Miraculously, I found a room in NYC that I can afford. The problem is, the space is tiny, 5 by 10 feet. I am 6’4” and it isn’t easy scrunching inside 50 square feet. The twin bed nearly occupies the entire space. I do have a high ceiling though, 9 feet. So, with the cramped square footage, I needed to take advantage of the cubic footage. After all, this is the vertical city.
Checking the internet, my options seemed limited. I could build my own loft, but I don’t have any tools. Loft frames are sold in stores, but I doubt they can support an adult my size. I weigh well over 200 pounds and I need something sturdy. I can’t sleep on a wobbly frame that would give me nightmares about collapsing beneath me. I also didn’t want something that would squeak every time I rolled over. Most importantly, I needed something that I could afford.
Then I found Chicago Lofts, NYC and made the call. The owner, Kelly Zullo, answered and checked her schedule. She was booked for the weekend, but since I only needed a twin size loft, she graciously squeezed the order in. I gave her the dimensions of the room, listed what I needed, and then after the call, placed the order on her website.
A musician and songwriter, Kelly lives in Columbus, Ohio. The location puts her in proximity to a number of large cities offering a variety of venues for her musical performances. Then, once every four to six weeks, Kelly makes a trip to New York City to build lofts.
A few years before, while she was living in Chicago, she encountered the same predicament as my own and built a loft in her space. Shortly thereafter, building lofts became a side job. For over two years Kelly has been elevating hundreds of people’s sleep and providing them with more space to live.
Sunday evening, about 5 PM, Kelly arrived and within an hour, the loft was built. I crawled up onto the loft to check it out and the loft felt sound and sturdy. Now, not only can I sleep in the space, I have room to move around and instead of working on my lap, I actually have a desk.
Kelly delivered and built the twin size loft in my space for $515. She can also build lofts for full and queen mattresses.
Check out Chicago Lofts, NYC for pricing and a photo gallery.
Also, check out Kelly’s music and tour schedule at www.KellyZullo.com.
Observe the transformation.
Garrett Buhl Robinson is a poet and novelist living in New York City. www.garrettrobinson.us
