by Jorge Fontan | Last updated Nov 8, 2021 | Apartment Renovations, General Architecture, New York City
A “Classic Six Apartment” is a term commonly used in New York City real estate parlance to describe an apartment in a prewar building that has six rooms consisting of a kitchen, living room, dining room, two bedrooms and a maid’s room. Classic... 
by Jorge Fontan | Last updated Nov 1, 2021 | General Architecture, Loft Design in NYC, Multifamily Residential
In New York, the term maisonette apartment is used to refer to any apartment on the ground floor that has an entrance accessible directly from the street. While the apartment may also be accessible from the lobby, if it has a private sidewalk entrance, it is a... 
by Jorge Fontan | Last updated Jul 10, 2020 | Architectural Design Process, General Architecture
When starting an architectural design I begin with identifying 5 key pieces of information. These 5 points are the: Program, Site, Constraints, Concept, and Goals of the project. By identifying these main points an architect will have enough information to begin an... 
by Jorge Fontan | Last updated Apr 16, 2021 | Architectural Design Process, General Architecture
Plan, Section, and Elevation are different types of drawings used by architects to graphically represent a building design and construction. A plan drawing is a drawing on a horizontal plane showing a view from above. An Elevation drawing is drawn on a vertical plane... 
by Jorge Fontan | Last updated Jun 26, 2020 | General Architecture, Hospitality, NYC DOB, NYC Zoning
Weather a hotel is a commercial or residential building is a matter of context. For example according to the New York City Zoning Resolution a hotel is a commercial use whereas the New York City Building Code Classifies a Hotel as Residential Occupancy. A hotel being... by Jorge Fontan | Last updated Feb 6, 2021 | General Architecture
In Real Estate Development the term Grandfathered means that an existing building does not have to comply with a current zoning or building code because it was legally built before the application of such code. Buildings can be Grandfathered by existing before a code... 
