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Kitchen remodeling · Brooklyn

Brooklyn kitchen remodeling for rowhouses and pre-war homes

MMA Construction & Remodeling handles kitchen remodeling in Brooklyn, NY for rowhouses and two- to four-unit buildings, many of them built before 1940. We plan narrow kitchens around their real walls and floors, plan gas, water and power changes, and confirm landmark and permit steps before anything is ordered.

  • Galley and through-room kitchens planned to measured aisle widths
  • Old plaster, wiring and floors opened with a plan for what turns up
  • Landmark map search done before any new vent or window change
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Kitchen with a walnut island, navy tall cabinets, white upper cabinets and globe pendants

Scope

Kitchen work we take on in Brooklyn homes

Brooklyn kitchens are often long and narrow, run beside a shared party wall and stack above or below another unit. The scope reflects that from the first drawing.

  • Galley and single-wall layouts reworked for storage, landing space and light
  • Demolition of old finishes, with asbestos and lead checks scheduled ahead of it
  • Leveling out-of-true floors and walls so cabinets and counters sit straight
  • New supply, drain and gas runs, with DOB filing where required
  • Electrical upgrades where old wiring cannot carry modern appliances
  • Range hood and duct route planned around party walls and the street facade
  • Countertops templated after cabinets are set, then backsplash, floor and paint

Process

How MMA Construction & Remodeling runs a kitchen remodeling project

Written scope, written proposal, permits identified up front, and one project lead from start to finish.

  1. Conversation

    You describe the home and what you want to change. We ask about budget range and timing so expectations are clear early.

  2. Site visit and scope

    We look at the space, the structure of the house and any HOA, co-op or condo rules that apply, then write a scope of work.

  3. Design and selections

    Layout, materials and fixtures are agreed in writing before work is priced in full.

  4. Written proposal

    A written price and schedule for the agreed scope. Permits and any approvals are identified at this stage.

  5. Build

    One project lead coordinates the trades and keeps you updated. Some regulated work may require appropriately licensed specialty contractors.

  6. Walkthrough

    We review the finished work with you and resolve anything outstanding.

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Brooklyn

What changes a kitchen remodel in Brooklyn

  1. Narrow rooms need measured aisles, not guesses

    Attached houses outnumber detached ones in Brooklyn, and rowhouse kitchens tend to run front to back between a party wall and a stair. NKBA's planning guidelines recommend a work aisle of at least 42 inches for one cook and 48 inches when several people cook. Those figures are recommendations, not code, but they decide whether a galley gets base cabinets on both walls or a shallower run on one side. We measure the room, the stair opening and the window before a single cabinet is drawn.

  2. Pre-war buildings hide work behind the plaster

    Nearly half of Brooklyn housing units are in buildings from 1939 or earlier. In those kitchens, demolition often reaches layers of old flooring, plaster on lath, abandoned pipes and wiring sized for a different century of appliances. Before work that could disturb suspect materials, NYC requires an asbestos survey by a DEP-certified investigator, so we book that step ahead of demolition instead of reacting to a surprise. The written scope also carries an allowance for conditions found once the walls are open. How hidden conditions and allowances move the total is covered in what moves a New York City kitchen budget.

  3. Stacked kitchens affect the other units

    About 32% of Brooklyn units are in buildings with two to four units, so a kitchen often sits directly above or below a neighbor's. A new sink position may need a drain path through the ceiling below, and closing a shared riser affects every household on it. If you rent out a unit and the building dates from before 1960, the city's Local Law 1 of 2004 makes you treat that unit as having lead-based paint. Protection, notice and shutoff times are planned with all of that in view.

  4. A new vent in a historic district

    Brooklyn has dozens of LPC historic districts, including Park Slope, Brooklyn Heights, Fort Greene, Ditmas Park and Bay Ridge Parkway-Doctors' Row. LPC's permit page lists interior work that affects the exterior, such as vents, among work needing an LPC permit, along with interior work that needs a DOB permit. For a kitchen, the hood duct exit and any window change are the items to raise. We search the address on LPC's map first and design the duct route with that answer in hand.

Planning a kitchen in a Brooklyn rowhouse?

Send photos of the room, the ceiling below if you can, and the address. We check designation and building type before the site visit.

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Local evidence

Brooklyn evidence behind the kitchen plan

Brooklyn housing units by type and age (ACS 2024 1-year estimates)
MeasureShare of housing units
Single-family attached8.2%
Single-family detached4.5%
Two-unit buildings15.2%
Three- and four-unit buildings16.5%
Built 1939 or earlier48.4%

Building permits for any Brooklyn address come from the NYC Department of Buildings. For kitchens, DOB treats installing new cabinets as work without a permit, and says more involved jobs may require plans from a licensed engineer or architect. Home improvement contractors working in the five boroughs must hold a NYC DCWP license.

