Greensboro Sports Foundation (GSF) Offers likely Illegal Taxpayer-Funded Dinner to City Council and Staff to Promote More Public Funding for Facilities Benefiting GSF
Greensboro Sports Foundation offers Publicly Paid for Gifts to Public Officials in Return for Taxpayer Funded Initiatives
GREENSBORO, N.C.; An email invitation sent by Greensboro Sports Foundation President Richard Beard on December 22, 2025, has cast a glaring spotlight on the organization’s spending habits and the ethical lines that bind public officials. The invitation, to a dinner for consultants and city stakeholders, raises critical questions about whether taxpayer-derived funds are being used for prohibited lobbying, and whether city officials risk breaking the law by attending.
The issue centers on a North Carolina statute, N.C. General Statute 133-32, which is designed to prevent favoritism in public contracting at the local level .
The Invitation at the Heart of the Issue
The taxpayer funded dinner, scheduled for January 13, 2026, is meant to kick off a facilities study paid for with public funds by the consulting firm Hunden Partners. In his email, Beard invites the recipients to “meet with our consultants… and share your thoughts” on a process aimed at “prioritizing potential new facility development” for the city.
If city council members or staff involved in contracting and budgeting decisions attend this GSF-hosted dinner, they would likely be accepting an unlawful gift.
Unlike state-level ethics laws, N.C.G.S. 133-32 specifically governs gifts to local government officials.
The law prohibits public officials involved in contracting from accepting anything of value from a “contractor”. The definition of “contractor” is broad and includes any entity that;
Currently has a contract with the governmental unit.
Has had a contract within the past year.
Anticipates bidding on a contract in the future.
The statute’s purpose is clear; to eliminate any undue influence in the procurement process. Violation by either the giver or the receiver is a misdemeanor. The law permits only “advertising items or souvenirs of nominal value”. A multi-course dinner at a private event for public officials would almost certainly not qualify as a nominal gift.
While framed as a routine stakeholder meeting, the context transforms it. The GSF is a major recipient of City of Greensboro funds, receiving $445,000 in government grants between 07/01/23 and 06/30/24 alone;
Richard Beard also recently lost as a candidate for Greensboro City Council, having finished fourth in the 2025 at-large race, during which he lied about when the taxpayer funded Greensboro Sports Foundation’s FY 23-24 990 Tax Return was filed, which shows $776,714 in total revenue with 27 directors, of which only one, Marikay Abuzuaiter, is female. Beard and Demp Bradford were personally paid 59% of what Greensboro and Guilford County’s taxpayers subsidized the GSF with in 23-24.
Could it be that in light of what’s happening to Zack Matheny and DGI, Richard didn’t want voters to know the taxpayer funded foundation he runs spent $13,954 on “Sponsorship/Tickets” in 23-24 after spending $3,250 in 22-23, $1,133 in 21-22 and nothing noted for 20-21 when he wasn’t President yet?
From the withheld IRS 990;
Kim Strable, the President of the Greensboro Sports Commission, which became the Greensboro Sports Foundation in FY 2019, made $48,000. Robert Goodman, President of the Greensboro Sports Foundation, made $76,875 in FY 2021.
It looks like a shift toward becoming more of a taxpayer-subsidized jobs program for insiders like Richard Beard, who has been a prominent advocate for establishing a 1% prepared food tax in Greensboro, arguing it is essential to create a consistent revenue stream for maintaining and upgrading city sports and tourism facilities, including his personal income.
Marikay Abuzuaiter was a board member all the way through.
2019; Government grants; 145,000; Marikay voted for the appropriations.
2023; Government grants; 304,800; Marikay voted for the appropriations.
2024; Government grants; 445,000; Marikay voted for the appropriations.
The tax return also says Both Beard and Demp Bradford both work 40 hours a week for the foundation, which is highly unlikely.
A Pattern of Questionable Spending
This dinner invitation is not an isolated incident but fits a documented pattern of surging expenditures by the GSF. An August 2025 public letter to the GSF board and city officials highlighted explosive growth;
2021; Lobbying $0
2022; Lobbying $0
2023; Lobbying $61,265
2024; Lobbying $02019; Travel $2,917
2021; Travel $21,333
2022; Travel $11,750
2023; Travel $104,302
2024; Travel $9,9332019; HOSPITALITY $0
2022; HOSPITALITY $0
2023; HOSPITALITY $127,357
2024; HOSPITALITY $0
A September 2, 2025 email, which included GSF board member and now Greensboro Mayor Marikay Abuzuaiter, the City’s Internal Audit Director Len Lucas and City Manager Trey Davis said “Travel expenses grew over 35x from 2019 to 2023, far outpacing revenue growth. Such rapid escalation raises questions about purpose, necessity, and oversight, especially given the organization receives taxpayer-funded grants. Without detailed reporting, this could be mischaracterized personal or entertainment spending rather than bona fide program-related [expenses]”.
