Expanding an 1899 Brooklyn Townhouse Meant Room for the Grandparents—and Their Passions

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Project Details:

Location: Brooklyn, New York

Designer: TBo / @tbo_architecture

Footprint: 2,260 square feet

Architect of Record: Enthink Engineering

Builder: Prestigne Renovation Group Inc.

Structural Engineer: Enigma Engineering

Millworker: Moonlight Woodwork

Styling: Brittany Albert / @britt_albert

Photographer: Matthew Williams

From the Designer: "TBo has recently completed work on the renovation and enlargement of an 1899 townhouse located in Brooklyn, New York. Located on a quiet tree-lined block, the Monroe Street House comprises living and studio space for three generations of a family. The design weds an original modest Federal style brick house with a generous sunlit extension framing a rediscovered rear garden.

"Careful consideration was given to the composition of a period home that retains its historical dimensions and intimate functions in the front rooms but allows for more generous and communal zones in the rear. The narrow lot, bound on both sides by deep neighboring buildings, created a challenging set of conditions. Delivering light into the house was a paramount concern for the clients. The new rear extension navigates the need for increased floor area while maximizing daylight and the connection to the outdoors. Built of a poured-in-place concrete frame, it is designed within a modest 200-square-foot footprint in order to complement, but not overwhelm, the proportions of the original building. Into this frame are inserted the programmatic needs of the family: the entire ground floor is built out to accommodate a painting studio which opens onto a sun-dappled sunken garden; on the parlor level a kitchen bay shares space with a deck for alfresco dining; and on the top floor the L-shaped primary bedroom suite features space for a music annex with treetop views. Multiple windows and doors on every floor provide natural ventilation and a dynamic and playful facade.

"The clients and their young children occupy the upper two floors, while the ground floor apartment belongs to the grandparents, one of whom is a painter. The grandparents desired a light-filled studio that would double as an art making space and play space to care for their grandchildren. The brick arcade between the kitchen and the new studio is a remnant of the original building and creates a porous passageway highlighting the transition between the old and new structures. The ground floor studio is excavated to increase the ceiling height and allow for a seamless flow into the garden—its new concrete floor is poured and polished to a low sheen and the gravel texture that is revealed in the floor is echoed by the pea gravel garden patio just outside, binding the spaces together. The extension acts as a transitional zone between the original house and the garden, creating gentle oppositions and offering a versatile set of spaces with functional complexity.

"The house features a palette of natural, raw, and minimally treated materials which will allow them to patina and age gracefully in place. The poured concrete frame is left bare and the smooth breathable lime plastered walls contrast with the existing brick building, while the expressed concrete structural arrangement is repeated and reinforced in the deep Doug fir ceiling beams running across the dining bay. The new rear facade is coated with a simple blend of rough and smooth stucco treatments, framing the interior views."