NYC Breaks Ground on Timbale Terrace Housing

New 100% affordable, mixed-use development to bring 341 homes and community arts center to East Harlem

Published on Feb. 24, 2026

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New York City Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani, city officials, and development partners broke ground on Timbale Terrace, a 100% affordable, mixed-use development that will deliver 341 affordable homes and a new community arts center to East Harlem. The project will transform a former NYPD parking lot into permanently affordable housing, community space, and replacement parking, including 97 homes reserved for formerly homeless New Yorkers and 30 units for young people aging out of foster care.

Why it matters

Timbale Terrace exemplifies the city's commitment to creating deeply affordable housing and building on underused public land to meet public needs. The development will also serve as a cultural anchor in East Harlem, with the new Casa Belongó Music and Arts Center providing a permanent home for Belongó and community programming.

The details

Timbale Terrace will include 341 affordable homes, with 97 units reserved for formerly homeless New Yorkers and 30 units for youth aging out of foster care. The development will also house the new Casa Belongó Music and Arts Center, a more than 20,000-square-foot cultural space for music education, performance, and community programming. The project was identified through the East Harlem Neighborhood Rezoning plan approved in 2017, and was selected through a competitive request for proposals process in 2019.

  • On February 19, 2026, Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani and city officials broke ground on Timbale Terrace.

The players

Zohran Kwame Mamdani

The Mayor of New York City who broke ground on the Timbale Terrace development.

Leila Bozorg

The Deputy Mayor for Housing and Planning in New York City.

Eric Enderlin

The President of the New York City Housing Development Corporation (HDC).

Emanuel Kokinakis

The Development Principal at Mega Group, the developer of Timbale Terrace.

Dan Kent

The President and CEO of Lantern Organization, the provider of supportive services for Timbale Terrace.

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What they’re saying

“Affordable housing is the foundation of a rich, diverse city where all New Yorkers can live with dignity. Timbale Terrace shows what's possible when we use public land to meet public need. By building deeply affordable homes across the five boroughs, we are making New York City a place families can afford to stay and thrive.”

— Zohran Kwame Mamdani, Mayor of New York City (Mirage News)

“Timbale Terrace exemplifies the best of our affordable housing efforts: strengthening neighborhoods, enlivening the street, creating cultural space, and creating affordable housing for the New Yorkers who need it most. This groundbreaking is a major step forward for East Harlem and shows what is possible when government is working with and for communities. I am looking forward to working with partners across the city to create even more affordable housing on city-owned sites in the years to come.”

— Leila Bozorg, Deputy Mayor for Housing and Planning (Mirage News)

“Timbale Terrace will deliver 341 affordable homes to East Harlem, nearly a third of which will be set aside for formerly homeless New Yorkers and youth aging out of foster care. HDC is proud to support this development and grateful to our partners for their commitment to expanding much-needed affordable housing, supportive services, and vibrant cultural resources in this community.”

— Eric Enderlin, President of the New York City Housing Development Corporation (HDC) (Mirage News)

“Timbale Terrace is a blueprint for what is possible in addressing our city's affordability crisis. From the very beginning, this was a project that centered community voices, and aims to deliver a rich cultural and economic boost through the programs it prioritizes, including the Casa Belongó Music and Arts Center. I am proud to see it break ground today, and look forward to its completion in the near future.”

— Mark Levine, New York City Comptroller (Mirage News)

“We are proud to deliver a transformative development that will not only provide high-quality, affordable homes for hundreds of families, but also create a vibrant cultural hub for the community. Timbale Terrace in partnership with Belongo, with its state-of-the-art performance facility and educational spaces, stands as a testament to the generational impact we hope to achieve on all our projects.”

— Emanuel Kokinakis, Development Principal, Mega Group (Mirage News)

What’s next

The development is expected to be completed in the near future, providing 341 affordable homes and a new community arts center to East Harlem.

The takeaway

Timbale Terrace represents a significant step forward in New York City's efforts to address the affordable housing crisis by leveraging underused public land to create deeply affordable homes, supportive services, and vibrant cultural spaces that benefit the local community. This project serves as a model for how government can work with community partners to deliver transformative developments that meet the diverse needs of residents.