Addition to Roof of Brownstone
Does anyone have an experience in adding an addition to the roof on a brownstone? i’d like to add an addition to the roof of a brownstone in manhattan in a landmark building and i’m concerned about feasibility interms of building and permitting. thank you for your help cheers!
Does anyone have an experience in adding an addition to the roof on a brownstone? i’d like to add an addition to the roof of a brownstone in manhattan in a landmark building and i’m concerned about feasibility interms of building and permitting.
thank you for your help
cheers!
FAR and visibility from public right of way are indeed important introductory considerations. It will also be necessary to consider what the building’s C of O is. Is it an Hereafter Erected, or a Hereafter Converted Dwelling, Class A or B? Is it now a single family or a multiple dwelling? Are there more than one means of egress? Is the building on a narrow street? How far is it form the corner of a wide street? Is there a private property easement granted to an entity such as the National Historic Trust? How active is the preservation committee of the local Community Board? Some structural considerations: what is the condition of the party walls? How wide is the building? Where are the neighboring Chimney Breasts? You might also consider required fire protection on the interior stairwell, load impact on any desired mechanical, electrical or plumbing to be installed in the addition, and the ability of existing utility to service those. These and a fair number of other items will have to be evaluated to truly determine the feasibility of this project.
We would welcome an opportunity to discuss further:
http://www.agenciegroup.com
212 203-0265
“If FAR is maxed out, is getting a variance feasible for this sort of thing?” Almost impossible to get a variance for more FAR. Next best thing would be to buy the air rights from a neighbor.
Cost? Most estimates seem to start no lower than $200 per sq ft, plus design, engineering and filing fees. If it’s a landmarked district, and the addition will be visible from the street, then the proposals to LPC will be time consuming and costly.
But how much would it cost? Ballpark? I’m currently only looking at 4 story houses but if the price is right one could purchase a 3 story and make the addition and still might be in the same range of the cost of a 4 story.
If FAR is maxed out, is getting a variance feasible for this sort of thing?
Adam & Frankie:
I concur with Jock and Jim here. If your house is identical to several other houses in a row, then I’d say any significant change would make your house an outlier, and you’re doomed. However, with enough variation on your block, you can actually justify quite a lot. We once added an entire story to a townhouse in a landmark district — we effectively moved the cornice up one whole story.
If you’d like to consider another architect with considerable experience in landmark approvals, please reach out me:
http://www.jkosterarch.com/
Thanks
This is exactly the debate we had while I was proposing a new house on a vacant lot. We got it approved, but to get there we had to demonstrate all sorts of precedents and context within the district.
LPC was very time consuming, but overall very pleasant to deal with.
We’ve learned that when seeking LPC approval, the best approach is to inundate them with research proving you precedent. In this way, we’ve actually been able to get projects approved for clients when that client’s architect was unable to.
Present the right information, lots of it, framed the right way, and you’ve got a good shot.
Adam: Context is everything with LPC so if there’s a precedent on your block that’s a step in the right direction. I know LPC can be a pain to work with (too few staff) but if and your architect demonstrate — through a careful submission, done with full knowledge of their regulations — they will try to work with a homeowner. They don’t automatically take an oppositional position.
I was also wondering about this myself. Would landmarks entertain adding a mansard roof to a 3 story townhouse if other houses on the block also have them even if the property never had one to begin with? It would be designed to look like an orginal to match others on the block?
What would a ballpark addition of a mansard roof run these days? It would be to make the top floor a duplex without adding additional units?
Give me a ring, I’ve done two of these in Manhattan. One was Landmarked. As Jim says, it is not a problem as long as it is not seen from the street and you have additional FAR to use.