§ 427. Performing arts buildings. Real property owned by any
corporation whose certificate of incorporation is approved by the
commissioner of education and which is organized to sustain, encourage
and promote musical and performing art, including opera, concerts,
ballet, drama and other forms of artistic expression, and to educate the
general public in good musical and performing art, provided the land was
acquired by a municipal corporation by purchase or condemnation and sold
at public auction to such corporation in order to insure clearance,
replanning, reconstruction and neighborhood rehabilitation, provided
further that monies donated to such corporation by other charitable or
educational corporations or as a result of popular or general appeal
shall have been used for the acquisition of such real property and
provided further that such real property shall be used for the
production of musical and performing art and for furthering the purposes
for which such corporation was organized by providing operatic, musical
and dramatic performances and other related educational activities
either directly by such corporation or indirectly by leasing or
otherwise making such real property or portions thereof available for
the use of other corporations organized on a non-profit basis and
without capital stock and to educate the general public in, or to foster
interest in, good musical or performing art and for one or more of the
purposes for which the owner corporation is organized, shall be exempt
from taxation and exempt from special ad valorem levies and special
assessments to the extent provided in section four hundred ninety of
this article, as provided for corporations in section four hundred
twenty-a of this article, although a portion or portions of such real
property are, from time to time, leased or used for public performances,
theatrical performances, opera, ballet, concerts, lectures, meetings,
graduation exercises or other related educational or non-commercial uses
for the purposes of income, if such income is necessary for and actually
applied to the maintenance and support of the owner corporation or such
other corporation organized on a non-profit basis and without capital
stock and provided that such leasing or use for any such purpose is not
the principal purposes to which the use of such real property is put by
the owner corporation or by such other corporation organized on a
non-profit basis and without capital stock.