Residential Interior Renovation | Roslyn, New York

A More Open Kitchen for a Roslyn Home

BAWI helped transform a traditional, enclosed kitchen into a brighter first-floor gathering space by removing selected walls, coordinating new structural support, and redesigning the kitchen around everyday family life.

Completed Roslyn kitchen renovation with black island, wood cabinetry, black stone cooking wall, and marble-look counters
The completed kitchen now feels connected to the surrounding first-floor spaces.

The original kitchen had good bones and plenty of room, but it still felt separate from the rooms around it. Interior walls narrowed the circulation through the first floor and kept the kitchen from working as naturally as the family needed it to.

Baca Williamson Architects redesigned the area as a more open kitchen and coordinated the structural work required to remove selected walls safely. That meant looking beyond finishes and cabinet layouts: the team had to understand where the loads were going, how they would be carried below, and how the finished space would feel once the barriers came down.

The Challenge

The main goal was simple: open the kitchen to the adjoining rooms. The work behind that decision was more involved. BAWI identified load-bearing walls, traced the loads through the basement, and coordinated practical locations for new supports and footings. Lighting, power, plumbing, appliances, and the new ceiling layout all had to be planned together so the finished space would feel clean and intentional. The drawings also had to account for the inspection-side details that make an open-plan renovation buildable: structural load paths, framing connections, utility relocations, smoke/CO and egress considerations, and the points where old construction met the new work.

Before photo of the original Roslyn kitchen with cream cabinetry, granite island, chandelier, and enclosed layout
Before: a generous kitchen, but one that still read as a separate room.
After photo showing the opened Roslyn kitchen with two islands, black base cabinets, wood wall cabinets, and seating
After: two islands organize cooking, storage, seating, and gathering.
Detail view of the completed cooking wall with black stone backsplash, custom hood, brass accents, and professional range
A darker cooking wall gives the room depth without making the space feel closed in.

BAWI's Approach

The new layout is organized around two islands: one for preparation and storage, and another that supports seating and everyday gathering. Tall cabinetry, a dedicated coffee station, and a professional-style cooking wall give the room a clear rhythm, so each daily task has a place without crowding the circulation.

Removing the walls also changed how the first floor works structurally. BAWI coordinated new steel framing and basement support, along with recessed and under-cabinet lighting, appliance power, and revised plumbing connections. Those quieter decisions are what allow the finished kitchen to feel calm rather than patched together.

The Result

The kitchen is now part of the first floor instead of a room apart. Warm wood cabinetry and brass details soften the dark islands and black stone cooking wall. The new openings make it easier to move between the kitchen and adjoining family spaces, and the two islands give the room more function without closing it back in.

ProjectKitchen and first-floor interior renovation

LocationRoslyn, New York

ScopeSpace planning, selected wall removal, structural coordination, kitchen design, and construction drawings

Planning to Open Up Your Kitchen?

BAWI can help you understand what is possible, what structural work may be required, and what your local Building Department will need. Explore our residential architectural services, read more about designing a kitchen around everyday life, or contact BAWI to talk through your project.