See How This Condo in a Former NYC School Got a Major Update
For many of us, it's easy to fall in love with an old building, quirks and all. Likely, it's those odd nooks and historic details that make a place really feel special—that is, until you need to fit a sofa around a curved wall or an inconveniently placed beam.
Thus was the case when Sarah Jacoby was tasked with renovating an apartment in an old New York City school. “The building was originally designed as an elementary school, and then it was converted to residential in the 1980s,” explains Sarah. “So, because it was not purpose-built for condos, there are all sorts of idiosyncratic spaces. The floors don’t fully align, for example, so one of the big challenges was to make this a cohesive environment. There were a lot of odd, leftover spaces, so we worked to make those more livable.”
The homeowners had fallen in love with the space years before and had always had their eyes on it as a potential dream home. “We loved the old school house feel, the brick, the tower—it had great bones. We knew the living spaces needed a new layout and wanted to gain an additional bathroom for guests,” says one of the owners. “The most exciting part was stepping back and realizing how much we could actually do. We expected more of our ideas to be categorically out of the question, but Sarah and her team always leaned into hard problems and came up with incredibly creative solutions. She was always finding new spaces to reclaim and coming up with incredible ideas, big and small.”
One of the main priorities for the homeowners was to add another full bathroom, taking it from two baths to three. “We did a lot of re-routing of the plumbing, which, in an historic building, was a challenge. But now, my clients have an en-suite master bath, an en-suite bath in the children’s room, and an additional full bathroom,” says Sarah.
The changes have proven to be perfect in the time of quarantine. “We hoped this would be true, but we really have given ourselves a lot of private spaces for people to use independently of each other,” says the homeowner. “One of us can be in the office part-way up the stairs, another relaxing or working in the living room, the kids can be playing in their room. Even with our in-laws' long visits from the West Coast, nobody feels on top of each other. It's a real achievement in a NYC apartment.”
The project was a real collaboration with Sarah, the homeowners, and the interior designer, Kelly O’Connell. “We would send images and drawings back and forth to each other, and we would make in-person visits to see materials and fixtures," says Sarah. “We had a clear sense of where we wanted to head, but the approvals process was incredibly long. We could have sped things up by compromising on design choices, but we chose not to.”
Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest