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Avenue Greenlight at a glanceMostly funded, not a grantmaker: see who funds it →

· Public charity

Avenue Greenlight

Revitalization of micro-grant programs to support San Francisos local communities and local merchant association members

$1.1M
Granted FY2022
25
Grants FY2022
1
States reached
$95k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
05Through PlinthRead
01What it funds
01100% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2021 to 2024.

Community Improvement$3.1MEnvironment$55kHuman Services$25k
02FY2022 · 25 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

How this is measured
The 25 grants below total $991,017, the rows itemized in this filing. The $1,105,458 headline is the total grant expense on the return; the other $114,441 is giving the schedule does not break out (grants under the $5,000 itemization floor, grants to individuals, grants on other schedules). Every figure below describes the itemized rows only.

By grant size · FY2022

  • Under $10k2 grants · $14k
  • $10k–50k12 grants · $352k
  • $50k–250k11 grants · $625k
$48,168
Median grant
1
States reached
$1.1M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
Bayview Merchants Association$95,000
Fillmore Merchants & Improvement Assoc$55,000
Clement Street Merchants Assoc$55,000
West Portal Merchants Assoc$55,000
Union Street Association$55,000
Dogpatch Green Benefit District$55,000
Glen Park Merchants Assoc$55,000
Mission Merchants Assoc$50,000
Balboa Village Merchants Assoc$50,000
Outer Sunset Merchant and Professional Assoc$50,000
Tenderloin Community Benefit District$50,000
Excelsior and Outer Mission Merchants Assoc$48,650
Divisadero Merchants Assoc$48,168
Valencia Corridor Merchants Assoc$39,499
Fisherman's Wharf Merchants Assoc$37,713
02The need
03

Does the money reach high-need areas?

Each grant placed by the hardship in its grantee’s ZIP, against the area’s typical level.

show:

Dollar for dollar, its grants (FY21–24) land where the poverty rate runs at 10%, against an area that typically sits at 8%. 99% of its dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 8%Good Stuff Partners LLC: $17k → 8%Balboa Village Merchants Assoc: $50k → 10%Good Stuff Partners LLC: $10k → 8%See attached list: $1.4M → 10%See attached list: $507k → 10%West Portal Merchants Assoc: $55k → 10%San Francisco Council of District Merch Assoc: $10k → 10%Haight Ashbury Merchants Assoc: $50k → 10%Divisadero Merchants Assoc: $48k → 10%Lower Haight Merchants and Neighbors Assoc: $16k → 10%Lower Haight Merchants and Neighbors Assoc: $11k → 10%Bayview Merchants Association: $95k → 10%Clement Street Merchants Assoc: $55k → 10%Northeast Mission Business Assoc: $25k → 10%South of Market Business Assoc: $9k → 10%Excelsior and Outer Mission Merchants Assoc: $49k → 10%Hayes Valley Merchants Assoc: $50k → 10%Hayes Valley Merchants Assoc: $5k → 10%Dogpatch Green Benefit District: $55k → 10%Portrero Dogpatch Merchants Assoc: $50k → 10%Portrero Dogpatch Merchants Assoc: $28k → 10%Portrero Hill Neighborhood House: $25k → 10%Castro Merchants Association: $50k → 10%Glen Park Merchants Assoc: $55k → 10%Fillmore Merchants & Improvement Assoc: $55k → 10%Nihonmachi Merchants Assoc: $50k → 10%Fisherman's Wharf Merchants Assoc: $38k → 10%Chinatown Merchants Association: $37k → 10%Chinatown Merchants Association: $18k → 10%Outer Sunset Merchant and Professional Assoc: $50k → 10%Inner Sunset Merchants Assoc: $29k → 10%Valencia Corridor Merchants Assoc: $39k → 10%Inner Sunset Merchants Assoc: $26k → 10%Valencia Corridor Merchants Assoc: $16k → 10%Tenderloin Community Benefit District: $50k → 10%0%20%40%50%more need →
grant to an above-average-need area below average· circle size = grant amount
How this is measured
Matched: human-services grants are those whose grantee’s IRS cause code is Human Services. Placed by people below the poverty line in the grantee’s ZIP, averaged from the tracts in that ZIP.
How this is measured
US grants placed by each grantee’s ZIP, which can differ from where services are delivered. Need from public data (U.S. Census/ACS, CDC PLACES, Eviction Lab, USDA), shown as context about the area, never attributed to the funder’s giving.
03Its grantees
repeat funding

Who it funds again

Organizations funded in more than one year, against those funded once.

