A brave client fell in love with an abandoned train depot and, as if that weren’t challenging enough, moved a historic caboose to the site.

Her fascination with trains and the possibilities of this derelict building magnified every time she drove by until she knew she had to buy it. One word for this client: intrepid. Structures suffering extreme neglect and in need of pretty much everything don’t faze us at all. Still, these buildings present new kinds of problems to solve, including how to get electricity, running water, plumbing, HVAC and insulation into a building that never had any—and doesn’t have a basement to put it all in—while also preserving as much historic fabric as possible. And it’s in an environmentally sensitive wetlands buffer zone. Together with Marilyn Kaplan of Preservation Architecture, we developed a rehabilitation strategy for the structures that reprograms them for residential use, specifically short-term rentals to share a direct experience of railroad history with as many people as possible. We helped the client successfully navigate a permitting process that involves in-depth review by town zoning and planning boards; the county planning, highway and health departments; the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation; and the State Historic Preservation Office. In order to qualify for historic rehabilitation tax credits, the adaptive reuse of the depot must strike a careful balance, enhancing it with 21st-century residential features (bedrooms, kitchen, bathrooms), addressing current building and energy codes, and raising the structure up out of the floodplain. We’re excited to work with a team of trade and design professionals at the top of their games with skills matched to this unique project. 

Her fascination with trains and the possibilities of this derelict building magnified every time she drove by until she knew she had to buy it. One word for this client: intrepid. Structures suffering extreme neglect and in need of pretty much everything don’t faze us at all. Still, these buildings present new kinds of problems to solve, including how to get electricity, running water, plumbing, HVAC and insulation into a building that never had any—and doesn’t have a basement to put it all in—while also preserving as much historic fabric as possible. And it’s in an environmentally sensitive wetlands buffer zone. Together with Marilyn Kaplan of Preservation Architecture, we developed a rehabilitation strategy for the structures that reprograms them for residential use, specifically short-term rentals to share a 

direct experience of railroad history with as many people as possible. We helped the client successfully navigate a permitting process that involves in-depth review by town zoning and planning boards; the county planning, highway and health departments; the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation; and the State Historic Preservation Office. In order to qualify for historic rehabilitation tax credits, the adaptive reuse of the depot must strike a careful balance, enhancing it with 21st-century residential features (bedrooms, kitchen, bathrooms), addressing current building and energy codes, and raising the structure up out of the floodplain. We’re excited to work with a team of trade and design professionals at the top of their games with skills matched to this unique project.