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February 5, 2007
Adding a kitchen=changing legal use?
Setup: legal 2-family four story brownstone. garden rental, owner triplex above--a relative or friend will be living on the top floor (mebbe an oper). If a kitchen is added to the top floor to accomodate this person, is it necessary, by any architect or DOB standards, to change the legal use of the building and convert to a 3-family if a new kitchen is added for a relative/oper? Follow up question: are handicap ramps required for a 2-3 family conversion?
Comments
In the eyes of the DOB, cooking equipment (e.g. gas or electric range) is the identifier for a "kitchen". You can legally add a refrigerator, cabinets, a sink, etc. without changing the CO, but once you install a piece of cooking equipment, you are considered to have created a new dwelling unit and will need to change the CO. The DOB does not care whether the change is made for a family member or a tenant.
Typically, a handicap ramp is not required unless you are "substantially" changing a certain percentage of the building (they define "substantial" in the Building Code). Even if your new kitchen mandates a change to the CO, you would most likely not need to construct a handicap ramp. The ramp issue is not dependent on how many families the property is for, rather how much change is being proposed to the building. The way the DOB sees it, if you are planning to change "X" amount of your property, they feel an upgrade to compliance with LL 58/87 (handicap local law for NYC) should be met also.
Posted by: mila goldman moore at February 5, 2007 3:52 PM
Sorry, I can't resist a spelling correction. I think you mean au pair.
Posted by: Anonymous at February 5, 2007 3:53 PM
thanks, mila. (OP here) very helpful.
Posted by: anon at February 5, 2007 4:23 PM
Mila i thought you are allowed to have an extra kitchen if its a 'kosher' kitchen, could the OP claim that?
Posted by: Anonymous at February 5, 2007 5:25 PM
Hi there, yes, certainly, a kosher kitchen would be the one exception for being permitted 2 kitchens within 1 dwelling unit. These days, kosher kitchens are being granted only under Reconsiderations (waivers) and the Commissioners are asking for some sort of letter from a Rabbi. So, unless the OP really is religious or has "alternate means" ;) of obtaining such documentation, the 2nd kitchen would not be permitted.
Hope that helps...
Mila Goldman Moore
MGM Architectural Consulting
mila@mgmarch.com
Posted by: mila goldman moore at February 5, 2007 10:42 PM
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