26%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$351k · 7 repeat orgs$979k to everyone else

7 repeat relationships: 7 still active in FY2022, 0 since wound down; 15 grantees were first funded in FY2022 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

7
3

Total granted

$351k
$150k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+107%
+164%

Still filing today

29%
100%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2022, 16% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $829k went to new ones.

50%100%’21’22
RenewedFirst-time

Where new relationships form · theme of each grantee’s first grant

’21’22
Community ImprovementEnvironmentOther
How this is measured
First-time means a grantee’s first year in the filing window; renewed means funded in an earlier year too. The renewed share climbs naturally as a portfolio matures, so the signal is a year that bucks it (a wave of new grantees). The earliest year is left-censored: relationships that predate the data read as new. Theme is the grantee’s IRS cause.

Backed again, and grew

  • PD
    POTRERO DOGPATCH MERCHANTS ASSOCIATION
    2× · 2021–2022 · $78k
  • HV
    HAYES VALLEY MERCHANTS ASSOCIATION
    2× · 2021–2022 · $55k
  • CM
    CHINATOWN MERCHANTS ASSOCIATION
    2× · 2021–2022 · $55k · revenue +107%

Funded once

  • MO
    Merchants of Upper Market Incgraduated
    one grant, 2021 · $50k · revenue +164% · 42% of their budget
  • HA
    HAIGHT ASHBURY MERCHANTS ASSOCIATION INC
    one grant, 2021 · $50k
  • NM
    NIHONMACHI MERCHANTS ASSOCIATION
    one grant, 2021 · $50k · revenue -27% · 55% of their budget
How this is measured

Repeat means funded in two or more distinct years. Growth and survival are read from each grantee’s own subsequent IRS filings.

04Its field

Closest unfunded matches

The nonprofits that most resemble its grantees but are not funded by it, scored along the direction from the rest of the field toward the portfolio. A resemblance in what they say they do, not a recommendation.

1
Noe Valley Merchants and Professionals Association Inc

Noe valley mercahnt visibility in the san francisco community

Community Improvement
2
Oakland Vietnamese Chamber of Commerce

Provide resources and assistance to vietnamese small businesses and community in oakland area

Community Improvement
3
San Francisco Community Business Resources

Educational financial resources to LMI communities

Community Improvement
4
Montclair Village Association

The Montclair Village Association (MVA) is a Business Improvement District made up of approximately 230 retail and service businesses located in Montclair Village. The MVAs mission is to support its merchant members, and to help the…

Community Improvement
5
Olvera Street Merchants Association Foundation

Recognize and promote the endeavors of those who contributed to the

Arts & Culture
6
Cole Valley Merchant Association

Promoting Cole Valley businesses

Community Improvement
7
Chinatown Merchants United Association of San Fran
Human Services
8
Downtown Berkeley Association

The Downtown Berkely Assocaition works to strengthen the Downtown as a vibrant and welcoming urban destination for arts, culture, and commerce through effective advocacy, prmotion and direct services.

—
9
Oceanview Merced Ingleside Cultural Participation Project

OMI-CPP serves San Franciscos 94112 and 94132 neighborhoods by promoting equity, inclusion, and empowerment through multicultural events, homeless outreach, civic engagement, small business marketing & graphic design, and social justice…

Community Improvement
10
Mission Art 415 Inc

Mission Art 415 Inc aims to represent and promote artists and art projects, enhancing community engagement and cultural vibrancy through the celebration of art.

—
11
San Francisco Neighborhood Theater Foundation

To save historic movie theaters in san francisco.

Arts & Culture
12
Monterey Bay Chinese Association

Provide Chinese Culture and Help to Advance social, economic well-being of Chinese American at Monterey Bay, California.

