prospect heights renovator's Profile
- 1996
- 2006
- Brooklyn
- Prospect Heights
- House
- Female
Author's Posts
October 17, 2009
Need Small Fireplace Screen
I'm looking for screen for a working fireplace in a brownstone but the ones I'm seeing at fireplace stores are all far too big for the opening of this fireplace, which is small -- 19" wide x 21" high -- set in a traditional marble mantle. Anyone know if there's a place, preferably in Brooklyn, to find nice-looking traditional wrought iron screens that fit these sorts of small openings? Used would be fine, too.
September 22, 2009
DOB v. Landmarks
My neighbor is planning to bulldoze the front of their 1860s brownstone to put a garage in the ground floor and create a driveway from the street to the front of the garage. This is on a recently landmarked block in Prospect Heights. Looks like they got the DOB to give them the permit while the application for the block's landmark status was pending. Is there anything that can be done to stop this? It completely violates the whole point of landmarking. On top of that, the owners are evicting a 30-year resident of the neighborhood who sold them the building in order to turn her apartment into a garage.
Any suggestions for how to stop this?
July 22, 2009
HPD Noise at 516 Bergen
For anyone who lives on Bergen St. or St. Marks Avenue in Prospect Heights, between Flatbush and Carlton, you may have noticed there's an exceptionally loud, obnoxious noise coming from the HVAC unit on the back of an HPD/city-owned building at 516 Bergen Street. We've been struggling to get them to fix the unit, which DEP has repeatedly told us is well above the noise levels allowed in the city. If you live anywhere near this, I would urge you to contact the HPD commissioner, Vito Mustaciuolo. His e-mail is MUSTV@hpd.nyc.gov. He's so far done nothing to solve the problem and it's really intolerably loud. But the more people contact him about it the better. Thanks.
October 7, 2008
Recommending contractor and cabinetmaker
Hi all,
Since we just finished a pretty extensive renovation, and I got lots of recommendations from this site, I just wanted to write to recommend a couple of the people who really did a great job for us.
For a general contractor, we used Ricky Scott at Jabez Home Improvement, who was excellent, reliable, reasonably priced and a pleasure to work with. We had custom cabinets made by Joe Camilleri at Karamel Cabinetry, also really great work and reasonably priced. A top-notch craftsman. And, we had our chimney repaired and relined and a mantle installed by Big Apple Chimney, who did a terrific and really fast and surprisingly neat job. So just wanted to strongly recommend them all!
Would be happy to post pics if anyone's interested. (All their contact info is easily found on the web.)
May 26, 2008
energy efficient fireplaces?
Can anyone recommend a good place to find an energy efficient fireplace insert? We want to restore an old fireplace but want it to actually help heat the room as much as possible. Any ideas for how to make it most energy efficient, but in a style that also works with an old brownstone? Thanks.
May 16, 2008
Experience with Big Apple Chimney?
We're thinking of using them to restore two fireplaces, the flu and chimney, but I saw some (anonymous) negative reviews on this site. Anyone out there had experience with them and would be willing to say how the job went, and not be anonymous? Hard to tell if it's a competitor as opposed to a former customer. Thanks.
March 12, 2008
Which configuration raises value of house more?
We have a four-story brownstone in Prospect Heights that needs some major renovation. We're torn about whether to turn it into an upper triplex with a garden rental, or a double duplex and we'd live in the top. Does anyone know which configuration works better for re-sale value? The limitation of the lower duplex rental is that it could only be a one-bedroom, unless we did major, far-too-expensive and destructive renovations. The house is otherwise pretty much in its original form, with lots of original details. Any advice re re-sale value? Thanks.
December 29, 2007
Contractor recommendation
Has anyone worked with Frank Taverna at New York Interior Construction? If so, how was he and his crew to work with and did they do a good job? I'd appreciate any feedback. Thanks.
September 10, 2007
Looking for kitchen contractor/designer
I'm planning to put a new kitchen in on the parlor floor of a brownstone and wonder if anyone has recommendations for a good kitchen place in the area that will provide cabinets, etc. and a contractor, and has a good sense of design for old brownstones? The house has a lot of detail so we need some help on designing the kitchen tastefully around that. Any suggestions? Thanks!
August 21, 2007
Asbestos tile removal
Can anyone recommend someone good, reliable and reasonable to remove old asbestos tiles in a basement, and maybe also pour a new concrete floor? Thanks.
Author's Comments
In response to some of the questions above, the tenant in the ground floor of this home, who owned the home for more than two decades before that, was instructed to leave against her will, and at present has no place to go. In fact, she only discovered that her apartment was going to be turned into a garage when she returned home after visiting relatives out of state and found that her back patio had been jackhammered into tiny pieces. What a way to break the news.
Posted by: prospect heights renovator at September 23, 2009 2:54 PM in response to A Curb Cut on Landmarked St. Marks Avenue? Really?
That's what I was hoping. I will take and send a photo tomorrow morning.
Other ideas appreciated!
Posted by: prospect heights renovator at September 22, 2009 9:30 PM in response to DOB v. Landmarks
Thanks, everyone. Our problem is, we'd be just fine with the space of an upper duplex for now (don't know about a few years from now, harder to predict) but my one must is outdoor space, so we'd invest in a roof deck. Given the ladder access to the roof and the expense of the deck, though, I'm wondering if it's worth the cost, since I don't think we'd use it nearly as much as we would a parlor-floor deck. (Anyone out there w/a ladder access to roof deck who could give some input on how convenient it is to use?) As for renovating the lower duplex into a great 2-bedroom, it's possible, but we can't possibly afford to do all four floors right now. But I do appreciate the input!
Posted by: prospect heights renovator at March 13, 2008 7:08 AM in response to Which configuration raises value of house more?
Has anyone used Garfield Bath and Kitchen to design a kitchen in a parlor-floor in a brownstone, and would you recommend them?
Posted by: prospect heights renovator at September 8, 2007 10:26 PM in response to kitchen plans
Responses to Author's Forum Comments
The process is that while a building or area is being considered for landmarking and "calendered," any department of buildings filing must be put on hold for 40 days while Landmarks considers whether to review the building. If Landmarks does not respond to the DoB within the 40 day hold window, the permit may be issued.
Once the permit is in place, it can be renewed indefinitely and built even though the formal landmarking process shifts from calendered to landmarked.
I find this discussion particularly interesting because I'm doing the same thing. Not demo'ing a historic facade or anything -- but adding a room onto the back of my apartment within the Prospect Heights district. I got the permit half a year ago, waited through the 40-day hold process, and now have the permit open and am saving money for the renovation. I intend to build it in a few years, but I imagine I'm going to get some flack for not having the LPC permit up on the door in two years even though it would be perfectly legal.
Here's a wierd aspect of the process if anyone's interested: if I want to amend the filing, say for example to add another window on to the proposed addition before it gets built, then Landmarks reviews the amendment with the (previously approved but still just proposed) project imagined as existing, historic, and grandfathered in.
Posted by: Smokychimp at September 25, 2009 12:28 PM in response to DOB v. Landmarks
BHS -- I'm convinced. So where do you get the nice wood historically accurate storm windows? Most of the ones I've seen are metal and not very nice-looking.
Posted by: prospect heights renovator at October 17, 2009 10:07 PM in response to New Double Glass in Old Windows?