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https://www.barrons.com/articles/let-the-sunshine-into-urban-homes-tricks-and-techniques-to-boost-natural-light-01662473892
No one ever complains about having too many windows, said John Potter, a partner with Morgante Wilson Architects in Evanston, Illinois.
“The first step in any remodel or new construction is to orient rooms where they can get the most natural light.”
While it’s a little more challenging to bring natural light into an urban townhouse or high-rise condo than with a single-family home, architects find creative ways to remodel city homes to fill them with the light people crave. Adding more windows might appear to be a simple solution, but that’s impossible in some urban dwellings because of zoning rules, landmarked status or the configuration of the building. Instead, architects are opening stairwells, reconfiguring floor plans and installing skylights to create a sense of light and air.
“The challenge with interior townhouses is that they’re long and narrow and therefore dark in the middle,” said Sarah Jefferys, principal of Sarah Jefferys Architecture + Interiors in New York City. “Ideally, you can open the back with floor-to-ceiling glass. Even if the building is landmarked and you can’t change the front, you can often do the back.”
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Many neighborhoods in New York, Chicago and San Francisco have historic designations or landmark status that affect what architects can do.
“When you’re working on a landmarked building, you usually can’t change the windows and must utilize the existing window and door cutouts, at least in the front of a townhouse,” said Tamara Silver, a partner at ROART architecture firm in New York City. “In condo buildings, you usually have to keep a consistent facade, so you can’t change the shape of the windows there, either.”
At a landmarked five-story Brooklyn Heights townhouse that was previously used for 10 studio apartments, Ms. Silver did a gut renovation and installed an elevator and an open staircase in the center of the building so that the living spaces were all on the exterior walls. The foundation was dug deeper to allow for higher ceilings, which add to the sense of light and air in the property.
“We installed a huge skylight over the top of the open stairwell to bring light throughout the entire house,” Ms. Silver said.
Townhouse Tweaks to Add Light
Ms. Jefferys also added a skylit stairwell to filter natural light into all three levels of a townhouse in Brooklyn’s Park Slope. The back of the house is mostly glass.
“The floor plan had been all cut up into small dark rooms, so opening the rooms and installing the staircase with open railings and treads infused the whole house with light,” Ms. Jefferys said.
In a similar project in Brooklyn’s Cobble Hill neighborhood, Ms. Jefferys was able to combine two front windows into a new bay window even though the house is in a historic district.
“We moved the stairs in that house, too, to the center of the floor plan with a skylight overhead,” Ms. Jefferys said. “Moving staircases like that only works when you’re doing a gut renovation.”
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One landmarked townhouse Mr. Potter remodeled in Chicago sits at the base of a high-rise building, which meant a skylight wouldn’t be an option because of privacy issues. The exterior of the property couldn’t be changed at all.
“The entrance had great windows, but the light was blocked by a traditional enclosed staircase and a second-floor landing,” Mr. Potter said. “We reconfigured the house by scooping out the landing into a curved balcony with sculptural glass railings and added a curved open-rail staircase in front of the window wall so the light filters into both the main and second levels.”
Condo Configurations to Bring in More Light
When renovating one unit in a condo, it’s typically impossible to change the configuration of the windows. Sometimes it’s possible to replace divided light windows with clear glass to bring in more light, Ms. Jefferys said.
“Another option with condos is to open the floor plan entirely to allow light to flow from one space to another,” Ms. Jefferys said. “I like to use oversized sliding panels that can be left completely open or closed to divide the space when you want to.”
Ms. Jefferys also uses light coves with warm LED bulbs that can be partially hidden in ceilings and walls to mimic natural light in spaces where windows and skylights can’t be added.
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Ms. Silver converted a landmarked commercial building into a mid-rise condo in Manhattan’s Tribeca neighborhood, adding a sixth floor to the building to allow for duplex penthouses with front and rear roof decks. The windows couldn’t be changed in the front because of the historic designation.
“The ground floor is still a commercial space and then the second through fourth levels have full-floor units with a big open living space at the front with 10-foot-high windows,” said Ms. Silver. “The duplexes have floor-to-ceiling sliding glass walls on the back where we were allowed to make changes in the windows.”
In another high-rise condo where the windows couldn’t be changed, Ms. Silver reconfigured the floor plan by moving a tiny interior kitchen to the former living room space at the front of the unit.
“We created a completely open kitchen, dining and living area, which works well for this family with young kids and takes advantage of the space with the most natural light,” said Ms. Silver.
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One difficulty with remodeling high-rise buildings is that in the past, developers kept ceilings lower to fit as many units into a building as possible, said Geddes Ulinskas, principal of Geddes Ulinskas Architects in San Francisco. Mr. Ulinskas tries to raise ceiling heights by replacing heating and cooling systems with ductless systems that allow for higher ceilings, which in turn mean the doors and windows can be taller.
“In condos, you want to maximize access to outdoor light and space for as many rooms as possible, but that often leaves you with a dark long hallway,” Mr. Ulinskas said. “In one condo we created a hallway enclosed by sliding glass walls that open to a narrow balcony. The other side of the hallway has a guest bedroom with a wall of glass that looks out across the balcony to the city skyline.”
The owners walk through the light-filled hallway to get to their suite. The guest room has shades for when privacy is needed. Sliding glass doors with 12-foot-wide openings connect the living and dining room to the balcony.
In another condo, Mr. Ulinskas improved the light in a long dark hallway that he widened to 7.5 feet.
“At the end of the corridor, double-glass doors open into the primary suite dressing room, which has large windows,” said Mr. Ulinskas. “The glass doors allow us to borrow light for the hallway from that space.”
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Privacy concerns and limited views also confront architects when they want to increase the natural light in an urban home.
“The biggest challenge is optimizing the views through windows,” said Mary Maydan, principal of Maydan Architects in Palo Alto. “While we always want to bring in light and air, in a dense neighborhood that is surrounded by other buildings, windows often face other structures in close proximity, or if you’re unlucky, roofs or mechanical shafts.”
Depending on the location, Ms. Maydan handles an unattractive view by switching clear glass to frosted glass or by placing a planter outside the window to create a better view.
Mr. Potter remodeled a Chicago condo where the living room was partly below ground without much of a view.
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“The living room has a sliding glass door into the patio, and we were able to get the condo association to approve adding terraces with natural stone and plants that provide all-season texture and interest,” said Mr. Potter. “It makes the window well seem larger because of the landscaping outside. We brought plants into the dining room window for the same effect because it didn’t have much of a view.”
Plants and trees can also be strategically located to improve privacy for city townhouses, said Ms. Jefferys.
At the back of the Park Slope townhouse Ms. Jefferys designed, she installed wood slats at random intervals for privacy.
“In rooms where you want more privacy, we installed denser slats that still allow light to filter through,” said Ms. Jefferys. “In living areas, the slats are set farther apart. The slats are architecturally interesting from the outside, too.”
This article originally appeared on Mansion Global.
No one ever complains about having too many windows, said John Potter, a partner with Morgante Wilson Architects in Evanston, Illinois.
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