Kingsbridge Historical Society secures property tax exemption

The Kingsbridge Historical Society was granted a property tax exemption by the New York city finance department with the help of Councilman Eric Dinowitz and his office after previously being issued a hefty tax bill.

When KHS acquired Edgehill Church of Spuyten Duyvil in December 2022, the group applied for property tax exemption since they are eligible as a non-profit organization. However, in the meantime they received an expensive quarterly property bill from the finance department.

The society’s president Nick Dembowski was confused when he saw the bill and grew very worrisome. He told The Riverdale Press he submitted the application for tax exemption before the filing deadline and read on the city’s website that non-profit organizations and historical societies like his were eligible for it.

He found difficulty in explaining the situation when reaching out to the finance department because there wasn’t really a phone number to call on the website outside of 311. He talked to one person there who apparently said they were understaffed and didn’t have time to review applications.

Dembowski was advised by those in the non-profit landmark building world that the city had been aggressive in going after organizations like KHS, partially because of some fraud with groups that thought they deserved non-profit exemption but didn’t really deserve it.

He was also advised to pay part of the bill or get a lawyer, but it didn’t make sense to Dembowski who, for one, didn’t have the funds to do “that sort of thing,” and secondly, was certain that the tax code was on his side.

“We had every right to be exempt,” Dembowski said.

He ultimately reached out to Councilman Dinowitz’s office who said they would get in touch with the finance department. And within two weeks they got a positive resolution, Dembowski said.

Dinowitz described the “great” relationship he has with the KHS and how the group is doing incredible work that no one else is doing in the northwest Bronx. When his office heard about their problem, they immediately got to work, cutting through bureaucracy to prioritize the society’s work.

He said that right now they are in the midst of negotiating the city budget, saying the city is understaffed. They’re fighting for a budget that funds city agencies, he said, so that the finance department can do the important work they need to do so that cultural institutions aren’t met with undue bills and burdens they can’t afford to pay.

The department sent back a determination letter to the KHS and approved their tax exemption status.

“The Kingsbridge Historical Society is a significant organization in the Bronx,” Dinowitz said in a statement released June 12. “They play an important role preserving the history of the area and educating the community about its past. It was crucial that we get this approved to ensure the society’s continued success in preserving the history of the area.”

Dinowitz told The Press KHS provides the rare opportunity for Riverdale residents to actually learn about what’s just outside their home as opposed to more distant history about the country and foreign nations.

The historical society was founded in 1949 with a focus on the history of greater Kingsbridge. The society acquired Edgehill Church to have a base of operations and an area to store their archives. The church was designed in 1888 by architect Francis H. Kimball, whose work includes the Empire Building and the Manhattan Life Insurance Building.

The new headquarters serves to be a “vibrant community hub” that is open to the public.

The society is making the necessary improvements to actually open to the public, according to Dembowski. The KHS website states the church currently has no running water and no heat.

Dembowski said that once they get the bathroom running they’re going to have a grand opening in September. The society was originally hoping for a May opening but dealing with the finance department and department of buildings, used up a lot of time and energy. With that said, the society still used that time productively, he explained.

Dembowski is eager to hold events there and have a place designed for people to meet.

“The fact that it’s still standing is a testament to the sort of community spirit of the neighborhood,” Dembowski said, “because so many folks over a hundred years have chipped in, helped out to maintain the building, keep it going. Now it has a new mission that will hopefully benefit the community.”