Would your venue qualify for the Tax Abatement?

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Over the last couple of years, the Community Boards have done some amazing work on the Tax Abatement proposal that would benefit smaller performing arts venues. This proposal would give incentives to landlords that either donate or rent at below market value to non-profit performing arts organizations. The money saved on taxes would then be passed on to the renter (you). The proposal could potentially save smaller theatre venues thousands of dollars a year.

The Theatre and Arts task forces on the Community Boards have been working very hard on this proposal and in May of 2010, it reached a significant mile stone when all 12 of the Manhattan Community Boards voted in support of it. It was an unprecedented happening.

The proposal was shared with several elected officials who have been very supportive, but have asked some important questions that need to have solid answers before we can move to the next step.

Several organizations (A.R.T./New York, The Innovative Theater Foundation, Institute for Culture in the Service of Community Sustainability and The League of Independent Theater) are all cooperating to try to help collect this very important information and enable the proposal to continue to move forward.

We are asking that companies that could qualify for this proposal (once it is enacted) complete an online questionnaire.

If you can answer "YES" to each of the following questions, your organization could qualify and should complete the online form.

1. Are you a Not-For-Profit organization (Do you have your 501(c)3status)?
2. Do you lease and manage your space (Is your organization the primary lease holder for your venue)?
3. Do you manage at least one (1) performance venue?
4. Do you present your own artistic work/season?
5. Do you pay pass-through tax? (This is the amount that is added to your rent and should be indicated on your lease or monthly/quarterly statements.)
   OR
   Is your landlord a commercial (for-profit) entity?

If you can answer "Yes" to each of the 5 questions above, then we would strongly encourage you to complete the questionnaire:

LINK TO QUESTIONNAIRE: http://bit.ly/i4SJZP


I want to assure you that completed questionnaires are held in the strictest of confidences. We are very mindful of sensitive information. We will not share or release any specific details about your organization. This information is necessary to establish actual figures and will only be presented without specific identifiers and as an aggregation or average of the overall data collected.

This information is invaluable to the process and I greatly appreciate you taking the time to complete the questionnaire.

LINK TO QUESTIONNAIRE: http://bit.ly/i4SJZP

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Speak Up at Community Boards

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There has been a remarkable amount of positive momentum in support of the Tax Abatement proposal. With the inspiring and unprecedented cooperation of all the Manhattan Community Boards (CB), that momentum continues to grow. The Arts Task Forces from Community Boards 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 9 and 12 have already passed resolutions or letters of support for this program and it has passed at the board level for CBs 2 and 9. As a normal part of the process, Community Boards hold forums where the public is allowed to express opinions on the proposals. Because public opinion carries substantial weight, your voice could help determine the fate of this movement.

This Wednesday, February 3rd, at the Fulton Center Auditorium, 119 Ninth Avenue (between 17th and 18th Streets), Manhattan Community Board 4 is going to consider a letter written by its Theater Task Force to support a tax abatement proposal that benefits Off-Off-Broadway.

At 6:30, on that evening, members of the public are invited to sign-up for a public session at which they will be given two minutes to speak on any topic that interests them.

Any member of the public, who resides or works (or performs) within the confines of Community District 4, 14th Street to 59th, 8th Avenue to the Hudson River, is invited to attend.

Get more details
Read the letter from Community Board 4 to Speaker Quinn's office.


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Tax credit to benefit Off-Off Broadway

On the morning of January 21st, members of arts, cultural and theatre tasks forces from Manhattan Community Boards (CB) gathered at Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer’s office to present a proposal that is currently being considered by the CBs that would help financially pressed Off-Off-Broadway theatres.

This demonstration was in response to a challenge that President Stringer made in February of 2009 at a joint public forum on the state of small to mid-sized theatres in NYC that was hosted by Community Boards 1 – 5. “Hold us [elected officials] to a higher standard” he said, “give us a roadmap to the products you expect.” The Community Boards took this challenge to heart.

Committees were mobilized in an effort to find “innovative solutions to remedy the current fiscal and real estate crises that are endangering… theatres and other performing arts organizations throughout New York City.” Over the last year hundreds of emails have been sent and dozens of roundtables and meetings were held to gather information and prioritize the needs of the independent theatre community. At the top of the list was affordable rehearsal and performance space...READ THE FULL STORY

Top 5 Reasons to Join a Community Board

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Community Boards throughout the 5 boroughs make resolutions that effect their neighborhoods. They make recommendations to local and civic leaders about how they want their community to run. Often land use & zoning decisions, city budgets, and many other programs must begin by getting approval from the community boards. Their voices resonate deeply with elected officials and their input is felt in profound ways.

Members of these boards have a birds eye view of important civic activities long before they are making headlines. It is very important for those of us in the OOB community to be in touch with our colleagues on the community boards. It is important for us to be aware of what is being presented to these boards. It is perhaps even more important for us to become members of these community boards.

To that end, here is Shay's Top 5 Reasons to Join a Community Board

1. It is an opportunity for us to educate the members of the community board about the challenges and needs of OOB on a personal level
2. You can act as a conduit to help inform the OOB community about important activities and opportunities
3. You can network on behalf of the OOB community, make connections and act as a contact for OOB
4. You will have insights into how your community board works and what is important to those neighborhoods
5. You get to vote. You will get to help make the decisions and recommendations that shape New York City

Find your Community Board Now.

2010 Applications for Manhattan Community Boards Membership is now available at Manhattan Borough President, Scott Stringer's website.



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OOB theatre needs idea bank

The New York IT Awards is collecting needs and suggestions from the NYC theatre community to the City of New York, and asks for your contributions.

It is our hope to collect the community's needs as a whole, and put together a master list of items when making presentations to community boards, arts task forces, and city officials.

If you are inclined (even one suggestion), copy and paste the following information into the comments below. If you prefer anonymity, email your suggestions to community@nyitawards.com.

COPY AND PASTE THE FOLLOWING TEXT
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Name:
Organization:
Email:
Date:
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SUGGESTIONS:

1)
2)
3)
4)
5)

Thank you for your participation, and don't forget to spread the word!

Is there room for OOB in the Hudson Rail Yard's Development?

Development for the Hudson Rail Yards (along the Hudson River) has been slowly moving along for years. Recently plans were put before Community Board 4 for approval. Recommendations were made to include more dedicated space for arts (and especially small theatre venues).

It seems that developers are being resistant to relinquish commercial space for not-for-profit space - I know, nothing surprising about that.

In a recent statement of need to the city, CB4 noted that "Cultural venues clearly have a synergetic relationship with neighborhood small businesses, and are economic drivers to our local neighborhoods. In addition the arts are crucial to the cultural resilience and diversity of our unique community."

So, will CB4 prevail in securing space for the arts in this urban renewal? How can we help?



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