The Mission Neighborhood Centers, Inc., one of the oldest nonprofits in the neighborhood, which is responsible for putting together the annual Carnaval and Cinco De Mayo festivals, along with many other invaluable programs, is at risk of losing half of its federal grants, due to poor accounting, financial strains, and accumulating debt caused by the organization's growing too fast in recent years for its overworked and underpaid staff to handle. Additionally, there was a loan renegotiation with Wells Fargo that threw the organization further into a downward spiral.

The first proposed cutback could mean stripping the organization of its federal Head Start funding, which gives free preschool to 380 neighborhood children, predominantly from immigrant Latino families. (There are a total of 1,398 children who attend Head Start programs in the city.) This would mean the loss of 30 percent of the MNC's revenue.

In an effort to solve some of the nonprofit's infrastructure problems, they were granted $200,000 in October to hire a facilities manager, a development director, a grant writer, and a human resources manager by October of this year. Executive Director Sam Ruiz also has various strategies in mind for raising more money, such as converting several of MNC’s Head Start sites to mixed-income sites where some children pay tuition. He also plans to build and rent affordable housing, using two MNC-owned lots at the corner of 24th and Harrison Streets that were rezoned under the Eastern Neighborhood Plans to allow for a 55-foot height limit. The site would be a mixed-used development, including the Head Start facility already on the site, youth counseling services, a community center, one commercial retail space, and affordable apartments for seniors.