Arts & Culture
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Balboa Village Merchants Association; the most unlike its peers is Dogpatch & Northwest Potrero Hill Green Benefit District. Resemblance is measured on each organization’s own IRS 990 mission text; it reflects how work is described, not its quality or impact.
04the grantee network

16 grantees tracked through their own filings, 2017–2025.

Each grant beside the grantee’s revenue from every source, year by year.

How this is measured

Counted here: distinct organizations funded across 2017 to 2025, not grant rows in a single year, so this will not match the grant count on the cover. 16 of the 25 grantees resolved in that span have returns of their own we could reconcile.

Each grantee is resolved to its own IRS returns. Association, dated; never a causal claim.

7
Load-bearing (≥25% of a budget)
5
Early backer (in before they grew)
14/16
Grantees still filing
8/16
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

Clement Street Merchants Assoc: $178,168 · OtherClement Street Merchants AssocPOTRERO DOGPATCH MERCHANTS ASSOCIATION: $77,500 · OtherPOTRERO DOGPATCH MERCHANTS ASSOCIATIONHAYES VALLEY MERCHANTS ASSOCIATION: $55,082 · OtherHAYES VALLEY MERCHANTS ASSOCIATIONFILLMORE MERCHANTS & IMPROVEMENT ASSOCIATION INC: $55,000 · OtherFILLMORE MERCHANTS & IMPROVEMENT ASSOCIATION INCCHINATOWN MERCHANTS ASSOCIATION: $55,000 · OtherCHINATOWN MERCHANTS ASSOCIATIONINNER SUNSET MERCHANTS ASSOCIATION: $55,000 · OtherINNER SUNSET MERCHANTS ASSOCIATIONWEST PORTAL MERCHANTS ASSOCIATION INC: $55,000 · OtherWEST PORTAL MERCHANTS ASSOCIATION INCUNION STREET ASSOCIATION INC: $55,000 · OtherUNION STREET ASSOCIATION INCMerchants of Upper Market Inc: $50,469 · OtherMerchants of Upper Market IncNIHONMACHI MERCHANTS ASSOCIATION: $50,000 · OtherNIHONMACHI MERCHANTS ASSOCIATIONMission Merchants Association Incorporated: $50,000 · OtherMission Merchants Association IncorporatedEOMM INC: $48,650 · OtherEOMM INCFISHERMANS WHARF MERCHANTS ASSOCIATION: $37,713 · Other+4 more: $87,569 · Other+4 moreBAYVIEW MERCHANTS ASSOCIATION: $95,000 · Community ImprovementBAYVIEW MERCHANTS ASSOCIATIONGLEN PARK MERCHANTS ASSOCIATION: $55,000 · Community ImprovementGLEN PARK MERCHANTS ASSOCIATIONValencia Corridor Merchants Association: $54,999 · Community ImprovementValencia Corridor Merchants Ass…HAIGHT ASHBURY MERCHANTS ASSOCIATION INC: $50,000 · Community ImprovementHAIGHT ASHBURY MERCHANTS ASSOCI…North of MarketTenderloin Community Benefit Corporation: $50,000 · Community ImprovementNorth of MarketTenderloin Commu…Balboa Village Merchants Association: $50,000 · Community ImprovementBalboa Village Merchants Associ…+1 more: $10,000 · Community ImprovementDogpatch & Northwest Potrero Hill Green Benefit District: $55,000 · Environment
Other$910,151Community Improvement$364,999Environment$55,000

