampabay.com | Did it really require an audit of a St. Petersburg, Fla., nonprofit for the city to freeze any more payments for revitalization work the group was doing on a key African-American historic business district? Why didn’t alarms go off when 22nd Street Redevelopment Inc. rehired former president Keith Harris after he resigned three months earlier in 2009 for what he said was a “lapse of good judgment and reckless spending?”

Whatever the reason for delaying action against the group, the city now has plenty of information about questionable financial practices. Along with the former president going back on payroll for the last four months of 2009, other audit findings include 60 expenditures that don’t seem connected to the group’s nonprofit mission, lack of receipts or invoices for other expenditures, and staffers receiving wages for which there isn’t proper documentation. The city has given the organization until the end of the year to produce missing paperwork and answer other questions before deciding whether to resume support or cut it off for good.

Sign up for our free newsletter

Subscribe to the NPQ newsletter to have our top stories delivered directly to your inbox.

By signing up, you agree to our privacy policy and terms of use, and to receive messages from NPQ and our partners.

Even though Tish Elston, the city’s top administrator, said the group deserved a chance to answer questions raised by the audit, she feels Harris’ rehiring, after such a messy departure, puts 22nd Street Redevelopment’s credibility at risk. Still the city felt the group deserved a chance so things wouldn’t “just blow up.” Council member Karl Nurse is a little less charitable in his feelings. He says the audit findings represent “a combination of incompetence and stealing” and suggest that giving it taxpayer money was “a horrible waste.”—Bruce Trachtenberg

Share
Tweet
Share
Email
Print

Become a member

Support independent journalism and knowledge creation for civil society. Become a member of Nonprofit Quarterly.

Members receive unlimited access to our archived and upcoming digital content. NPQ is the leading journal in the nonprofit sector written by social change experts. Gain access to our exclusive library of online courses led by thought leaders and educators providing contextualized information to help nonprofit practitioners make sense of changing conditions and improve infra-structure in their organizations.

Join Today
logo logo logo logo logo
See comments

NPQ_Spring_2022

You might also like
The Liberatory World We Want to Create: Loving Accountability and the Limitations of Cancel Culture
Aja Couchois Duncan and Kad Smith
Hearing Every Single Voice: Consensus, Voting, and Co-op Democracy
Anj Talley
The More You Know: Sharing Power by Sharing Information
Nicole Koch
Indigenous Creators Call for Infrastructure
Steve Dubb
Putting the “Social” Back in Social Enterprise: An Evidence-Based Approach
Reece Steinberg
What If We Owned It?
Darnell Adams

Upcoming Webinars

Group Created with Sketch.
June 9th, 2 pm ET

Remaking the Economy

Wage Justice, Now!

Register
You might also like
AOC’s “Tax the Rich” Dress Dazzles Met Gala, while...
Anastasia Reesa Tomkin
Foundation Giving Numbers for 2020 Show 15 Percent Increase
Steve Dubb
Strike MoMA Imagines Art Museums without Billionaires
Tessa Crisman
WOMEN OF COLOR IN POWER
Women of Color in Power

Listen wherever you get your podcasts.

Subscribe
Rep. Ayanna Pressley and Authentic Leadership
Reclaiming Interrupted Lineages

Like what you see?

Subscribe to the NPQ newsletter to have our top stories delivered directly to your inbox.

By signing up, you agree to our privacy policy and terms of use, and to receive messages from NPQ and our partners.

Independent & in your mailbox.

Subscribe today and get a full year of NPQ for just $59.

subscribe
  • About
  • Contact
  • Submissions
  • Advertisers
  • Newsletters
  • Copyright

Subscribe to View Webinars

We are using cookies to give you the best experience on our website.

 

Non Profit News | Nonprofit Quarterly
Powered by  GDPR Cookie Compliance
Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.

Strictly Necessary Cookies

Strictly Necessary Cookie should be enabled at all times so that we can save your preferences for cookie settings.

If you disable this cookie, we will not be able to save your preferences. This means that every time you visit this website you will need to enable or disable cookies again.