The city has yanked property-tax exemptions worth $38 million from more than 900 nonprofits that couldn’t prove they deserved the breaks or didn’t bother to respond to a city survey, The Post has learned.
The action by the Finance Department takes effect July 1 and comes after outreach efforts, warning letters and in-person visits by assessors trying to determine which organizations legitimately deserve the waivers, which ones are gaming the system, and which simply slipped under the radar.
Among those snared was the American Youth Hostel on upper Amsterdam Avenue, which one city official said was “not carrying out any mission” beyond cheap sleeps and, therefore, not entitled to a $521,950 tax break.
Mark Vidalin, the AYH’s marketing director, responded that it’s appealing the ruling because it’s has been a registered nonprofit since 1934.
Other groups about to get shocked with tax bills include scores of small religious institutions, the Staten Island Chamber of Commerce and the United Jewish Appeal, which rents out 91 percent of its Midtown headquarters for commercial purposes. It’s exemption, therefore, was reduced from 100 percent to 9 percent — which the UJA is not disputing.
The UJA released a statement detailing its tax exemptions:
— The building is comprised of three condominium units: one retail, one occupied by UJA-Federation; one occupied primarily by commercial tenants.
— The exemption in question applies only to the unit occupied primarily by commercial tenants, and the exemption on that unit was reduced by 91% because the unit is now 91% occupied by commercial tenants.
— The unit occupied by UJA-Federation is 100% exempt.
A total of 925 organizations lost their exemptions.