Remodeling a house in Riverdale

What this page covers

This page is for owners of one- and two-family houses in Riverdale, Fieldston and Spuyten Duyvil who are planning kitchen, bathroom, flooring or other interior work. Structural alterations, additions, exterior and site work are not planned services. Service availability has not been established.

Neighborhood data

A house in an apartment-heavy area

Only about 15% of housing units in this area are in one- or two-family buildings, yet about two-thirds of tax lots hold one. Most residents live in large buildings, while most of the land is houses. That's why apartment renovation steps, like a building alteration agreement or a board package, dominate local advice and rarely fit a house.

Landmarks Preservation Commission

Check landmark status before you scope the work

The Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) lists two historic districts in this part of the Bronx. The Riverdale Historic District was designated on October 16, 1990. The Fieldston Historic District was designated on January 10, 2006, and LPC's master plan for it describes 257 houses on about 140 acres. City lot data for this NTA tags 259 lots as Fieldston and 27 as Riverdale Historic District, plus 14 lots with individual landmarks.

LPC says to search the address on its Discover NYC Landmarks map. If a property is designated, LPC says an LPC application and permit are needed before the Department of Buildings (DOB) can act on the DOB application. LPC's permit page lists interior work that needs an LPC permit: interior work that requires a DOB permit, interior work that affects the exterior (it gives HVAC louvers and vents as examples), and work in designated interior landmarks.

Site and access

Fieldston: private streets and natural-area rules

LPC's Fieldston master plan says the Fieldston Property Owners Association owns and controls the district's streets and, in many cases, the yard areas next to them, including sidewalks. Applications for new construction, additions and site work need a letter from the association or a survey showing the work stays off its property.

The same document says the district is subject to the Special Natural Area District. The Zoning Resolution describes NA-2 as covering part of Riverdale, Spuyten Duyvil and Fieldston, with steep slopes, rock outcrops and mature trees. LPC's master plan says changes to grade, drainage or tree cover, enlargements and new buildings there need approval from City Planning. City lot data tags 990 lots in this NTA as NA-2.

• Staging and deliveries: before an interior job starts, ask the association how private streets may be used for parking, deliveries and debris containers.
• No site changes by accident: don't plan access that would cut a tree, regrade a slope or disturb rock or a stone wall. Confirm with City Planning and LPC before any work outside the house.
• Interior-only does not mean approval-free: whether a purely interior scope needs any filing at your address is a question for the agencies and a qualified professional.

A brief for a Riverdale house project

1. Look up the address on LPC's map and note whether it's in a historic district, an individual landmark or neither.
2. Note whether the lot is in Fieldston or the NA-2 natural area, and who controls the street in front.
3. List each scope item and mark any that create an exterior vent, opening or fixture.
4. Gather existing plans or DOB records if you have them. Most units here predate 1980, so plan for older wiring, piping and paint. See renovating an older home.
5. Name the rooms that must stay usable during the work, then compare proposals on the same brief using how to compare remodeling estimates.

For room scope, see kitchen remodeling and bathroom remodeling. If a new exhaust route is likely, read kitchen ventilation planning before choosing a hood. For paid work that disturbs paint in housing built before 1978, EPA lead-safe rules apply.