Libraries, home offices and kitchens for Northbrook homes

Shermerville, the postwar boom and Techny

Northbrook incorporated on November 18, 1901 as the Village of Shermerville, and took the name Northbrook in 1923, after the West Fork of the North Branch of the Chicago River. It stayed small for decades: 554 people in 1920. Then came the postwar boom, from 3,348 people in 1950 to 11,635 in 1960 and 25,422 in 1970. In 1939, permits were issued for fifteen homes in Northbrook Highlands; the last working farm, Wayside Farm, was sold in 1987. Techny, the North American headquarters the Divine Word Missionaries began building in 1900, became part of the village in the late 1980s. Northbrook is in Cook County, about 25 miles from Chicago, inland on the North Shore and bordering Lake County.

The age of the house shapes the job:

• In a house from the 1950s to the 1970s: a new kitchen in the layout you choose, a family-room built-in, or a library or office in a spare room.
• In a newer or custom house: built from the architect's or builder's drawings, in painted or stained wood or European-style frameless.

Northbrook's kitchen remodel permit

Northbrook's "Do I Need a Building Permit?" section lists work that needs no permit, from re-roofing and painting to "Residential floor covering installation or removal such as carpet, tile or laminate" and "Plumbing fixture replacements, like for like." Cabinets are not on that list. The village has its own permit type, "Kitchen or Bath Remodel," "For the remodeling of any existing kitchen and/or bathroom," and notes that it "does not include review of any removing/relocating of walls or any structural changes," which take an alteration permit. (Village of Northbrook permits and Kitchen or Bath Remodel, as read 2026-10-28; confirm for your address.)

So a kitchen remodel in Northbrook takes a kitchen remodel permit, and moving walls takes an alteration permit as well. For a library or built-in with no electrical or structural work, ask the village. We pull a permit when one is required.

Wood, shelves and desks: planning a Northbrook library or office

• The wood. Our Northbrook library and office are stained cherry and walnut. Cherry darkens with light over the years. We show you stained samples so you see the color before we build.
• Shelves. Tell us what goes on them: books, files, display pieces. We plan the shelf depths and spacing around them.
• The desk. Where the computer, the printer and the wires go. Any new outlets or wiring are a licensed electrician's.
• The kitchen. A kitchen remodel takes Northbrook's kitchen remodel permit; moving a wall takes an alteration permit too.
• Trim. We include it on nearly every job, in the same wood where it shows.

Libraries, offices and kitchens for Northbrook homes

A cherry and walnut library and office, a kitchen and a vanity are our work on record in Northbrook. Other work we take on:

• Kitchens: painted or stained wood doors, framed or inset, or European-style frameless flat-panel, our specialty.
• Built-ins: bookcases, media walls and window benches.
• Vanities, closets, mudrooms and laundry rooms.
• Bars and wine storage.
• Stairs, mantels and trim.

Five steps to a Northbrook library or kitchen

1. The visit. It starts with a visit. We measure, we listen, and we give you a straight number. If it works for you, we design it with you, and only then do we build. Northbrook is about 50 minutes from the shop. Your first visit and consultation are free.
2. Drawings. Your architect's or builder's set, priced as drawn, or our design package, which ends with the final price after one major revision.
3. The permit, kitchen remodel or alteration, when the village's rules call for one.
4. The build. Roughly 6 to 8 weeks from signed drawings for an average kitchen; built-ins and closets usually 4 to 6.
5. Installation. A full kitchen usually takes 1 to 3 days to install; a single built-in takes less.

Downtown, Techny and nearby towns

Northbrook is in Cook County, mostly in Northfield Township, with Lake County across its northern edge. Its downtown grew along Shermer Road; Techny lies mostly south of Voltz Road, and Techny Prairie Park and Fields is the village's largest park. We serve all of Northbrook. Nearby, see our pages for Glenview, Riverwoods and Glencoe, or all the towns we serve. We also serve Northfield, Deerfield, Highland Park and Wheeling.

Northbrook questions

Do I need a permit to remodel a kitchen in Northbrook?

The village has a "Kitchen or Bath Remodel" permit for that work, and moving walls takes an alteration permit. Cabinets are not on its no-permit list. Ask the village about your plan; we pull a permit ourselves when one is required.

Can you build a library in cherry or walnut?

Yes. Our Northbrook library and office are built in stained cherry and walnut.

Can you build a home office into a Northbrook house?

Yes. In Northbrook we built a library and office together. Bring the list of what the desk has to hold.

Do you build kitchens in Northbrook too?

Yes. We built a kitchen in Northbrook as well.

How far is Northbrook from your shop?

About 35 miles, roughly 50 minutes from Spring Grove.