Mill City Grows, INC. Fosters food justice by improving physical health, economic independence and environmental sustainability in lowell through increased access to land, locally-grown food and education.

501(c)(3) charity; gifts are tax-deductible.
78¢ of each $1 spent went to programs.
$89K paid to officers and key staff.
Mission: Form 990 Part I, line 1 · Status: IRS Pub. 78 · Programs: Part IX · Pay: Part VII

Before you give

FY2023 · Form 990Independent: from IRS data, not the org
Download 990
IRS status
501(c)(3)
not on the IRS revocation list
Looks good: listed by the IRS and not on the revocation list.
IRS BMF · Auto-Revocation List
Tax-deductible gifts
Yes
Donations are tax-deductible
Looks good: the IRS lists gifts to it as deductible.
IRS Pub. 78 · IRS BMF
Latest return
FY2024
latest Form 990
Looks good: the latest return is for FY2024, 2 tax years back; within 2 tax years.
IRS e-file · Filing history
Surplus or deficit
4 of 5
filings with a surplus
Average surplus $116K a year · 7% of revenue · last 5 filings
Fine: a surplus in 4 of the last 5 filings.
Pt I · Ln 19 · 5 filings
Spent on programs
78%
of spending
Looks good: 78% of spending went to programs; 75% or more.
Pt IX · Ln 25 · col B
Pay to officers and key staff
$89K
to officers and key staff · 5% of spending
Looks good: pay to officers and key staff is 5% of spending; 15% or less.
Pt VII · Sec A
6 mo
of spending, in cash
Looks good: 5.5 months of spending in cash; 3 or more.
Pt X · Ln 1–2 · Pt I · Ln 18
Named funders
4
named funders · $66K
Looks good: 4 funders name it on their filings; 3 or more.
Funders’ Sch. I, 990-PF
Liabilities
$132K
8% of total assets
Looks good: liabilities are 8% of assets; 50% or less.
Pt X · Ln 26
Independent board members
12
of 12 voting members
Looks good: 12 of 12 voting members are independent, a majority.
Pt VI · Ln 1a–1b
Looks goodFineWorth a lookConcernNo data yetTap a box for the reason.
Revenue
$1.8M
+17% vs prior year
Spent
$1.6M
To programs
78%
Net assets
$1.5M
By yearFY2020–FY2024
Revenue
$1.8M
FY2023▲ +17%
Tap a bar for its year
Revenue by fiscal year
FY2020$1.2M
FY2021$1.5M
FY2022$1.5M
FY2023$1.8M
FY2024$2.1M
Expenses
$1.6M
FY2023▲ +0.6%
Tap a bar for its year
Expenses by fiscal year
FY2020$1.2M
FY2021$1.4M
FY2022$1.6M
FY2023$1.6M
FY2024$1.7M
Net assets
$1.5M
FY2023▲ +11%
Tap a bar for its year
Net assets by fiscal year
FY2020$1.3M
FY2021$1.4M
FY2022$1.3M
FY2023$1.5M
FY2024$1.8M

From the FY2023 Form 990 · figures checked against the IRS filing · see the original

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You’re viewing the FY2023 filing — not the latest on file. See the latest (FY2024) →

Is it real?

Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2024. IRS ruling in Jun 2015.

IRS Pub. 78 · IRS Auto-Revocation List · IRS Business Master File

Where the money goes

78 cents of each dollar spent went to programs.

Program services 78% · $1.3M Management & general 13% · $213K Fundraising 9% · $150K

Form 990 Part IX, line 25, columns B–D. Every line is in By the numbers.

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Who runs it and what they're paid

16 people listed on the 990; $89K paid to officers and key staff.

Part VII, Section A · reportable compensation
Executive Di
$88,553Pt VII · Sec A
Vice Preside
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Treasurer
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Board Member
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Board Member
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Board Member
$0Pt VII · Sec A

Courtney McSparron’s $81K as Coexecutive is at the 31st percentile of top reported officer pay among 818 $1–10M food & agriculture nonprofits. Peer set: organizations in the same NTEE major field of work and revenue-size band, compared on each org’s own highest-paid officer/key-employee, from Form 990 Part VII / 990-PF Part VIII. Descriptive placement, not a verdict on whether the pay is appropriate.

Compensation history total reportable pay by year · 4 named individuals · Part VII

NameFY2024FY2023FY2022FY2021FY2020
Jessica Wilson—$88,553$85,303$82,512$84,807
Courtney McSparron$80,923————
Dai Kim$78,904————
Ali Jacobs$63,208————

Total reportable compensation (Form 990 Part VII column D / Schedule J column E) by filing year, matched by name within this organization. The Schedule J base / bonus / deferred breakdown is not parsed into this dataset.

See Mill City Grows INC executive salaries →

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Questions the 990 asks

The form asks each of these directly. These are the filed answers.

