I would suggest talking to a friend and collegue, Winston Ely:

http://www.wedesign-nyc.com/

Posted by: pHdesign at September 9, 2009 10:58 AM in response to Adding Floor of Glass & Light

I can recommend a great architect and friend in Jersey City, Jeff Jordan.
He has worked for some great modern architects in the city and is now starting out on his own.

email me and I will send you his contact information.

anthony at phdesign.us

Posted by: pHdesign at September 7, 2009 12:18 AM in response to gut reno in jersey city

In working on a project in the country, cellulose (when treated with boric acid) is supposedly much less friendly to rodents than fiberglass - go figure. It generally has less of an R-value per inch than spray foam, but is environmentally more friendly. Soy foam is grotesquely expensive (last time I checked) and has about the same R-value as cellulose and fiberglass.

Posted by: pHdesign at August 24, 2009 3:01 PM in response to Choosing Attic Insulation

The expense wouldn't be that great, but the difficult thing is getting approval - specifically if you live in a coop or condo and the space isn't specifically yours.
You should check with the board. Sometimes you can get a verbal answer on something like this and sometimes you might need to give them some drawings to show what you intend to do.

Posted by: pHdesign at August 12, 2009 1:34 PM in response to Renovating a Bathroom

stopped by TWICE on saturday - first repeat customers
was lovely, but needs some patina and some noise mitigation.

Posted by: pHdesign at August 10, 2009 4:32 PM in response to Streetlevel: Der Schwarze Kölner Now Open

yes - because you would be moving plumbing fixtures, you would technically need to file the work with the Department of Buildings (added cost).

for an ikea-type kitchen, you might be able to get away with 30k.... but I'm sure you know that the sky's the limit.

Posted by: pHdesign at July 28, 2009 4:45 PM in response to Cost to Move B'stone Kitchen?

this one then?

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/05/realestate/05cov.html?scp=9&sq=kingston%20house&st=cse

Posted by: pHdesign at July 28, 2009 1:02 PM in response to Need Help - NYT article

this one?

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/02/garden/02catskills.html

Posted by: pHdesign at July 28, 2009 12:33 PM in response to Need Help - NYT article

This would be a lot easier to accomplish if you owned the building outright versus what I suspect is a condo ownership structure. Raising your existing floor would create a lot of problems (i.e. you would most likely have to entirely redo your electrical and plumbing).

Posted by: pHdesign at July 27, 2009 2:17 PM in response to Creating Habitable Cellar?

cmu - sorry, you must have gone to www.phdesign.com

we are WWW.PHDESIGN.US - I hope you like it better....

Posted by: pHdesign at June 25, 2009 9:13 AM in response to cost of building a loft

We did a little loft for ourselves that was in brownstoner last year.
You can see pictures at www.phdesign.us

The cost was about $5,000 four years ago.

Posted by: pHdesign at June 19, 2009 11:34 AM in response to cost of building a loft

If you haven't found anything.... simon's hardware in manhattan (i think they also have a place in L.I.C.) has what you want. I just got some hinges and catch for a client - i think it was about $10 all together.

Posted by: pHdesign at May 18, 2009 2:00 PM in response to Cabinet Hardware - glass clips

I saw construction workers tearing out the fence that went between the old tow lot and the interior of the navy yard a couple of days ago and was wondering what was up....

Posted by: pHdesign at April 10, 2009 11:22 AM in response to Navy Yard Launches Restoration of Sands Street Gate House

Bummer - I was excited about this building - something to counter the total blandness of the Forte.

Posted by: pHdesign at April 3, 2009 10:56 AM in response to Another BAM Building Gets Tabled

Check out the book "Modern Brooklyn: Architecture, Interiors, and Design" - you can find it around town or at the very least on amazon.

I second urban center books - can be overwhelming - just make sure to ask for help.

Posted by: pHdesign at October 16, 2008 11:55 AM in response to Front Page Forum: Modern in Carroll Gardens

Hilary is making the bed (the apartment isn't haunted - yea!). We've never fallen out of bed (we've lived here for 3 years) - there is about 12" of wood around the mattress that acts as a sensory warning device. We would open up the space to the kitchen if we owned, but alas, we are renting and saving for a little share of brownstone brooklyn.

Posted by: pHdesign at May 27, 2008 4:55 PM in response to Where's the Smallest, Coolest Apartment? Fort Greene

On small projects, I have typically seen fees in the 15% range (low of 10% and high of 25%) for architects fees.

On interior projects I've worked on, the permitting fees were roughly 1% of the construction cost, but exterior work requires more paperwork and fees.