Greensboro Internal Audit department only signed off on $40,000 of GSF spending in it’s annual reviews, even though the foundation received by far more taxpayer monies.
No reply was forthcoming from anyone.
The Unresolved Conflict; Marikay Abuzuaiter’s Dual Roles
The ethical and legal questions are further complicated by the position of Marikay Abuzuaiter. At the time of the 2025 letter, she was the only woman on the 27-member GSF board as of 2024, and is still listed on GSF’s website;
https://greensborosf.com/board-and-staff/
This dual role creates a direct and ongoing conflict of interest. As a city official, first as a council member, now as mayor, Abuzuaiter is charged with impartially overseeing the performance and spending of the GSF. Simultaneously, as a GSF board member, she has a fiduciary duty to advance the interests of the foundation. These obligations are in direct conflict, and have so far prioritized GSF over Greensboro’s taxpayers.
Public records show that Abuzuaiter has actively participated and voted on budgetary appropriations for GSF-related spending via the City of Greensboro, the Greensboro Area Convention and Visitors Bureau and the Greensboro Coliseum Complex, likely in violation of “§ 14‑234.3. Local public officials participating in contracts benefiting nonprofits with which associated.”
Five days after Beard sent his solicitation, on December 27, 2025, Public Integrity Watch sent a formal request for financial transparency to Greensboro Mayor Marikay Abuzuaiter, copying 13 other city officials and staff.
The request centers on the Greensboro Sports Foundation (GSF) and its use of public money. It specifically asked for;
Complete expense ledgers and financial records for GSF covering the period from June 1, 2022 (when Richard Beard became President/CEO) to the present.
The email notes that GSF receives “substantial public funding” from the City of Greensboro and other public entities funded by the City. It argues that taxpayers have a right to transparency and states that the request is “particularly urgent” due to recent concerns about the Foundation’s accountability and Richard Beard’s failure to provide GSF related tax documentation during the election cycle in violation of federal nonprofit transparency law.
Federal law requires tax-exempt nonprofits to publicly disclose their last three IRS Form 990 returns upon request, which Richard Beard didn’t in 2025. A willful failure to provide these documents can result in penalties of $20 per day, up to $10,000, plus a potential $5,000 penalty. This lack of transparency deprives the public of essential information about how an organization funded with taxpayer dollars manages its finances and operations, especially while Beard was running for City Council.
The email highlights Mayor Abuzuaiter’s dual role, noting that as a former city council member who “served on the Foundation’s board,” and that she is “uniquely positioned” to ensure the information is provided.
Public Integrity Watch has yet to receive a reply.
What Happens Now?
The January 13th dinner serves as a live test of Greensboro’s commitment to ethical governance.
For City Council Members and Staff; The law provides a simple path to avoid liability; they must either decline the invitation or insist on paying the full value of their own meal. Accepting the GSF’s hospitality under these circumstances is a legal risk.
For the Public; This episode underscores the need for vigilant oversight of organizations that receive public money. The dramatic increases in GSF’s hospitality, travel and lobbying spending, paired with repeated failures of the City’s audit department, Mayor Abuzuaiter and this ethically fraught invitation, suggest a wide spread failure of accountability.
The public deserves clear answers; Will the city continue to fund an organization that appears to use its money not just to promote sports, but to gain privileged access to the very officials who control the public purse?
Will Mayor/GSF Board Member Marikay Abuzuaiter provide the spending ledgers?
Will the City’s audit department be reformed?
If past is prologue, probably not.
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Disclaimer: This article is based on publicly available documents, including emails, public records requests, IRS filings, and statements made in public forums. The analysis of potential violations of N.C. General Statute 133-32 and federal nonprofit transparency laws (26 U.S.C. § 6104(d)) is the author’s interpretation of these facts and applicable statutes. It does not constitute formal legal advice or an official finding of wrongdoing. The Greensboro Sports Foundation, Richard Beard, and all named officials have the right to respond to these allegations. The intent of this reporting is to inform the public about significant questions regarding the use of taxpayer funds and the governance of a publicly supported organization.