A Live-Work Loft Takes Shape in a Naylor Court Garage

• June 19th 2017

by Nena Perry-Brown

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A few years ago, two adjacent 19th-century alley properties on Naylor Court went up for sale. Now, the couple who purchased the portion of the property that is little more than a raw garage is converting it into the city’s newest live-work property.

While the properties had previously been used in tandem as part of a Prohibition speakeasy and a furniture factory, the building at 1317 Naylor Court NW (map) has served as a personal auto garage for decades. Since purchasing the property in 2014, new owners Nick Rubenstein and his girlfriend Jennifer have been wading through the city’s bureaucracy to secure a zoning variance for the site and historic preservation approval for design plans.

Originally, the couple wanted to replace the structure entirely with a new loft residence. Because they currently reside in a converted schoolhouse condo in Adams Morgan, they were attracted to the scale and potential of the garage.

“It has a height and width and feeling of openness that is hard to find,” Rubenstein explained. As is, the garage has 12.5 foot-tall walls and a series of skylight punch-outs along the ceiling.

However, the Historic Preservation Office staff was adamantly opposed to full demolition. The plans, designed by KUBE architecture, have since evolved to create a two-story loft home with basement that will retain the original brick facade, party walls and steel beams.

The design would carve out a two-car garage off the alley, leading to a large workshop space where the owners can work on pet projects. A tiled pathway alongside the garage will lead to the open main floor, where a living/dining area faces a double-height kitchen portion on the far wall. The upper floor will have an abundance of windows, with two bedrooms facing the alley and a partial loft with a bonus room. The home will also have a roof deck accessible from the second floor.

Excavation will begin on the site in the next few weeks, putting the delivery date roughly in the first quarter of 2018.

This article originally published at https://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/a_live-work_loft_planned_for_naylor_court_garage/12636.