FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: March 2, 2026
Press Contact: Matt Lawyue, [email protected]
RiseBoro Community Partnership Names Melanie E. La Rocca Chief Operating Officer
NEW YORK (March 2, 2026) — RiseBoro Community Partnership, New York City’s leading affordable housing developer and social services provider, today announced the appointment of Melanie E. La Rocca as Chief Operating Officer.
La Rocca, a veteran of city government and the real estate development sector, will oversee RiseBoro’s day-to-day operations and help drive the organization’s continued growth and mission delivery across New York City.
“Melanie’s background is exceptional — she has led complex public agencies, driven operational reform at scale, and worked at the highest levels of New York City’s housing and development sectors,” said Kieran Harrington, CEO of RiseBoro Community Partnership. “As we continue to strengthen our organization and expand our ability to serve residents, her leadership will be invaluable. I am thrilled to welcome her to RiseBoro.”
“New York needs more, well managed affordable housing,” said Andrew Rein, President of the Citizens Budget Commission. “RiseBoro is fortunate to have such a skilled and experienced leader like Melanie La Rocca on its team.”
“New York’s affordable housing challenge won’t be solved without organizations like RiseBoro firing on all cylinders, and bringing in someone with Melanie’s track record is exactly how you get that done,” said Carlo A. Scissura, President and CEO of the New York Building Congress. “She knows how to move big, complex work forward, and RiseBoro’s residents will be better for it.”
“I’ve seen Melanie’s work firsthand, and what makes her exceptional isn’t just her experience — it’s that she actually gets things done,” said Lorraine Grillo, CEO of Bradford Construction Corp. of New York and former First Deputy Mayor of New York City. “She knows how city systems operate, she knows how to manage at scale, and she leads with real accountability. RiseBoro made a fantastic choice.”
“RiseBoro’s long history of community development and service has made it a beacon for New Yorkers, and that’s exactly what drew me here,” said La Rocca. “I look forward to working with Kieran and the entire RiseBoro team to build on that foundation — expanding our housing, deepening our services, and growing the organizational capacity to do even more for the hard-working New Yorkers who count on us.”
La Rocca brings more than two decades of experience in public administration, real estate development and organizational management. She most recently served as chief operating officer of BFC Partners. She previously served as the City of New York’s chief efficiency officer under Mayor Eric Adams. Prior to that role, she served as commissioner of the NYC Department of Buildings, where she led the agency responsible for regulating nearly 1.1 million buildings and more than 45,000 active construction sites, advancing a sweeping modernization agenda that improved agency response times and operational consistency.
Earlier in her career, La Rocca was vice president of development and external affairs at the NYC School Construction Authority, where she played a key role in implementing Mayor Bill de Blasio’s Universal Pre-K program, and chief of staff to former New York City Council Speaker Christine C. Quinn. La Rocca received her bachelor’s degree from Fordham University. She is a native New Yorker and lifelong Queens resident.
The appointment is part of a broader effort by RiseBoro to strengthen its leadership team and operational capacity under Harrington, who joined the organization as CEO in 2024. In 2025, under his leadership, RiseBoro brought to market more than 1,000 affordable units, and has over 1,000 units under construction and 2,000 units in development. Kieran oversees 147 properties under management, many scatter-site, with more in the pipeline. He cut the ribbon on three innovative public private partnerships standing alongside State and City leaders, including Alafia Phase 1, an all-electric development in East New York, and Baisley Pond Park Residences, NYC’s first ever hotel-to-affordable housing conversion. A third is a 216-unit affordable development in Brownsville designed to meet Passive House standards.
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About RiseBoro Community Partnership
RiseBoro Community Partnership is New York City’s leading non-profit affordable housing developer and social services provider. Operating for more than 50 years, RiseBoro uses a unique and holistic model to revitalize communities, with programs in housing, senior care, education, health, and empowerment. Using affordable housing development as a foundation, RiseBoro’s approach helps unleash the potential of New York’s most underserved populations.
