Historic Harlem House Modern Restoration by MESH Architectures

MESH Architectures designed the restoration to a single-family house, salvaging antique woodwork, while bringing the house up to passive-house standards. The result is a home full of 19th-century detail that is stingy with energy use and full of fresh air. 

The Program

This house, in the middle of historic Harlem, had declined to a broken-up three-family dwelling. The owners, a college professor and corporate consultant with four children, wished to restore it to a single-family dwelling, while repairing the extensive original woodwork around the windows, doors, stairs, and fireplaces. At the same time, they wanted to introduce transitional modern elements where appropriate. After learning about the passive house…