Projects › Lower Manhattan › 45 West 11th Street
Completed project · Greenwich Village, New York, NY
A Greenwich Village kitchen opened into the living area by taking out the wall between them, with the electrical panel moved, a new line run out to the island through the column, and eighteen inches of wood floor lifted so the tile could reach the island. Scoped at five to seven weeks.
Job record
- Location
- Greenwich Village, New York, NY 10011
- Building
- 45 West 11th Street
- Scope
- Kitchen renovation, wall removal and electrical panel relocation
- Timeline
- Scoped at 5 to 7 weeks from commencement
- Permits
- Plumbing and electrical, pulled as part of the job
- Completed
- 2022
The kitchen before the work
White cabinets, a granite counter, a marble-look tile backsplash and stainless appliances. Nothing was failing. What the kitchen had was a wall: it ended at the living area rather than opening into it, and the peninsula stopped where that wall began.
The scope is unusually clear about timing, which is worth repeating because so few are. Work begins one to two weeks after the finishing materials are delivered, and the full scope is substantially complete five to seven weeks after that start. Materials first, then a start date, not the other way round.
What the crew did, in order
Protect the route before touching the kitchen
Hallways and common areas prepared as the building required and kept that way throughout, vents and exhaust access taped off including radiator connections, hallways cleaned at the end of each day with the Masonite lifted, and all garbage removed by whatever route the building allowed.
Take out the wall, then make good properly
The wall between the kitchen and the living area came out. It was not simply demolished: the scope specifies sheetrock, mud, tape and sand to finish, with miscellaneous light switches and outlets relocated as the new arrangement needed. That finishing sequence is the difference between an opening and a hole.
Lift eighteen inches of wood floor
To carry the kitchen tile out to the island, roughly eighteen inches of the existing wood flooring was removed at the boundary. The subfloor and concrete slab were then prepared and the tile laid across the extended area, so the floor change happens at the island rather than at the old wall line.
Move the panel, then check the load
The electrical panel was relocated up to three feet. The whole electrical scope is written as subject to confirmation by the electrician regarding the available electrical load for the apartment, which is the honest way to scope electrics in a pre-war building before anyone has opened anything.
Run power out to the island through the column
An island needs power and there is no wall to bring it from. A new 110 volt line was run out to the island through the column, which is why the island can carry an outlet without a cable crossing the floor. GFCI convenience outlets were run into the backsplash to the approved plan and the refrigerator line was relocated to suit the design.
Replace the branch plumbing, rough for a dishwasher
New hot and cold shut-off valves at two points, master and local, with new hot and cold lines and new waste and vent lines all run to the risers as branch replacements. The sink and faucet went back onto the existing rough, and a new rough was run for the dishwasher.
Pull the permits
Plumbing and electrical permits were pulled as a named line in the scope rather than assumed. On a job that moves a panel and replaces branch lines to the risers, that is not optional, and seeing it written down is a reasonable thing to ask for.
The finished kitchen
Navy shaker cabinets running to the ceiling with brass bar pulls, a white stone counter, and a handmade-look white square tile laid in a plain stacked pattern. The apartment door was painted in the same navy, so the entrance reads as part of the room rather than as an interruption.
Five appliances were installed: a refrigerator, a gas range, a range hood, a dishwasher and a microwave. The scope also allowed for saving any appliances the client wanted reinstalled rather than replaced, which is worth having in writing before demolition rather than deciding on the day.
The island is the piece the wall removal paid for. It carries the counter, seating for two, and its own power. Against the navy and the white tile, the only other materials in the room are the brass of the pulls and the black of the sink and faucet.
Materials and finishes
Structure and floor
| Element | Specification |
|---|---|
| Wall | Removed between kitchen and living area, then sheetrocked, mudded, taped and sanded |
| Wood flooring | Approximately 18 in removed to extend the kitchen tile to the island |
| Subfloor | Existing subfloor and concrete slab prepared for tile |
| Floor tile | Laid in a standard pattern and grouted |
Electrical
| Element | Specification |
|---|---|
| Panel | Relocated up to 3 ft |
| Load | Whole electrical scope subject to the electrician confirming available apartment load |
| Island supply | New 110V line run out to the island through the column |
| Refrigerator | Existing line relocated to the approved design |
| Backsplash outlets | GFCI convenience outlets run to the approved plan |
| Ceiling light | New fixture installed to the existing rough |
| Switches and outlets | Relocated as the new layout required |
Plumbing
| Element | Specification |
|---|---|
| Shut-off valves | New hot and cold at two points, master and local |
| Water branch lines | New hot and cold, run to the risers |
| Waste and vent lines | New, run to the risers |
| Sink and faucet | Installed to the existing rough |
| Dishwasher | New rough run |
| Permits | Plumbing and electrical permits pulled |
Kitchen fit-out
| Element | Specification |
|---|---|
| Cabinets | Doors, drawers, shelves, hinges and accessories, with crown and base moldings |
| Cabinet adjustment | Doors and drawers adjusted for fit and finish |
| Countertop | Templated on site, cabinets smoothed first, edge and sink mounting to selection |
| Backsplash | Walls prepared, standard tile in a standard pattern, grouted and sealed if needed |
| Appliances | Refrigerator, gas range, range hood, dishwasher and microwave |
| Retained appliances | Scope allowed for saving any the client wanted reinstalled |
| Paint | Walls, ceiling, doors and trim primed, then two coats |
The result
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Questions this project answers
How long does a kitchen remodel take in a NYC apartment?
This one is scoped in two parts, which is the useful way to read any timeline. Work begins one to two weeks after the finishing materials are delivered, and the full scope is substantially complete five to seven weeks after that start. The material lead time sits outside the build window entirely, and it is where most of the slippage in apartment renovations actually happens. When a firm quotes you six weeks, ask whether that clock starts on the contract or on the delivery.
Can I take out the wall between my kitchen and living room?
Often, if it is not structural and your building agrees. This one came out, and the scope treats the making-good as real work rather than an afterthought: sheetrock, mud, tape and sand to finish, with light switches and outlets relocated as needed. There is a second consequence people forget, and this job names it: the floors on either side of a removed wall do not match. Here roughly eighteen inches of wood flooring was lifted so the kitchen tile could run out to the island and the change of material happens somewhere deliberate.
Can I put an outlet in a kitchen island?
Yes, and it usually needs planning before the floor goes down. On this job a new 110 volt line was run out to the island through the column, which is the tidy route when one exists. Where there is no column the alternative is a channel cut in the slab, which is a different order of work in a concrete-floored apartment building. If you want power on an island, raise it at design stage; it is close to impossible to add neatly afterwards.
My apartment trips a breaker whenever I use two appliances. Can that be fixed in a renovation?
Usually, and this scope shows the right first step: it makes the entire electrical section subject to the electrician confirming the available electrical load for the apartment. That is the honest sequence. You find out what the apartment can actually carry, then you design to it. Here the panel was relocated up to three feet as part of the work, the refrigerator line was moved to suit the new layout, and GFCI outlets were run into the backsplash to plan.
What are change orders, and how do I avoid being overcharged by my contractor?
A change order is a written amendment to what was agreed. The defences in this scope are worth copying. It names its dependency, making the electrical work conditional on a load check. It names its optionality, allowing for appliances to be saved and reinstalled rather than assuming everything is replaced. It names the permits it will pull, plumbing and electrical, rather than leaving them to appear later. And it separates the material lead time from the build window, so a late delivery does not silently become a late job.
