Greenwich Village Townhouse, New York, New York

The project was the gut renovation of an 1850s Italianate townhouse in the Greenwich Village Historic District. The house had been divided into several apartments and had fallen into severe disrepair. The brief was to renovate the house as a modern dwelling for two families, with an owner’s apartment and a smaller accessory unit. The house was structurally compromised and required new floor framing and substantial wall repair, as well as new mechanical, electrical, and insulation systems.
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Of original historic details, only the front elevation and the main stair remained intact. The strategy for the project was to play off the restorative, 19th century elements facing the street with a modern realm facing the garden behind. A four-story extension was added to the rear of the house, with a partial glass wall to bring southern light to the interior. While rooms facing the street retain classical shapes and original details, the spaces facing the garden have loft-like proportions and emphasize a connection with the outdoors.

At the garden level the wood ceiling of the kitchen and dining room was reclaimed from floor joists salvaged from demolition. The garden itself was partially excavated to continue the floor plane of the ground floor. Light paving was used to reflect sunlight, and plantings follow a composed, minimal palette. The first floor living room also faces the garden through the glass wall and enjoys the 13-foot ceiling height of the original parlor level.

At the rear façade the brick walls bracketing the curtain wall are subtly canted inward toward the glass, providing privacy from the sides and detaching the rear façade from a similar new construction on the neighboring lot.

All work went through a detailed public review process with the Landmarks Preservation Commission and community groups.

Photographs: Matthew Williams
Project Team: Vrinda Khanna, Robert Schultz, Bethune D'Souza
General Contractor: DHE Company
Landscape Design: Julie Farris, XS Space
Structural Engineering: Ross Dalland, P.E.
​Mechanical Engineering: RJD Engineering