Skip to content
Nonprofiteer
← WHITNEYVILLE CULTURAL COMMONS INC

Form 990 for tax year 2024

Filed by WHITNEYVILLE CULTURAL COMMONS INC.

Totals

Total revenue
$411,421
Total expenses
$294,010
Contributions and grants received
$42,913
Grants paid
$5,067
Program service revenue
$368,508
Investment income
$0
Other revenue
$0
Total assets, end of year
$1,162,645
Total liabilities, end of year
$890,761
Net assets or fund balances, end of year
$271,884
Program services expenses (Part IX)
$293,959
Management and general expenses
$51
Fundraising expenses
$0
Program service expenses (Part III)
$293,959

Program services were 100.0% of total expenses calculated — Part IX's program-services column over total expenses, both as filed.

Line items

Every line the filer filed in Parts VIII, IX and X, as filed and in filed order. Blank columns are left out, and the lines are not forced to add up to the totals above.

Revenue

Part VIII, the statement of revenue.

  • 1a · Federated campaigns

    $0

  • 1b · Membership dues

    $0

  • 1c · Fundraising events

    $0

  • 1d · Related organizations

    $0

  • 1e · Government grants (contributions)

    $0

  • 1f · All other contributions, gifts and grants

    $42,913

  • 1g · Noncash contributions included above

    $0

  • 2f · All other program service revenue

    total $368,508 · related or exempt $368,508 · unrelated business $0 · excluded $0

  • 6c · Rental income or loss

    real property $0 · personal property $0

  • 7c · Gain or loss

    securities $0 · other assets $0

  • 8a · Fundraising events: contributions included on line 1c

    $0

  • 11e · Other revenue, total

    $0

Functional expenses

Part IX, the statement of functional expenses.

  • 1 · Grants to domestic organizations and governments

    total $5,067 · program services $5,067

  • 2 · Grants to domestic individuals

    total $0 · program services $0

  • 3 · Grants to foreign organizations and individuals

    total $0 · program services $0

  • 4 · Benefits paid to or for members

    total $0 · program services $0

  • 5 · Compensation of officers, directors and key employees

    total $0 · program services $0

  • 6 · Compensation of disqualified persons

    total $0 · program services $0

  • 7 · Other salaries and wages

    total $159,385 · program services $159,385

  • 8 · Pension plan contributions

    total $0 · program services $0

  • 9 · Other employee benefits

    total $0 · program services $0

  • 10 · Payroll taxes

    total $13,585 · program services $13,585

  • 11a · Fees: management

    total $0 · program services $0

  • 11b · Fees: legal

    total $5,100 · program services $5,100

  • 11c · Fees: accounting

    total $0 · program services $0

  • 11d · Fees: lobbying

    total $0 · program services $0

  • 11f · Fees: investment management

    total $0 · program services $0

  • 11g · Fees: other

    total $0 · program services $0

  • 12 · Advertising and promotion

    total $540 · program services $540

  • 13 · Office expenses

    total $4,118 · program services $4,067 · management and general $51

  • 14 · Information technology

    total $13,946 · program services $13,946

  • 15 · Royalties

    total $0 · program services $0

  • 16 · Occupancy

    total $9,930 · program services $9,930

  • 17 · Travel

    total $0 · program services $0

  • 18 · Travel or entertainment for public officials

    total $0 · program services $0

  • 19 · Conferences, conventions and meetings

    total $0 · program services $0

  • 20 · Interest

    total $34,066 · program services $34,066

  • 21 · Payments to affiliates

    total $0 · program services $0

  • 22 · Depreciation, depletion and amortization

    total $17,609 · program services $17,609

  • 23 · Insurance

    total $30,114 · program services $30,114

  • 24a · Other expenses: Taxes & Licenses

    total $550 · program services $550 · management and general $0 · fundraising $0

  • 24e · All other expenses

    total $0 · program services $0 · management and general $0 · fundraising $0

Balance sheet

Part X, book values.