Lots with homes inside an LPC historic district, selected Brooklyn NTAs (PLUTO 26v2, accessed 2026-11-08)
NTA (DCP code)Lots with homesOne- or two-family shareLots in an LPC historic district
Park Slope (BK0602)6,46443.3%2,548 (39.4%)
Flatbush, NTA BK14023,03271.1%850 (28.0%)
Flatbush, NTA BK14012,43751.4%52 (2.1%)
Bay Ridge (BK1001)9,67471.7%52 (0.5%)

An NTA is a group of census tracts that approximates a neighborhood; its name and edges are not official boundaries. A district count is a reason to search your own address, not a finding about it. Separately, paid work that disturbs paint in pre-1978 housing falls under EPA lead-safe rules, which reaches almost every pre-war Brooklyn kitchen.

The neighborhood pages for Park Slope, Brooklyn Heights, Flatbush and Bay Ridge go further into district designations and building-type checks.

Planning a kitchen remodel in Brooklyn? Call or email us to talk it through and arrange a consultation.

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Questions

Kitchen remodeling in Brooklyn: questions

Can a rowhouse galley kitchen fit an island?
Only if the room is wide enough to keep a comfortable aisle on both sides of it. NKBA's walkway recommendation alone is 36 inches, and most narrow Brooklyn kitchens cannot spare that twice plus the island itself. A peninsula, one long run with tall storage, or a freestanding work table often does more. See a kitchen without an island for the alternatives we talk through at the site visit.
What if the floor slopes in our old kitchen?
It is common in buildings this age, and it matters most for cabinets and stone counters, which need a level, flat base. We check the floor during the site visit and price leveling as its own line so you can see it. If the slope points to a joist or beam problem, that becomes a question for a qualified professional; structural repair is not part of our scope.
Who checks for asbestos before the old kitchen comes out?
In New York City, a DEP-certified investigator surveys for asbestos before work that could disturb suspect materials. In pre-war kitchens, old sheet flooring, its adhesive and some pipe insulation are the usual suspects. We schedule the survey before demolition. If anything tests positive, we leave it in place and removal is arranged with a qualified abatement firm before our crew continues.
Our house is in a historic district. Can we still change the kitchen layout?
Often, yes, but it can add a step. LPC's permit page lists interior work that needs a DOB permit, and interior work that shows on the exterior, among work needing an LPC permit. Moving gas or plumbing can therefore bring LPC in even when nothing changes outside. We look the address up on LPC's landmarks map and put any LPC step in the written schedule.

Keep exploring

Read before you plan

Sources

  1. B25024 Units in Structure, Kings County (Brooklyn), ACS 2024 1-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau via Census Reporter (2025 (ACS 2024 1-year release)). Accessed 2026-11-02.
  2. B25034 Year Structure Built, Kings County (Brooklyn), ACS 2024 1-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau via Census Reporter (2025 (ACS 2024 1-year release)). Accessed 2026-11-02.
  3. Asbestos Abatement, NYC Department of Environmental Protection. Accessed 2026-11-02.
  4. Lead-Based Paint, NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development. Accessed 2026-11-02.
  5. Historic Districts (dataset skyk-mpzq), NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission via NYC Open Data (rows updated 2026-06-18). Accessed 2026-11-08.
  6. Permit Types, NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission. Accessed 2026-11-08.
  7. Landmark Status Letter, NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission. Accessed 2026-11-08.
  8. Do I Need a Permit?, NYC Department of Buildings. Accessed 2026-11-02.
  9. Renovating Kitchens & Bathrooms, NYC Department of Buildings. Accessed 2026-11-02.
  10. License Checklist: Home Improvement Contractor, NYC Department of Consumer and Worker Protection. Accessed 2026-11-02.
  11. Primary Land Use Tax Lot Output (PLUTO), version 26v2 (dataset 64uk-42ks), NYC Department of City Planning via NYC Open Data (26v2 (rows updated 2026-08-24)). Accessed 2026-11-08.
  12. 2020 Census Tracts to 2020 NTAs and CDTAs Equivalency (dataset hm78-6dwm), NYC Department of City Planning via NYC Open Data (2021-09-20). Accessed 2026-11-08.
  13. PLUTO Data Dictionary (23v1.1), NYC Department of City Planning (2023-05). Accessed 2026-11-08.
  14. The Newest New Yorkers 2026, Chapter 1, NYC Department of City Planning (2026). Accessed 2026-11-08.
  15. Lead Renovation, Repair and Painting Program Rules, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Accessed 2026-11-02.
  16. Kitchen Planning Guidelines with Access Standards, National Kitchen & Bath Association (NKBA) (2022 (PDF upload date)). Accessed 2026-11-02.

Talk to us about your kitchen project in Brooklyn

Call or email us to talk it through and arrange a consultation.

Call MMA Construction (516) 212-9311Email us