A modest red brick house on 107th Street in Corona, Queens is not just any home — it was once the longtime residence of legendary trumpet player and vocalist Louis Armstrong and his wife, Lucille.

They lived there from 1943 until his death in 1971 and hers in 1983. It’s now the Louis Armstrong House Museum. Throughout the years, their neighbors in the house next door were the Heraldo family, including close friend Selma Heraldo.

“He was a very, very loving man, very generous man, and he was a comedian besides being a musician,” Heraldo once said in an interview about her famous neighbor.

When Heraldo died in 2011 at the age of 88, she left her house to the museum. It is getting a $3.5 million renovation through a partnership between the city’s Department of Design and Construction (DDC), which is managing the project, and the Department of Cultural Affairs (DCLA), which is funding it.

“There will be a full gut renovation inside, bringing everything up to code, also providing access, new fire alarms, HVAC. We are also opening up one of the bedrooms upstairs so it’s a larger space for programming and other things working well for the museum,” DDC Commissioner Thomas Foley said.

After renovation, Heraldo's house will be used for both office space and space for the community.

“Where we honor her legacy and the legacy of others who knew the Armstrongs and made this community what it was,” Regina Bain, executive director of the museum, said.

The renovation follows the 2023 opening of the Louis Armstrong Center across the street. The striking building features educational programs, exhibitions, performances and the extensive Armstrong archives.

So now the museum will consist of a three-building campus and garden — even more space to remember Louis and Lucille and their time in the neighborhood.

“Bringing world class, state-of-the-art education and cultural opportunities right in the heart of Corona, Queens. In your own backyard, you can wake up, you can walk down the street, you can come visit, you can go shop, you can go to a restaurant afterwards. This is about the economic vibrancy of New York City,” Cultural Affairs Commissioner Laurie Cumbo said.

The project is expected to complete in the summer of 2026, further cementing the presence of the Armstrongs and Selma in the community they called home.