We have been following Bob and his home renovations adventures on Chambers Street. So far he has done a lot of work to the interior of his home. He is still working fervently, now paying attention to the exterior.
As Bob said, “There were many bikes and parts strewn about, along with a lot of branches and logs and other trash. The remaining bikes are now in one area, which, as you’ll see, was previously piled up with branches. The wood has been put into a consolidated neat pile and is being removed slowly but surely.”
Here is his new neighbor whom he affectionately called Woody, but his sister calls Chuck.
This is the same corner with all the debris removed. Paying attention to the exterior façade of a home is so important when renovating a home. It shows that you are an active member of the community and encourages others to keep up their homes as well. Thanks for sharing Bob!
If you would like to share your own home renovation adventure photos, please email me.
Last week we posted about some of Newburgh’s finest rowhomes, Quality Row. A reader, Merridith Ingram, recently sent in photos of the before, middle, and after renovation process of updating her home. She thought that other Newburgh Restoration readers might like to see what a Quality Row home looks like on the inside.
They removed A LOT of lead paint and refinished many surfaces, as you will be able to see through the progression of photos.
The Ingram’s tried to stay as true to the layout as possible. The only adjustment made to the blueprint was to add a closet. They also added a new kitchen using Newburgh City’s own Royal Fine Woodworking.
The results of the renovation are gorgeous, elegant, and compliment the historical character of the home.
The kitchen looks amazing, and we love how they left the original fireplace in tact.
Merridith wants people to know that families DO live in the City of Newburgh. They have three children, and their house is definitely a family house. One special spaced they carved out for their daughter is an art studio in the basement. As she said, “These big, old houses give kids a LOT of room for creativity.” My childhood self is drooling with jealousy!
A hard lesson the Ingram’s learned about lead paint that they would like to share, “Regardless of how many surfaces you rehab or replace, you should always test it before exposing small children or pregnant women to the building. It’s actually pretty easy to keep your kids safe if you follow some simple steps with renovations, and are aware of what should be cleaned frequently. (http://www2.epa.gov/lead/protect-your-family).”
Thank you Merridith for such a wonderful tour! Hopefully this will inspire other families to restore a house and make Newburgh their home.
If you would like to share your own home renovation adventure photos, please email me.
Last Wednesday Bob shared the start of his home renovations of a lovely rowhome on Chambers Street. Today he shares the work he did refinishing his wood floors in his master bedroom. He removed one layer of carpet, only to find another layer of carpet that was an indoor/outdoor carpet with a black rubber backing that eventually had just turned to powder. Below are the beautiful results after he was all done.
Bob said that after the carpet was removed the house started to smell better. But, it was a huge undertaking and a lot of dust! One can only imagine!
This is Bob’s next project, removing layer upon layer of old tile. He’s hoping there is an original floor somewhere below there. Wouldn’t it be great if more homes in Newburgh could be cared for with such detail? There are plenty to go around!
If you have your own home renovation photos you would like to contribute, please email me.
New Newburghers and urban pioneers are canvasing the entire landscape of the city. It is especially exciting when someone purchases a home in disrepair on a block that has yet to be pioneered. So is the case with Bob, who has been in love with this 1890’s Chambers Street house for quite some time. After a long and laborious process he finally closed on the home March 15. His first entry as a homeowner was on St. Patrick’s day for which he hangs his ancestors Irish flag.
Bob is now tackling projects one at a time. One of the first projects was the bath. How amazing is it that he chose to restore this tub instead of throwing it in the garbage and buying a new one? He still has one more tub to go! He also started working on the tower bedroom.
This is a before shot of the tower bedroom. As Bob said, he started by “concentrating on the one room over the last three weekends, first the ceiling painting, then the woodwork painting, then the wallpapering, then the furnishing, it’s like establishing a beachhead from which to launch the invasion further. It’s a wonderful feeling to contemplate what I’ve managed in less than a month’s ownership.” Indeed it is amazing what he has accomplished in such a short period of time. Below are the beautiful after results.
Lifting that heavy marble dresser up to the third floor was no easy task, but oh so worth it. Bob, with the help of his sister are working on other projects like the backyard, a creepy cellar, and scraping the floors. He plans on sharing more projects with Newburgh Restoration readers in hopes that his work will inspire others. Bob said it best, “Another property has gone from rental to owner occupied and that, I firmly believe, is the only way Newburgh is going to get back to where it should be.”
If you would like to share your home renovation adventures email me.
Sometimes finding a subject for a great Newburgh Restoration blog post can be ” just around the corner”. In this case it quite literally was, when I was recently leaving my Heights rowhouse on Overlook Place. Heading around the block and up Courtney Ave (by the corner of Liberty St), I could not help but notice scaffolding set up and and a towering young man balancing on that scaffolding, stripping the large decorative columns in front of a pastel colored “Painted Lady Victorian” that appeared as visually striking as the first lilac colored crocuses popping out of the ground to welcome Spring. In 2008 the house looked totally different.
Of course, I stopped and proceeded to introduce myself as an “almost new homeowner” in the nabe and as a contributing writer for Newburgh Restoration. As a response back, I was then treated to a very pleasant smile from the homeowner and an extremely welcome “break the ice” comment that he was indeed a fan of the Newburgh Restoration Site!
