Minneapolis nonprofit to close after audit found ‘high risk’ it misused federal funds

Move Minneapolis, a commuter resources nonprofit, will close at the end of this year after an audit found a “high risk” it had misused federal money, prompting a freeze on its grant payments.

The Metropolitan Council’s auditors found Move Minneapolis’ funding was deeply intermingled with its embattled parent organization, the Minneapolis Regional Chamber. They said they couldn’t tell whether federal funding awarded to promote transportation was part of the more than $200,000 former Chamber CEO Jonathan Weinhagen admitted taking. Weinhagen pleaded guilty to mail fraud last week.

Move Minneapolis announced its coming closure Dec. 10, less than a month after the audit came out.

“Over the past year, Move Minneapolis and the Minneapolis Regional Chamber have explored how to adapt and evolve amidst ongoing challenges. Unfortunately, we have determined that the best path forward is to sunset Move Minneapolis,” the organization said in an emailed announcement signed by its Executive Director Tiffany Orth and Mike Logan, the chamber’s president and CEO, thanking its partners, supporters and staff. The organization’s website lists three staff members.

“We’re proud of the accomplishments and impact of Move Minneapolis and believe in the value of promoting the region’s sustainable transportation options,” the email reads.

In a presentation to a Met Council committee in November, auditor Sydney Kloster said the “financial relationship between the many entities within the chamber led to intermingling of funds, and inadequate documentation of expenditures led us to be unable to verify all the expenses.” The Met Council withheld nearly $500,000 pending investigation and threatened to end its more than three-decade relationship with Move Minneapolis.

In a response to the audit, Move Minneapolis leaders said their internal investigation found no diversion of their own funds and outlined plans to strengthen financial controls. The Met Council audit called the chamber’s internal investigation “limited.”

It was not immediately clear how the nonprofit’s closure affects the Met Council’s investigation and any subsequent action. Met Council spokesperson Terri Dresen said the council did not have additional comments Wednesday.

Move Minneapolis was founded in 1992 and has been a subsidiary of the chamber since 2019. A previous CEO was fired in 2016 after a city audit found problems with billing. City scrutiny also led to the Met Council withholding funds in 2015, according to documents.

Move Minneapolis received federal funds through the Travel Demand Management program administered by the Met Council. The audit also found that the Met Council’s process for awarding grants in this program lacks competition and that it lacks oversight in administering them, suggesting remedies.

Auditors told the Met Council committee they were not sure they would look into Anoka County Commute Solutions, I-494 Corridor Commission and Move Minnesota, three other nonprofits receiving these funds.

Adam Duininck, the president and chief executive of the Minneapolis Downtown Council, said he hopes to see someone fill the role Move Minneapolis played in connecting employers and commuters to resources.