  • Family or business ties among officersPt VI · Ln 2No
  • Top official's pay set by an independent reviewPt VI · Ln 15aYes

Programs and updates

Improves health and sustainability by increasing access to land, local food, and education.

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Provided by the organization

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3 programs · $1.3M · in their own filed words · FY2023
01

Urban Farm

Our educational production farms engage residents in experiential education programs, hands-on food production and volunteerism. MCG staff operate the farms. In 2022, we also began offering plots to market gardeners who are interested in growing cultural crops for the community or establishing small food businesses.

$537Kprogram expense
02

Food Education

Our education programs include: in-school, after school and out of school gardening and nutrition education programs for children, grades k-12; maintenance of school gardens at lowell public schools; provision of professional development in gardening education to educators; farm to table cooking classes for youth and families offered in…

$406Kprogram expense
03

Community Programs

Mill city grows' community programs include our community gardens and community education. Our team oversees the gardens, providing technical assistance, general oversight of the garden and support for volunteer garden ambassadors, who build strong community networks in the gardens.

$342Kprogram expense

Funders

Who pays for it.

From grant filings on record. Receipts are incomplete: individual donors are never listed.

Grants

Schedule I · received and paid
Grants received · FY2025
See all 4 funders →
Grants paid · 2 grants · $18K · 2024–2024

By the numbers

The FY2023 990, line by line.

1The main four
Money inPt VIII
$1.8M
Ln 12
Gifts and grantsLn 1h$1.5M
Fees for servicesLn 2g$148K
Other incomeLn 4–11$111K
Money outPt IX
$1.6M
Ln 25
Programscol B$1.3M
Managementcol C$213K
Fundraisingcol D$150K
Owns and owesPt X
$1.5M
net assets · Ln 32
Cash and savingsLn 1–2$756K
Total assetsLn 16$1.6M
LiabilitiesLn 26$132K
PeoplePt VI, VII
16
listed · VII A
PaidVII A1
Voting boardVI 1a12
IndependentVI 1b12
2In more detail
Revenue in detailPt VIII
Gifts and grantsLn 1h$1.5M
Government grantsLn 1e$493K
Noncash giftsLn 1g$8K
Fundraising eventsLn 1c$115K
Fees for servicesLn 2g$148K
Investment incomeLn 3$1K
Other incomeLn 4–11$111K
Total revenueLn 12$1.8M
Assets in detailPt X, end of year
CashLn 1$569K
SavingsLn 2$187K
Cash and savings togetherLn 1–2$756K
Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c$515K
Other assetsLn 15$73K
Total assetsLn 16$1.6M
LiabilitiesLn 26$132K
Net assetsLn 32$1.5M
OperationsPt I, VI
EmployeesI 522
VolunteersI 6353
Fiscal year endsHeaderDecember
Conflict-of-interest policyVI 12aYes
Whistleblower policyVI 13Yes
Records policyVI 14Yes
3Year over year
Balance sheet, start vs end of yearPt X · col A, B
LineStart FY23End FY23
Cash and savingsLn 1–2$621K$756K
Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c$536K$515K
Total assetsLn 16$1.5M$1.6M
LiabilitiesLn 26$155K$132K
Net assetsLn 32$1.3M$1.5M
4Every line
Statement of functional expensesPt IX · every line
LineTotalProgramsManagementFundraising
Pay of current officers, directors and key staffLn 5$98K$49K$49K
Other salaries and wagesLn 7$956K$844K$50K$63K
Other employee benefitsLn 9$93K$78K$10K$5K
Payroll taxesLn 10$100K$81K$9K$10K
Accounting feesLn 11c$48K$48K
Other fees for servicesLn 11g$41K$31K$3K$7K
Advertising and promotionLn 12$5K$1K$95$4K
Office expensesLn 13$24K$6K$17K$802
OccupancyLn 16$63K$44K$12K$6K
TravelLn 17$3K$3K$349$38
Depreciation, depletion and amortizationLn 22$67K$59K$5K$3K
InsuranceLn 23$29K$27K$858$1K
Other expenses (24a–d)Ln 24$120K$110K$10K$173
Total functional expensesLn 25$1.6M$1.3M$213K$150K

Filing history

YearMoney inMoney outIn minus outNet assetsDownload
FY2024 Latest $2.1M$1.7M$367K$1.8M 990 PDF
FY2023 Viewing $1.8M$1.6M$146K$1.5M 990 PDF
FY2022 $1.5M$1.6M−$108K$1.3M 990 PDF
FY2021 $1.5M$1.4M$125K$1.4M 990 PDF
FY2020 $1.2M$1.2M$49K$1.3M 990 PDF

