The New Haven Pride Center, a community-based nonprofit dedicated to supporting, educating and empowering LGBTQ individuals — has shut down operations for 30 days (as of Feb. 26) while they reassess their financial situation.

Reports NBC-Connecticut TV:

Board members said the temporary shutdown will allow the nonprofit to stop accruing expenses and get better insight into a $250,000 IRS debt discovered in 2022 that has weighed heavily on the center’s operations.

According to board co-chair Hope Chavez, the debt was found four years ago. The board let the executive director go and began paying the back taxes. The payments have been ongoing, but Chavez said there’s no clarity on how much has been paid toward principal versus interest, making it hard to map out a payoff.

Chavez said the organization has an attorney to help obtain more details from the government, and that the debt has hurt its ability to generate income during an already challenging time.

“It all depends on the political climate — whether corporate sponsors feel like they can sponsor you, whether funders feel like they need to redirect elsewhere,” she said.

The 30-day furlough will include a pause in services. In the meantime, staff members are compiling a list of alternative LGBTQ-affirming resources in the Greater New Haven area to support community members.

Read the complete NBC-CT TV story here.

More: newhavenpridecenter.org

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