Halsey Street Reno: Garden Level Part II

Working With Raw Spaces

After a few years of renovating old homes, I have to say that the garden floor of our Halsey Street brownstone is the hardest job I've ever done. Why was it so hard? Because I basically started with a raw space.

Starting with a raw space can have some pluses: you have the option of making additions, like adding bedrooms. Of course I tried to turn the garden into a two bedroom apartment, but after consulting with Mrs. Renovation, some relatives and my contractors, we decided that it looked too tight as a two bedroom.


We also figured that a potential tenant would enjoy a more open one-bedroom instead of a tight two-bedroom.
So, we got our mason R., on the job. Two and a half months later, we had a nice, sparkly, spacious one bedroom that was rented two weeks after we began showing it.