In Avondale, a small community garden is caught in a big money mess. Gardener Andre Amos says nearly $13,500 in city grant funds that were supposed to power up his garden never made it to the dirt. Nine months after the award, he says he has seen less than 20% of the money and has already spent about $1,000 of his own cash on tools, supplies, and a chicken coop. Frustrated, Amos is pressing the Avondale Development Corporation for answers and has asked the city to take the grant back so a different fiscal sponsor can step in.
Gardener Seeks Answers
Amos told WCPO that he applied for a City of Cincinnati grant and partnered with the Avondale Development Corporation as his fiscal sponsor. The city routed roughly $13,500 in award money to ADC on behalf of the project, but Amos says only a small slice has reached the garden. "It's supposed to be for the community, and the money is somehow MIA," he told the station, adding that his requests for equipment purchases and meetings with ADC have gone unanswered.
City Records Show Award
The City of Cincinnati's June 2025 award list shows Avondale Development Corporation with Andre Amos receiving $13,415 for the Avondale Community Garden, confirming the grant on paper as listed by the City of Cincinnati. The document indicates that the money was issued to ADC to manage the project on Amos's behalf.
How Fiscal Sponsorship Works
Fiscal sponsorship allows small or informal projects to accept grants and tax-deductible donations by teaming up with an established nonprofit that receives and manages the funds. Sponsors "assume administrative, programmatic, financial, and legal responsibility" for the projects they host, according to the Tides Foundation. Best-practice guides recommend a written sponsorship agreement that spells out fees, reporting requirements, and timelines for disbursing funds so projects know when money will arrive, as explained by Mission Edge. When those terms are unclear, or communication falls apart, community efforts can stall even when a grant looks solid on paper.
What's Next For The Garden
The Avondale Development Corporation is an established 501(c)(3) with recent Form 990 filings, according to nonprofit registry data from CauseIQ. As WCPO reported, the station reached out to ADC multiple times for comment but did not receive a response. Amos says he wants either a clear timeline for spending and reimbursements or for the city to reclaim the grant so a different sponsor can complete the work for neighbors who rely on the garden.
For now, Amos is still out there tending the beds and caring for the garden’s 10 chickens while he waits for clarity on the award and reimbursement. The project is listed in city grant materials as an effort to address food insecurity in Avondale, and neighbors say that getting the funding flowing could mean more fresh produce for local residents. Amos says he intends to keep pushing for answers as the growing season moves on.