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Schedules filed Part IV

III · Programs R · Related orgs G · Fundraising L · Interested persons I · Grants A · Public support O · Explanations
See the full FY2023 990 (6 parts)
Part I · Summary $1,793,345 revenue, 12 lines filed
I-8 Contributions and grantsPrior year $1,282,835$1,532,908
I-9 Program service revenuePrior year $176,252$148,322
I-10 Investment incomePrior year $485$1,086
I-11 Other revenuePrior year $69,771$111,029
I-12 Total revenuePrior year $1,529,343$1,793,345
I-13 Grants and similar amounts paid$0
I-14 Benefits paid to members$0
I-15 Salaries and benefitsPrior year $1,233,064$1,247,694
I-16a Professional fundraising fees$0
I-17 Other expensesPrior year $404,387$399,949
I-18 Total expensesPrior year $1,637,451$1,647,643
I-19 Revenue less expensesPrior year −$108,108$145,702
Part VI · Governance 12 of 12 board members independent, no flags
VI-1a Voting members of the governing body12
VI-1b Independent voting members12
VI-2 Family or business relationship among officers or directorsNo
VI-12a Written conflict of interest policyYes
VI-13 Written whistleblower policyYes
VI-14 Document retention and destruction policyYes
VI-15a Process for setting top official's payYes
Part VIII · Statement of revenue $1,793,345 across 10 lines filed
Lines not itemized here account for $108,014 of total revenue; see the IRS return.
VIII-1c Fundraising events$115,358
VIII-1e Government grants$493,326
VIII-1f All other contributions, gifts and grants$924,224
VIII-1g Noncash contributions (included above)$7,972
VIII-1h Total contributions, gifts and grants$1,532,908
VIII-2a-f Program service revenue, itemized rows (sum of 2a–2f as filed)Related to mission $148,322$148,322
VIII-3 Investment incomeExcluded from tax $1,086$1,086
VIII-8 Net income from fundraising eventsExcluded from tax $2,319$2,319
VIII-11a-d Other revenue, itemized rows (sum of 11a–11d as filed)Related to mission $696$696
VIII-12 Total revenueRelated to mission $257,032 · Excluded from tax $3,405$1,793,345
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $1,647,643 across 13 lines filed
IX-5 Pay of current officers, directors and key staffManagement $49,221 · Fundraising $49,220$98,441
IX-7 Other salaries and wagesPrograms $843,696 · Management $49,639 · Fundraising $63,106$956,441
IX-9 Other employee benefitsPrograms $77,854 · Management $9,943 · Fundraising $5,185$92,982
IX-10 Payroll taxesPrograms $81,033 · Management $8,822 · Fundraising $9,975$99,830
IX-11c Accounting feesManagement $47,564$47,564
IX-11g Other fees for servicesPrograms $31,182 · Management $2,773 · Fundraising $6,593$40,548
IX-12 Advertising and promotionPrograms $1,135 · Management $95 · Fundraising $4,265$5,495
IX-13 Office expensesPrograms $6,214 · Management $16,670 · Fundraising $802$23,686
IX-16 OccupancyPrograms $44,408 · Management $12,383 · Fundraising $6,368$63,159
IX-17 TravelPrograms $2,604 · Management $349 · Fundraising $38$2,991
IX-22 Depreciation, depletion and amortizationPrograms $59,077 · Management $4,565 · Fundraising $3,002$66,644
IX-23 InsurancePrograms $27,410 · Management $858 · Fundraising $1,188$29,456
IX-24 Other expenses (24a–d)Programs $110,172 · Management $10,061 · Fundraising $173$120,406
IX-25 Total functional expensesPrograms $1,284,785 · Management $212,943 · Fundraising $149,915$1,647,643
Part X · Balance sheet $1,593,940 assets, 15 lines filed
X-1 Cash, non-interest-bearingStart of year $464,771$568,908
X-2 Savings and temporary cash investmentsStart of year $156,522$187,072
X-3 Pledges and grants receivableStart of year $121,856$139,178
X-4 Accounts receivableStart of year $78,130$108,594
X-9 Prepaid expenses and deferred chargesStart of year $14,614$2,979
X-10c Land, buildings and equipment, netStart of year $536,204$514,560
X-15 Other assetsStart of year $99,205$72,649
X-16 Total assetsStart of year $1,471,302$1,593,940
X-17 Accounts payable and accrued expensesStart of year $48,016$54,981
X-25 Other liabilitiesStart of year $107,185$77,156
X-26 Total liabilitiesStart of year $155,201$132,137
X-27 Net assets without donor restrictionsStart of year $1,028,936$1,229,067
X-28 Net assets with donor restrictionsStart of year $287,165$232,736
X-32 Total net assets or fund balancesStart of year $1,316,101$1,461,803
X-33 Total liabilities and net assetsStart of year $1,471,302$1,593,940
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets $1,461,803 net assets at year end
XI-1 Total revenue$1,793,345
XI-2 Total expenses$1,647,643
XI-3 Revenue less expenses$145,702
XI-4 Net assets at start of year$1,316,101
XI-10 Net assets at end of year$1,461,803

Form 990 e-file (XML) FY2023 from the IRS · Classification, formation year and address from the IRS Business Master File

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