Making an impact with an existing footprint
Renovation expert finds strategies to make best use of what you have
Bigger may be better, but for families who want homes in downtown Toronto, it’s often not an option, says Luca Penzo, who handles design and project management for Urban Blueprint, urbanblueprintdevelopments.com, a family-run design/ build/redevelopment company.
“People have their wish lists, and size might be on it. But if you want to live in Toronto, there has to be some give and take. Fortunately, there are lots of strategies to make the best use of space,” he says.
Space planning begins at the earliest stage of a redevelopment, Penzo says, which is why he prefers to work with an existing footprint rather than tear down the entire structure.
“If you go with a new build, you may have to shrink the size of the building. There may be a variance, and you can end up at the Ontario Municipal Board, which can cost time and money,” Penzo explains.
Better, he suggests, to find ways to exploit the original area.
Penzo points to Urban Blueprint’s recent work on a 1,300-square-foot Victorian row house in the Summerhill neighbourhood as an exercise in good small-space design.
With a building measuring just 12 feet wide and 79 feet long, “it became really important to remove as many physical or visual barriers that we could,” Penzo says.
That was achieved partly through the use of TJI Trus joists, which are made from lightweight but very strong engineered wood, and which come in pieces long enough to run the length of the home.
Here, they were used to reinforce the second floor, eliminating the need for beams that would have broken up the ground floor.
“They let you eliminate or reduce bulkheads and allow you to run mechanical through the floor,” Penzo says, adding that they also resist the warping, twisting and shrinking that can lead to squeaky floors.
Penzo’s sister, Natasha PenzoMcIntosh, who handles marketing and sales for the company, did the interior design of the home.
Reducing visual distractions was also key to her design strategy, as was finding ways to bring light into the long, narrow space. In the living room, that meant a minimal treatment on a vertically oriented, streetfacing window.
“It’s really nice to be able to look out and see the greenery,” Penzo-McIntosh says. “The window almost looks like it’s framing what’s outside.”
The decision to move the kitchen to the back of the house and add French doors to the exterior wall improved flow, and created a link between the galley kitchen and an outdoor area for lounging, cooking and entertaining.
The second-floor layout was also flipped. Originally, it had a bathroom and three small bedrooms, the largest of which was at the back. The master was pulled to the front of the house and one bedroom was sacrificed to an en suite and walk-in closet. Sliding Shoji doors hide room functions from the hallway.
While taking down walls adds coveted square footage, the resulting open concept space means design — rather than walls — must delineate room function, Penzo-McIntosh says.
In the dining room, that was accomplished with a feature wall in a textured seagrass wallpaper. A large, decorative mirror — which helps to bounce light into the room — is framed by sconces that signal where the dining area begins and ends.
In the kitchen, an airy, all-white palette is enlivened by the subtle pattern in the marble countertops. Floor-to-ceiling cabinets perform a double function; drawing the eye upward to create an impression of space, and providing much-needed storage.
While not averse to designing larger homes, Luca Penzo especially enjoys small-space design.
“You are a bit limited because of square footage,” he says. “But that actually gives you the ability to open yourself up creatively. Even the homeowners themselves seem more open to trying different approaches.”