Sunnyside, a neighborhood in Western Queens, is characterized by single-family semi-detached townhouses built primarily in the 1930s. The owner’s main goal was to move in with her daughter and her grandchildren, so they purchased two adjacent lots on Celtic Avenue. Celtic Avenue is unique because it runs diagonally to the neighborhood grid, creating an acute triangular lot at 43rd Street. The irregular shape of the lot presented us with challenges in space planning and in roof design. Our solution was to locate the stair toward the narrow end, and to leave the remaining sliver for the owner’s garden. Inspired by the colorful stucco facades of her hometown, St. Petersburg, Russia, the owner wanted to get away from the monotonous brick houses of Sunnyside. The stucco is done in three colors to break up the elongated massing.

Location: Sunnyside, Queens, NY

Completed Summer 2019.

Martin Torre, Architect of Record.

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