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The Garage That Grew a House

A former auto-repair shop gets a second life as a five-story rowhouse.

The Building Façade: The new multi-story house (built within the original façade and brick walls of the auto shop) has two recessed floors not visible from the street; the exterior cornice is custom brick. Photo: Jennifer Trausch
The Building Façade: The new multi-story house (built within the original façade and brick walls of the auto shop) has two recessed floors not visible from the street; the exterior cornice is custom brick. Photo: Jennifer Trausch

For years, Jared Snyder, who runs the decorative-finishing company JJ Snyder Studio, used to get his work van fixed at J&S Auto Repair. “I mentioned to my studio manager, James Perry Owens, when I was in there one day that I would love to buy a garage like that — ideally for a studio, as we needed more space and a better location.” A few months later, Jerry Salter, who’d been running the garage for over 30 years, told Owens he was ready to sell. Snyder closed on the building, located on the Clinton Hill–Bed-Stuy border, in 2012. He initially thought he would add one floor above it and create a modest live-work space. But once he found the right architect — Eli Fernald, who, along with partners Bretaigne Walliser and Thom Dalmas, founded FABR Studio + Workshop in 2012 — the project became more ambitious.

Photo: Jennifer Trausch

The firm had the idea to add three more floors and was the only studio that understood why Snyder wanted to keep the garage’s façade. “There were so many large, new glass-and-steel developments in the neighborhood, void of context and character,” Snyder says. Fernald adds, “We thought it was just a simple industrial shape that was well worth keeping.” After a three-year renovation (it took quite a while to acquire all the necessary permits), Snyder and his wife, set decorator Becky Harvey, moved in; they live on the bottom two floors, which also feature a garage and a cloistered garden, while renters live on the other three. For the furniture, the couple trawled flea markets, eBay, antiques shops, and auctions. “We can confirm that every bit of furniture we own — barring two rugs and one armchair — has been pre-owned,” Harvey says. “That may explain why everything looks like it’s been here forever.”

The Dining Room: The brick wall has J&S Auto Repair’s original paint and graffiti. The steel windows were built on-site, and the floor is polished black concrete. The dining chairs, found on eBay, are from a schoolroom. Photo: Jennifer Trausch
The Kitchen: The design was by B. Dollarhide & Co. “Brady Dollarhide also introduced us to our architect, Eli Fernald,” Harvey says. The stove backsplash was designed by Vanessa DeLeon at TileBar. The brass gooseneck spout on the sink is from Waterworks, and the cabinetry is by Jon Besch Custom. Photo: Jennifer Trausch
The Living Room: The saffron color on the walls is a custom mix by JJ Snyder Studios. The sofa was an eBay find. “We won the cabinet for $350 at Bremo Auctions in Virginia,” Harvey says. The lamps are from the Rago Arts and Auction Center. The chairs are from Bed-Stuy’s Bedford Galleries. Photo: Jennifer Trausch
Master Bedroom: Harvey had the curtains stitched together with two different fabrics from Rosen & Chadick and New York Elegant Fabrics. The rug is from West Elm, and the armchair is from ABC Carpet & Home. The grasscloth wall covering, Manila Hemp in the color Saddle, is from Phillip Jeffries. Photo: Jennifer Trausch
The Bathtub by the Window in the Master Bathroom: The tub is a salvage from Build It Green. “It weighs close to a ton, so it had to be lifted by crane through the front end of the building. It was so heavy that when they set it down, it went straight through four inches of subfloor to the concrete base,” Harvey says. “We were worried, but it was an easy fix to add a second layer of subfloor.” Photo: Jennifer Trausch
Guest Room: The pearly, Deco-style wood-veneer wallpaper is Ajiro Fanfare from Maya Romanoff. Photo: Jennifer Trausch
Exterior of dining room and back garden: The dining room opens out to the split-level back garden; its cobblestones were sourced by the architects. Snyder and Harvey did the planting themselves. Photo: Jennifer Trausch

*A version of this article appears in the June 24, 2019, issue of New York Magazine. Subscribe Now!

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A Former Auto-Repair Shop Gets a Second Life As a Rowhouse