Ridgewood is the most intact early-1900s neighborhood in Queens, and renovating here means respecting that while bringing the plumbing, electrical and bathrooms into this century. The Mathews Model Flats and the brick row houses between Myrtle Avenue, Fresh Pond Road and Forest Avenue are full of original details and full of old pipe. We do the careful version of the work: plaster repaired, floors leveled, bathrooms rebuilt inside the original footprint, and permits handled.

The housing

Three-story brick Mathews Flats, six apartments to a building, run in long landmarked rows north and south of Myrtle Avenue with railroad layouts, small bathrooms and kitchens along the exterior wall. Two- and three-family brick row houses with front stoops line the blocks toward Fresh Pond Road and Seneca Avenue. Near the Bushwick border and along Woodward Avenue, converted industrial lofts and newer condos add concrete floors and open plans to the mix. Owners range from third-generation families to new buyers restoring a whole building.

What we are asked to do here

  • Bathroom Remodeling: Rebuilding the small railroad-flat bathroom within its footprint, with new branch plumbing, waterproofing and tile that suits the building's age.
  • Interior Renovations: Floor-by-floor renovations of a whole Mathews Flat or two-family, sequenced so rental units stay occupied while others are worked on.
  • Drywall and Painting: Plaster repair and skim coating through apartments where a century of paint has cracked, followed by clean two-coat paint.

Permits and building rules

Much of Ridgewood sits inside historic districts, which regulates exterior changes through the Landmarks Preservation Commission; interior bathroom, kitchen and plaster work does not require LPC review, so most of our projects here are DOB-only. Plumbing, gas and electrical changes need permits filed by licensed trades, coordinated by us. In the multi-family buildings, work in an occupied building triggers tenant-protection paperwork with the DOB, which we include in the plan and the schedule.