  • 1 · Cash, non-interest-bearing

    beginning of year $178,779 · end of year $161,277

  • 2 · Savings and temporary cash investments

    beginning of year $0 · end of year $0

  • 3 · Pledges and grants receivable

    beginning of year $0 · end of year $0

  • 4 · Accounts receivable

    beginning of year $0 · end of year $0

  • 5 · Loans and receivables from officers and key people

    beginning of year $0 · end of year $0

  • 6 · Loans and receivables from disqualified persons

    beginning of year $0 · end of year $0

  • 7 · Other notes and loans receivable

    beginning of year $0 · end of year $0

  • 8 · Inventories for sale or use

    beginning of year $0 · end of year $0

  • 9 · Prepaid expenses and deferred charges

    beginning of year $0 · end of year $0

  • 10a · Land, buildings and equipment: cost or other basis

    $1,135,823

  • 10b · Land, buildings and equipment: accumulated depreciation

    $134,455

  • 10c · Land, buildings and equipment, net

    beginning of year $933,154 · end of year $1,001,368

  • 11 · Investments: publicly traded securities

    beginning of year $0 · end of year $0

  • 12 · Investments: other securities

    beginning of year $0 · end of year $0

  • 13 · Investments: program-related

    beginning of year $0 · end of year $0

  • 14 · Intangible assets

    beginning of year $0 · end of year $0

  • 15 · Other assets

    beginning of year $0 · end of year $0

  • 17 · Accounts payable and accrued expenses

    beginning of year $0 · end of year $0

  • 18 · Grants payable

    beginning of year $0 · end of year $0

  • 19 · Deferred revenue

    beginning of year $0 · end of year $0

  • 20 · Tax-exempt bond liabilities

    beginning of year $0 · end of year $0

  • 21 · Escrow or custodial account liability

    beginning of year $0 · end of year $0

  • 22 · Loans and payables to officers and key people

    beginning of year $575,888 · end of year $511,971

  • 23 · Secured mortgages and notes payable

    beginning of year $372,200 · end of year $370,123

  • 24 · Unsecured notes and loans payable

    beginning of year $0 · end of year $0

  • 25 · Other liabilities

    beginning of year $9,372 · end of year $8,667

  • 29 · Capital stock, trust principal or current funds

    beginning of year $0 · end of year $0

  • 30 · Paid-in or capital surplus, or land, building or equipment fund

    beginning of year $0 · end of year $0

  • 31 · Retained earnings, endowment or other funds

    beginning of year $154,473 · end of year $271,884

Mission and programs · 2024

Mission

Our mission is to preserve and enhance places of communal and historic value by providing public spaces, tools, and knowledge as shared resources to support a thriving community - socially, culturally, and economically. We envision a future where every community has valuable resources preserved for perpetual public use, with just and equitable access to enhance the quality of life for all. We: Preserve Historic Places: Steward historic properties in our trust with a commitment to preserving buildings and natural environments as part of the cultural landscape of the site. Develop Social Capital: Nurture communal relationships as host to diverse civic forums, public and private social events, and spiritual and cultural traditions. Champion Artistic Creation: Cultivate, celebrate, and showcase artistic endeavors of all kinds. Stimulate Economic Opportunity: Develop local organizations and individuals through co-working opportunities and the provision of shared info, material, and service.

Activities or mission (Part I)

We preserve and enhance places of communal and historic value by providing public spaces, tools, and knowledge as shared resources to support a thriving community socially, culturally, and economically. We envision a future where every community has valuable resources preserved for perpetual public use, with just and equitable access to enhance the quality of life for all. We: Preserve Historic Places: Steward historic properties in our trust with a commitment to preserving buildings and natural environments as part of the cultural landscape of the site. Develop Social Capital: Nuture communal relationships as host to diverse civic forums, public and private social events, and spiritual and cultural traditions. Champion Artistic Creation: Cultivate, celebrate and showcase artistic endeavors of all kings. Stimulate Economic Opportunity: Develop local organizations, individuals, and start-ups through coworking opportunities and the provision of shared information, materials and services.

  • As part of our historic preservation program, we own, maintain, and preserve 1247-1253 Whitney Avenue, Hamden, CT, 06517, a National Historic Landmark, which includes the Whitneyville United Church of Christ built in 1834 and its Church House built in 1924, and continue its legacy as a house of worship while continuing to adapt its use to a broader Community Resources Center and the facility in which we run some of our other programs. We completed an electrical upgrade and HVAC installation to 1247 Whitney Avenue, the historic church building, allowing us to operate a contemporary HVAC system to maintain heating, cooling, and moisture in the building in a more effective manner, thus allowing us to preserve it more easily, and adapt it to contemporary expectations. We have been assisting the First Church of Christ Woodbridge with the adaptation of its facilities for broader community use, while preserving the historic features of the buildings and property, helping them to develop plans for the inclusion of a day care within their facilities in a way which abides by the historic preservation requirements of their Preservation Easement and their Historic District requirements.

    Expenses $117,351 · Grants $988 · Revenue $9,098

  • Our Materials and Information Library program allows us to offer a curated repository of items and information for managed public use, both onsite and offsite. It includes books, tables, chairs, multi-media equipment, office supplies, kitchen tools, lawn care tools, and more. It also includes our databases of information about the historic property, Whitneyville, and Greater New Haven, allowing us to slowly build a representation of our community that can let us help people find services and resources that they need that we don't provide. We also document our successes and failures as a social enterprise nonprofit transforming communal, historic space from just its traditional uses to alternative, expanded, and inclusive uses that conserve and preserve the traditional uses and spirit of those uses, while also including new styles of use -- the documenting of this material has allowed us to grow partnerships with organizations around Connecticut where we help them adapt our successes to their own situations, avoid our failures in those situations, and assist them with implementing the adapted plans so their institutions and facilities can serve flourishing community. This year we provided information curation services around nonprofit formation and development to The People's Place of Waterbury, a nonprofit community resources center. Helping them find their first physical location for establishing the physical plant of their community resources center, and helped them launch programs like ours, as well as adapting them to serve their community in novel ways. We are also developing a shared library of documentation of this process, so that both organizations can continue to share with others the successes and failures of the social enterprises. We also provided information curation services around historic property adaptation to First Church of Christ Woodbridge, the sister church of our property, constructed by the same builders from the same plans in 1832. We assisted them with the adaptation of the historic day care operating in their Parish House, developing plans and strategies for expanding it from 32 to 96 children, and finding a daycare partner to help them operate it, such that their historic property can become accessible and sustainable into the future.

    Expenses $57,038 · Grants $584 · Revenue $94,089

  • Our assembly space program continued to allow use of the historic properties in our trust for broad use for community events, nonprofits, and social gatherings. The Red Cross of America ran Mobile Blood Drives, weekly and without fail, at our facilities throughout the year -- we serve as the New Haven Chapter House of the Red Cross. Social gathering incrementally grew from the previous year, but continued to be our most requested program service proving the vital necessity of social infrastructure for our community through high demand. We hosted roughly two thousand community, nonprofit, and social gatherings during 2024.

    Expenses $54,171 · Grants $613 · Revenue $140,160

  • Our Coworking Program provides a dynamic shared and private working environment that brings together startups, seasoned professionals, remote researches, freelancers, and solopreneurs, in a public space where they interact more regularly with each other and their community with lower overhead to insure viability of their small businesses, and to give new entrepreneurs a chance to make it in and a reason to stay in our local economy. Our Partner Coworking Organizations: CEIO, Public Allies CT, Black Infinity Collective, Prison2Public Policy, Students for Educational Justice, Real Clear Foundation, Stop Solitary, Interfaith Volunteer Caregivers, and our solo-preneurs, did coworking actiivities in our facilities utilizing both communal spaces and private offices. We also hosted many daytime seminars and presentations from organizations needing short term large spaces to supplement their small offices or work from home teams.

    Expenses $28,490 · Grants $317 · Revenue $69,113

  • Our Arts and Culture Program provides studio space for artists, venues for performances and showcases and cultural events, space for arts classes and rehearsals, and tools for artistic productions, produced both in partnership with artists and offering our services as tools for artists to produce their own events. It also provides home for culturally significant programming from sub-cultures across Connecticut, including Christian worship & artistic services across denominations, including Pentecostals, UCCs, Episcopalians, Evangelicals, Roman Catholics, and more, and other significant worship and cultural services from across faith and traditional backgrounds. This year, both our churches and arts programming exceeded pre-pandemic levels proving the vital necessity of social infrastructure for arts & culture in GNH.

    Expenses $18,126 · Grants $210 · Revenue $51,303

  • We produce, on our own and in partnership with members of the community and other organizations, a small number of classes and workshops designed to offering education to the community at large, in any topic or area of interest that serves the benefit of our community members. And we added on incubation and acceleration services for nonprofit development, utilizing our vast experience with many kinds of organizations through coworking, our partnerships with other organizations, and by collecting and synthesizing our own lessons learned as a startup nonprofit social enterprise, to help other individuals and organizations starting and operating nonprofit projects to benefit from the lessons of our coworkers -- we've been doing this in partnership with The People's Place in Waterbury to provide these services directly to their fiscal sponsees at TPP. Additionally, one of our sponsored projects, The Winnett Food Forest, became a free standing 501c3 organization and we regranted its remaining assets on our books to it.

    Expenses $18,783 · Grants $162 · Revenue $4,746

As filed on the 2024 return.

Listed in Part VII

  • Rebecca Mandell

    President and Member of the Board of Directors

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    1
  • Andrew Marchant-Shapiro

    Secretary and Member of the Board of Directors

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    1
  • Addys Castillo

    Member of the Board of Directors

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    1
  • Denya McGee

    Member of the Board of Directors

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    1
  • Brendan Smith

    Vice President and Member of the Board of Directors

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    1
  • Roslyn Sotero

    Member of the Board of Directors

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    1
  • David Brancati

    Treasurer and Member of the Board of Directors

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    1

Compensation is as filed in Part VII: reportable pay from this organization and from related organizations, other compensation, and hours per week. The total, marked calculated, is our sum of the three dollar columns, with a blank column counted as $0; the form itself has no total. On a Form 990-EZ the columns are Part IV's instead, and on a Form 990-PF Part VIII's — compensation, contributions to benefit plans, and expense account — and the total sums those.

Grants on this return

  • Remaining balance of the Claire C. Bennitt Watershed Fund Grant received and disbursed on behalf of Winnett Food Farm prior to their incorporation and determination as a 501c3. Claire C. Bennitt Watershed Fund Grant was for providing education in the appreciation of and preservation of our environment, with particular emphasis on the understanding of our water resources, the negative impacts of development and other activities on water quality, and the benefits to water quality and the environment of preserving watershed land as open space.

Provenance

Return type
form_990
Tax year
2024
Filed
14 November 2025
IRS schema version
2024v5.0
Source object
202523169349306952

Check it against the return as filed: the GivingTuesday Data Lake hosts a public copy of the original XML.

The source document this was parsed from is served over the API, which is where bulk and document access live.