One thing for unruly posters:

register - anonymity is great, but it allows you to say some pretty crummy things (guest 8:38)

Posted by: pHdesign at April 4, 2008 1:47 PM in response to The Meeting

We got this kitchen cabinet for our office - the "countertop" piece in your photo looks like the adjustable shelf that actually goes inside. In our unit there is a 3" or so wide board at the front covering the porcelain behind the doors. The porcelain just sat directly on the sides, back, and front of the cabinet with some grey, gum-like sealant.

Posted by: pHdesign at January 18, 2008 1:30 PM in response to Stupid Ikea Cabinets

HomeSweetstuy
We might be able to help with your architect problem (or recommend others for you). Check out our webpage at www.phdesign.us if you are interested in setting up a meeting.

Good Luck with everything and thanks for sharing your stories!

Posted by: pHdesign at December 3, 2007 2:54 PM in response to Help me if you can I'm feeling down

Actually, the kitchen was more like 5 x 10. Long and narrow.

Posted by: mopar at July 30, 2009 11:58 PM in response to Cost to Move B'stone Kitchen?

Approval is not an issue in my case, just cost. Is this done often? If I seal up the first floor dumbwaiter will I have to do anything with the other floors?

Posted by: newcomer at August 12, 2009 4:34 PM in response to Renovating a Bathroom

Someone asked this question last year, you may want to check this post:

http://www.brownstoner.com/forum/archives/2008/09/closing_up_a_du.php#comments

Not sure if that thread really going to provide the info you need, other than highlight that it's somewhat complicated to do properly with the correct permits, fireproofing, etc. I've also heard about a problem with utility companies running wires (cable and phone) through the dumbwaiter shafts unbeknownst to tenants who then seal off the shafts causing a problem down the road.

Posted by: setancre at August 12, 2009 5:41 PM in response to Renovating a Bathroom

Why not try online. You can visit this site: http://www.yourhomesupply.com. They offer a wide variety of cabinet hardware. Maybe the one you're looking for is just right here.

Thanks,
Christopher
cabinet hardware

Posted by: chrstphrndrsn08 at August 17, 2009 1:22 AM in response to Cabinet Hardware - glass clips

Thanks to both of you! After much research today and your comments I'm leaning towards cellulose... wondering if you have any thoughts on air-krete? Not for the party walls, but if possible to spray between joists in attic and if it can adhere to the underside of the roof (rather than a spray foam) to add it there? Wondering if a spray foam on the underside and a cellulose blow in combo would work?

Thanks!

Posted by: amybnyc at August 24, 2009 5:07 PM in response to Choosing Attic Insulation

Try wellbilt Construction, at LCLGCI@gmail.com very good contractors

Posted by: bblamchops at September 7, 2009 1:27 PM in response to gut reno in jersey city

Try wellbilt Construction, at wellbiltcmpm@gmail.com very good contractors

Posted by: bblamchops at September 7, 2009 1:28 PM in response to gut reno in jersey city

Check out AllRenovation Construction, they also do work in NJ and specialize in Brownstones. I hired them to gut renovate my brownstone in Windsor Terrace, Brooklyn. They recently did a modern design for a Brownstone in Carroll Gardens which ended up being featured in NY Living Magazine. You can see the pics at the link below. My home was a more traditional project (I restored all the wood moldings throughout) but the Carroll Gardens project was a nice modern twist on a brownstone...

http://www.allrenovationllc.com/presidentst_after.html

I'm a big fan of the owner Pietro and his team, they were very professional and delivered on everything that was outlined in my contract. From all the other GC's I interviewed AllRenovation's itemized estimate (per floor) was extremely helpful to budget my project and keep costs moderate.

Best of Luck
Allan S.

Posted by: allans at September 9, 2009 2:17 PM in response to gut reno in jersey city

Is yours a frame house, or brick? I'm asking because I went through this with my house--even though zoning allowed an extra floor, it turned out that we couldn't build any higher--even a 1/2 sized floor--on top of a 3 story frame building, per building code. Get an architect to give you an opinon on that, and if they tell you otherwise, please post their number, because I'd love to find a way around this myself!

Posted by: greenpointhouse at September 9, 2009 8:43 PM in response to Adding Floor of Glass & Light

Check out FZAD Architecture.
www.fzad.com, 212-243-2933

They have done a lot of work on historic properties and especially brownstones, and i think they've been awarded for some of their work.

Posted by: xth at September 21, 2009 10:18 AM in response to gut reno in jersey city