Each grantee by its size and the funder’s share of it; top left is load-bearing

25%50%75%100%$100k$1.0Mgrantee revenue →↑ funder's share of their budgetGLEN PARK MERCHANTS ASSOCIATION: $55,000 over 1y, 95% of budgetCHINATOWN MERCHANTS ASSOCIATION: $55,000 over 2y, 22% of budgetUNION STREET ASSOCIATION INC: $55,000 over 1y, 81% of budgetDogpatch & Northwest Potrero Hill Green Benefit District: $55,000 over 1y, 6.6% of budgetMerchants of Upper Market Inc: $50,469 over 1y, 42% of budgetNIHONMACHI MERCHANTS ASSOCIATION: $50,000 over 1y, 55% of budgetNorth of MarketTenderloin Community Benefit Corporation: $50,000 over 1y, 0.6% of budgetMission Merchants Association Incorporated: $50,000 over 1y, 97% of budgetBalboa Village Merchants Association: $50,000 over 1y, 96% of budgetFISHERMANS WHARF MERCHANTS ASSOCIATION: $37,713 over 1y, 75% of budgetPOTRERO HILL NEIGHBORHOOD HOUSE INC: $25,000 over 1y, 1.9% of budgetSAN FRANCISCO COUNCIL OF DISTRICT MERCHANTS ASSOCIATIONS INC: $10,000 over 1y, 22% of budget
Grantee by grantee: a decade per organization, before and after funding

A decade per grantee: revenue shaded, grants as bars, all rows on one timeline.

How much its grantees rely on government

Each dot is one organization Avenue Greenlight funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Avenue Greenlight. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 00%6%25%56%100%funder's share of their income ↑0%1%3%4%5%share of the org’s income from government →
    no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
    0get no government money at all
    3report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
    0rely on government for over half their income
    ⤢ axis zoomed · 0–5%
    typical government reliance, FY20–25
    How this is measured
    Government income is each org’s traced federal awards (USASpending grants and contracts) plus state payments (open checkbooks) as a share of its total revenue (IRS Form 990); the self-reported government-grant line (990 line 1e) is carried for cross-check: a grantee that reports government grants we could not trace to a source is left off the chart rather than shown as receiving none. An association, not a claim that a grant caused the public funding. Coverage is precision-first, a floor rather than a census; state records exist for 9 states, so a grantee outside them shows no state figure (dimmed) rather than a false zero. Federal award amounts are obligations, which can span years, so a single-year share is indicative. 990 filings lag 12 to 24 months.
    05Through Plinth

    Warm introductions · Powered by PlinthPlus

    How do I get to Avenue Greenlight?

    Find your warmest path to Avenue Greenlight through trustees and officers whose names appear on both boards. Search for your organization and Plinth traces the shortest route it can evidence.

    Each link is a name appearing on two organizations’ public IRS 990 filings, matched on that name and, where the filings support it, on location. A same-state match has geographic support, which is a second matching feature rather than confirmation that the two are one person; a cross-state one is the likeliest to be two people who share a name. Every hop shows its tier, low-confidence and distant paths are held back rather than guessed, and it is worth confirming the person before you use the introduction.

    On method. Every financial figure here is read from IRS e-file XML, the funder’s own 990/990-PF, and from the multi-year returns of the 25 grantees we resolved, each linked to its source. Grantee outcomes are each organization’s own program-service reporting (Form 990, Part III), read as association with funding, never as caused by it. Low-confidence name matches are suppressed rather than guessed. How we build these →

    How this is measured
    Each figure carries one of six labels. Filed is what the funder reported on its return. Official is another government record about an organization, such as a federal award or a charity register, joined by name where no shared identifier exists. Resolved is an identity we worked out where the filing named a recipient without an EIN, kept only above a measured confidence threshold. Computed is arithmetic over those, like themes, portfolio clusters and co-funder strength. Context is a statistic about a place rather than about an organization, which is what the need overlay is: it describes the area a grantee’s address sits in, not where its work lands. Inferred is drawn by a model from text, like the partnerships read out of public news and organization websites. Each is labeled where it appears.

    Generated from the IRS Form 990 e-file return for fiscal year 2022, released 2022. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

    Possibly out of date. A more recent filing (FY2024) is on record and reports $555k of grant expense, but none of it to a named recipient. On a Form 990 that can mean grants abroad, filed by region only (Schedule F), grants under $5,000, which are not itemized, or a schedule referenced as an attachment the e-file does not carry. The figures above are therefore from FY2022, the most recent year this funder named its grantees.

    Source object · view filing

    Play a game based on Avenue Greenlight’s filings →

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