Longtime PBS show 'This Old House' finally fixes up home in city
General contractor Mike Streaman (left) and PBS hosts Norm Abram and Kevin O'Connor flank homeowner Karen Shen.
"This Old House" is making a home for itself in brownstone Brooklyn.
The venerable home improvement show is filming for the first time in the city, overhauling a young family's 1904 townhouse in Prospect Heights.
"We love Brooklyn. I'm not sure we've ever had a more warm reception from a place," said producer Deborah Hood.
"It feels like the perfect place for us."
Kevin Costello, a design director for a handbag company, and his wife, Karen Shen - both longtime fans of the program - jumped at the chance when the show asked for applicants.
"We couldn't believe it. We were thrilled. It was like winning the lottery," said Shen, a mother of three boys.
Their 4,000-square-foot, Sterling Place abode suffered years of neglect as a Brooklyn roominghouse. The show's staff hopes to salvage some of its unique period details, like its charming banisters and posts.
The family hopes to use the burgundy home's garden level and third floors as rental properties to defray mortgage costs, while keeping the middle two floors as its own living space.
Hood said the show had usually spent the warmer months filming in Boston and simply hadn't made it to New York City yet. When it put out a call for homeowners, more than a quarter of the applicants were from restoration-obsessed Brooklyn.
"I think it's really surprising for people that in almost 30 years, we've never worked in New York," she said. "We said it's finally time to come to New York, and here we are."
Neighbors have been popping by to get a peek at the work. Folks who can't make it in person can watch the progress at thisoldhouse.com/webcams.
The renovation will stretch over 10 episodes, premiering on Jan. 22 on PBS. It also will be featured in the January/February 2009 issue of This Old House magazine.
You will notice one of our owners, Michael Streaman, in the picture!! Plus I heard a rumor they use Royal Flush toilets on this jobsite!!
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