DOE to crack down on rent-free non-profits

Crunched for cash, the city’s Department of Education is looking to pull the plug on nearly 1,000 community groups getting free rides in 900 city-owned buildings, the Daily News reported. The DOE wants the non-profit groups to start paying for security and custodial expenses — which range anywhere from hundreds to tens of thousands of dollars per year — or else be evicted. A spokesperson for the DOE said that although the city began reviewing its rent-free tenants in 2003, the crackdown comes as a result of severe budget cuts more recently. The Bronx’s Mary Mitchell Family and Youth Center, for example, is housed in a $3.5 million facility on Mapes Avenue, built for them 10 years ago. The center serves upwards of 400 children and 1,000 adults, does not pay rent, and only recently began paying $30,000 per year for permits, which it funded by cutting weekend and evening hours. [NYDN]