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Glen Park Kitchen

This project involved a first-floor gut and renovation of a 1950s era bungalow in North York.

Most 1950s era bungalows have small, non-family-friendly kitchens designed for one person. Our clients desired a space where they could cook together, eat with the family and entertain friends. The new kitchen is beautiful, bright and opens to the main living area.

Because the owners were living onsite in the basement apartment during the renovation, we took additional care with respect to dust and potential air pollutants. Our IAQ (indoor air quality) management plan included the isolation of work areas and depressurizing them with a HEPA (high efficiency particle arrest) air scrubber, using a HEPA-equipped vacuum for clean up of fine particulates, as well as the set up of an outdoor designated cutting area.

SCOPE OF WORK

The existing kitchen was completely gutted and stripped back to the masonry walls. The surrounding interior partitions were largely removed and new beams were installed to open up the space.

We moved the old central staircase to open up the kitchen and remove the small hallways. The relocation of the stair and deletion of the central bearing wall required us to re-frame most of the ceiling. All of the existing flooring was removed and the original floor joists and subfloor were replaced. New cork flooring was then installed throughout.

To maximize the cost effectiveness of the kitchen, we installed IKEA cabinet boxes and had custom FSC wood doors made. This reduced the cost of the cabinets and allowed our clients to invest in custom doors and beautiful dark charcoal PaperStone countertops.

Salvaged beams from a barn were repurposed as support posts for the new structural beam, and new custom industrial shelving delineates the kitchen and the adjacent living area. Lastly, we milled custom wood windowsills using some of the old roof and floor framing material salvaged from the interior demolition.

INCREASED WASTE DIVERSION

  • Greening Homes created a waste diversion plan before we started this project to identify potential waste/recyclable materials the project would produce
  • All salvageable wood elements from the original interior/exterior were saved and refinished for the renovation

INFORMED MATERIAL SELECTION

  • PaperStone countertops
  • Reclaimed wood window sills above the sink using the old roof framing members that were removed during demolition
  • Structural wood posts were reclaimed from an old barn (purchased from Urban Tree Salvage)
  • Cork flooring throughout
  • A 97% recycled drywall product was used throughout
  • All framing lumber (where possible) was FSC certified
  • All trim, interior doors and custom wood stair were FSC certified
  • California standard, lead free plumbing fixtures under the sink

EFFICIENT USE OF RESOURCES

  • New energy-efficient Inline Fiberglass windows were installed above the sink with double-glazed, argon filled and super-insulated frames
  • LED lighting throughout using 2.5w puck lights in the built-in cabinets and kitchen, and Aroni pot lights in the ceilings

HEALTHY INDOOR AIR QUALITY

  • All subfloors and engineered cork flooring were NAUF (no added urea-formaldehyde)
  • Non-toxic soldering flux was used on all plumbing components
  • No VOC Eco-logo certified adhesives
  • No VOC primer and paints

SMART TRANSPORTATION TO AND FROM SITE

  • This site was a 5-minute walk away from the Glencairn subway station and allowed the majority of the Greening Homes crew to take the TTC
  • Some crew members, including the Construction Manager, frequently cycled to the site in the warmer months
  • Trucks and other vehicles were used for moving materials and tools when they were required (not for day-to-day commuting)