Waverly Main Street faces scrutiny over missing funds and records

A missing $60,000 check and unanswered questions about unpaid bills have put Waverly Main Street, the neighborhood nonprofit tied to Baltimore’s Historic Waverly business corridor, under scrutiny over how it handled money and records.

Kora Polydore, who briefly took over the organization earlier this year, said she walked into disarray and spent her time asking why required paperwork was not reaching the mayor’s office or the Internal Revenue Service. The problems go beyond bookkeeping. For a Main Street group that depends on trust from merchants, donors and city officials, missing records can undercut the basic confidence needed to keep a commercial district moving.

Waverly Main Street says it was established in 2000, is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit and a founding member of Baltimore Main Streets. Its mission is to strengthen and sustain Historic Waverly by fostering economic growth, supporting local businesses and preserving neighborhood character. The organization says it hosts the Baltimore Book Festival, the annual Waverly Tree Lighting and other community events, while operating with one full-time staffer, a volunteer board and a lean annual budget.

Polydore said former executive director Diana Emerson told her there was a missing $60,000 check the organization was supposed to receive from the mayor’s office for fiscal year 2024. She also said a business owner told her Waverly Main Street still owed $13,000 for work tied to the 2025 book festival. Polydore said she herself went unpaid for two months as executive director before receiving only a partial payment.

The organization’s website currently lists a 2025-2027 board headed by Eric Lee as president and Tiffany Duncan as treasurer. Other board members listed include Miguel de la Fuente, Curtis Landen, Peter Duvall, Alexandra Neifert, Donyel Bacon, Katrina Lockett and Dominque Fontainer. The site also lists Matthew O. Smith as executive director, adding to the picture of a group in transition while basic financial questions remained unresolved.

Public filings show Waverly Main Street Inc. reported $361,645 in revenue and $322,352 in expenses in fiscal 2021, with $272,421 in total assets and $3,887 in liabilities. In fiscal 2020, it reported $120,728 in revenue and $113,117 in expenses. Those figures show a small organization where a missing $60,000 payment would amount to a major hit, not a rounding error.

For merchants along the Greenmount Avenue corridor and residents who rely on Waverly Main Street’s events and organizing, the larger cost is trust. If the nonprofit cannot account for funds or explain missing records, its ability to support the district it was built to serve will only get harder.