Since 1996, the Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone (UMEZ) has invested $54 million in nonprofit organizations, focusing on a remarkable, yet under-resourced collection of cultural institutions to help spur the economic revitalization of a critically-distressed community. As UMEZ considers its investment strategies for the next decade, it is imperative to understand the impact of its nonprofit investments on the cultural organizations, the region, and in the context of New York City’s cultural ecology