""This little patch of land here symbolizes all of the struggles and opportunities of housing in New York City over the last half century," New York City Comptroller Mark Levine said during a Wednesday groundbreaking attended by Mayor Zohran Mamdani and other officials. The lot on East 119th Street and Park Avenue, Levine said, was formerly home to rundown tenements that were demolished in the 1960s in the name of what he described as "so-called urban renewal," with new housing promised for the location. "Part 2 of that plan never happened - this remained vacant for decades," Levine said. That's until now."
"The cultural center, Casa Belongó, will serve as the permanent home for six-time Grammy winner Arturo O'Farrill's 19-year-old nonprofit, Belongó (formerly the Afro Latin Jazz Alliance). "With the right support, Casa Belongó can shape the future of El Barrio," O'Farrill said in a statement. "We hope to create a welcoming space where this city's diverse communities can gather together as one family.""
A vacant city-owned lot in East Harlem will be replaced by Timbale Terrace, a 20-story, 341-unit, $225 million development anchored by a cultural center. The nonprofit Lantern Organization is developing the project in coordination with the Department of Housing Preservation and Development. Casa Belongó will be a 20,000-square-foot ground-floor facility housing Arturo O'Farrill's nonprofit, with a 300-seat performance hall, rehearsal and workshop spaces, a public balcony, a café and a jazz club called Chico's Corner, designed by Diller Scofidio + Renfro. The housing will be 100% affordable, including 99 units for formerly homeless people, a point of local controversy. The lot had remained vacant since 1960s demolitions tied to urban renewal.
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