What followed was a wonderful conversation with a very talented artist, sculptor and stone cutter and an inspiring full tour of his historic Victorian that has kind of been a “blood, sweat and tears” project house that has spanned intermittently over the last 5 years.
The artist/homeowner is Chris Lewis who has a working stone cutting/art studio located at the once gritty, but now burgeoning waterfront Brooklyn Navy Yard area, (which for those not familiar borders both Williamsburg and the trendy Clinton Hill nabes in Brooklyn.). To get a sense of Chris Lewis and his bold sculpting style, stone cutting projects and outdoor hard scapes can best be experienced at his website www.christopherlewisdesign.com
The hard work he has put into his house is obvious when you enter into the large front foyer. Chris is particularly pleased in literally uncovering the carved staircase (pictured here) which was fully enclosed in wallboard when he purchased the home. Additionally, Chris explained that he had to level the entire house which had as much as a six inch slope as you went from the front living room to the back dining room (and I can say, job well done Chris…no “old house tilt” felt underfoot). The lovely hardwood floors and the beautiful original stained glass in the upper front bedroom are decorator items that additionally help to add to the home’s Victorian personality.
Two aspects in particular that Chris is particularly proud of is the absolutely spectacular totally renovated bathroom with custom cabinetry, bold granite counter top, large and visual claw tub and a gorgeous hand cut stone floor that of course he designed, cut and installed. It includes a creative shower area that drains to the center of the bathroom floor and gives an artistically inspired “spa like feel” overall.
The other is the “self designed and hand cut” stone patio in the huge back garden area. He explained that he had to dig, excavate and remove a full foot (in height) of soil in some places to level out the garden area in order to prep it for his large stone slabs and enable him to plant the lovely Hemlock trees that border along the back and sides of the yard area.
Lastly, I asked Chris what his thoughts are regarding Newburgh’s revitalization. He explained that working on a project for 5 years is quite an experience and journey in a city like Newburgh. He has seen the city definitely improve (especially most recently again) and is inspired and hopeful of Newburgh’s path to a promising future.
A post script to the story is that Chris may need to potentially consider selling the “Newburgh Project” house as career demands force him to spend more time either traveling to site locations and spending many extended hours in his Brooklyn studio. If and when that time comes, after seeing his home, I can honestly say that he will be leaving Newburgh with a bit of his artistic talents as part of the urban landscape and even in my brief conversation with him, I think a bit of his heart will actually always remain.
Dear Diary, at this point you probably feel my fingers strumming a rhythmic beat (in between keyboard strikes) on my computer. And why might you ask? Well… it’s because of my anticipation regarding “the prolonged waiting for a closing date” in purchasing my needy rowhouse on Overlook Pl. In fact, the last time I wrote a post regarding this subject (this will be the 6th one for you Newburgh Restoration followers) was March 14th, and I could not even remotely have imagined that I’d be writing this one with a third of April gone, and still NO CLOSING DATE!!!!
OK Diary…that actually felt good getting all that angst out of my system (LOL). But now back to the facts. It turns out that the city inspection of the boiler and chimney venting (that I wrote about in my 5th Needy Rowhouse post), did not go without repair issues that were sited during the inspection. Again, to clarify, any issues that turn up with an open permit item (in this case for the new boiler installation) and was not closed out by the city prior, becomes the responsiblity of the current owner (the seller in this case) in order to remedy the issues sited.
So pay attention readers (who are potentially considering to buy or sell in the near future) to this recap. If transferring a property in the city, ANY OPEN PERMITS “that have not been filed as completed”, will need to be addressed prior to closing and a property CANNOT transfer ownership till they are inspected and ANY issues found MUST be remediated and approved with a final inspection so that a certificate of compliance can finally be filed in the city. And this could easily delay a closing if issues surface. The GOOD NEWS regarding my rowhouse is that it FINALLY did pass this week (after a second inspection needed to be conducted)!
Also Diary, I’d done my homework when my own property inspection was completed after I first went into contract on the house (as I also highlighted in an earlier entry here). I knew I would be facing important electrical work that I wanted to have done. That new work included a new outside entrance cable, new meters and breaker boxes and increased capacity for safer and better service for my tenants (when they become my tenants). I had researched a number of possibilities, also with understanding that an electrician MUST be licensed in the city of Newburgh in order to satsify code. I untimately found Fetzer Electric LLC, and happy I did! (Fetzer is an Angie’s List award winner with a number of reassuring testimonials). Most importantly it is about professional, friendly and timely service that makes a difference. I had felt that from initially speaking to Sheri in administrative and scheduling and then of course with my actual recent meeting with the electrician John Mottolese (pictured here with his assistant Ernesto Gusman) for a very detailed and educational consultation at my needy rowhouse.
So Diary, I’ll try to patiently wait for that “ellusive” actual closing date (strumming fingers starting in that rhythmic beat again). But in the interim, I can take comfort in looking at this recent picture I took of beautiful Overlook Pl. And I’ll just continue to wait for that day I can proceed to dance, “the ELECTRIC slide…boogie, woogie-woogie”. Till then, remember I HEART Newburgh!
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