By Brian J Pape, AIA, LEED-AP
When it comes to renovating rental apartments, saving money and time is key. The sooner the work can be done, the sooner a paying tenant can be living there. And given the age of many West Village apartments, the need for renovation can be long overdue.
This was the situation our publisher George Capsis found himself in during the Pandemic shutdown, having lost all his tenants. Apartment 3F needed a quick fix-up to appeal to new prospective tenants.
Dusty used her interior design skills to arrange for a plan to transform the tiny kitchen and worn-out bathroom into something modern and fresh. By using an L-shape kitchen layout, it was possible to add more counterspace and larger appliances, while also creating a buffer space between the living room and the bathroom. The bathroom got new fixtures and marble highlights that matched the existing marble floor.
The kitchen cabinets came from a friend who was renovating their apartment, but new appliances were needed too. Enter Renovation Angel, or rather, enter George and Dusty into Renovation Angel’s Fairfield, NJ showroom. Renovation Angel has the high-quality, name-brand appliances and fixtures they needed, at a price that beat any big-box store brands. Rowan Groth, at the Fairfield store, said, “We sell everything as-is, and a good portion of what we sell comes in unused. The warranties depend on the item, so customers can deal directly with
the manufacturer. If an item is busted, we take returns within 2 weeks.”
Renovation Angel is a recycling company that specializes in luxury kitchens and interiors, originating in Greenwich, Connecticut in 2005, and is a donation program of Recovery Unlimited, a section 501(c)3 non-profit organization also established in 2005. Steve Feldman, founder of Renovation Angel, says that 7300 kitchens have been recycled, either from showrooms or private owners, enabling the donors to reap a donation credit. Renovation Angel, in turn, has distributed over $2.3 million to charitable programs.
