The question is how to redesign the kitchen without pouring new foundations, spending more than $25,000 on materials, and keeping the renovation in scale with the rest of the modest cape. The answer is move the front door twelve feet in travel distance - from the East face to the South, stop the traffic from bisecting the kitchen, and gain 30% more counterspace. This move also gives us the opportunity to provide a small porch to the entrance - a moment of domestic grace heretofore unrealized.

Then there are small organizational things which have a big impact; wall cabinets to the ceiling, an interior window opening that allows a glimpse of the Hudson River beyond the living room, and, finally, a gas stove.

Because, in phase two, the big money goes to incresing the living space along the East, that face which communicates with the river.