943 Madison Avenue
The Whitney Museum of American Art owes almost $160,000 in unpaid property taxes, DNAinfo reported, largely because of confusion stemming from the sale of its properties to developer Daniel Straus.
In 2010, the Whitney sold six brownstones and two townhouses adjacent to its 954 Madison Avenue home in advance of its forthcoming move to a Renzo Piano-designed home in the Meatpacking District, at 820 Washington Street. The museum had used the buildings for its offices, and continued to lease one of the properties, 943 Madison Avenue, after the sale to Straus. Under the lease agreement the Whitney would cover outstanding taxes.
Previously, the Whitney had a reduced tax bill on the property because it operates as a non-profit. A Whitney spokesperson said the museum didn’t realize it owed so much because Straus’ company never forwarded it the bill. Now that the confusion has been untangled, the spokesperson said the check is “being paid now.”
Meanwhile, the museum expects to move out of the brownstone shortly, and will take offices in the new building in the fall of 2014. The new museum will open in the winter of 2015.
Straus, on the other hand, has yet to gain approval for a luxury condominium he has planned for the Upper East Side site. [DNAinfo]
