Local architects honored for their designs

The American Institute of Architects Long Island Chapter recently held its 44th annual Archi Awards ceremony and announced this year’s winners in a variety of residential and commercial design categories.

The Archi Awards provide public recognition for architectural projects of design excellence throughout Long Island and excellence by Long Island architects whose projects have been built elsewhere.

Among this year’s winners were several East End firms.

Bates Masi Architects of Sag Harbor was awarded the Archi for single and multi-family residential design for a project called Northwest Peach Farm in East Hampton. The project principal was Paul Masi and the project team included Aaron Zalneraitis and Aaron Weil.

Situated on a 10-acre plot selected for its extensive sprawl, the residence is organized around a set of destinations, secluded retreats not unlike the clearings carved from the woods when the land was cultivated as a peach orchard years ago. “Starting from a central spine extending from the eastern woods to the western swimming pool edge, a series of elongated pavilions are arranged to form an attenuated plan that separates the home’s programmatic parts from one another,” according to the firm’s entry form. “Attaining privacy through horizontal extension as opposed to solid vertical partitioning allows the pavilions to open wholly onto the environment via expansive panoramic glazing. The central spine furthers this slippage between interior and exterior in its functional transformations—from terrace and pavilion to tree-canopied garden, raised terrace into open dining room, and corridor into grotto-like library–before trailing off into the forest.”

Stelle Architects of Bridgehampton was awarded with a commendation for single and multi-family residential design for its Surfside residence in Bridgehampton.

The Surfside design team included Frederick Stelle, Eleanor Donnelly and Greg Tietjen. The trio worked to integrate architecture and nature in their light-saturated, oceanfront compound that includes a guest house, a two-car garage, a free-form chlorine free pool and a two-story house clad in wood and cement with anodized aluminum windows.

Perched on top of an oceanfront dune, the original house, which deteriorated over the years, was gutted, elevated and expanded. The original structure was reinforced with steel framing; the plans, elevations, systems, interior and exterior finishes are all new. Dark wood interiors and small windows were replaced with full-height glass and light seafoam colored materials. Guest quarters at the entry level were designed to include en suite bathrooms and direct access to a private oceanfront weatherproof deck. A simple second-floor plan was designed to allow the kitchen, living room and dining room to be used as one large space. Operable doors on both sides maximize natural cross ventilation. The owners’ accommodations are on the upper level, removed from guests. Both the remodeled house and guest house are equipped with geothermal heating and cooling and photovoltaic electric panels. The natural dunescape that wraps the house was restored with beach grass, bayberry and other native plants.

Blaze Makoid Architecture of Bridgehampton was also given a commendation for its Fieldview project in East Hampton. Located on a flat, 1-acre flag, the 4,000-square-foot house is arranged in a C shape that frames the expansive, southern view of an adjacent agricultural reserve. This view serves as a backdrop to an interwoven composition of interior and exterior spaces, according to the project description submitted with the entry. Entry, through a glass void in the northern side of the house, is approached by a raised stone walk, under an exaggerated uplighted canopy. The entry foyer, at the terminus of the outdoor pool, separates public space to the left and the private, two-story bedroom wing to the right. An open floor plan contains living room, dining room and kitchen stretching along the length of the central outdoor patio.

James Merrell Architects of Sag Harbor was awarded a commendation for historic restoration/adaptive re-use for that firm’s work on Maycroft in North Haven. The Maycroft project encompassed a complete rehabilitation of a 43-acre estate with its 15,000-square-foot house and 5,000-square-foot carriage/pool house. The work included a thorough gutting (asbestos remediation) and re-engineering of the structure to meet partially-enclosed structural codes for hurricane wind loads. The replanning of building’s spaces resulted in the removal or replacement of almost all interior and exterior walls, according to Merrell. The design intent was to refit Maycroft for the 21st century while preserving and enhancing its roots in the late 19th century.

And Ronald Kuoppala Architecture of Water Mill also won a commendation for historic restoration/adaptive re-use for Mr. Kuoppala’s work on the Atterbury Carriage House in Shinnecock Hills. The home, a 3,700-square-foot Tudor, was built by noted architect Grosvenor Atterbury on the Atterbury Estates in 1911. The main objective was to convert the carriage house into a full-time residence while preserving as much of the original exterior design and interior elements as possible.

The overall plan, according to Mr. Kuoppala’s submission, included converting existing garage space into a new living area with an adjacent kitchen. Existing bedrooms remained in their original location. A new fireplace was incorporated into the new living room and designed to replicate the original. A new laundry room and storage room were reconfigured from the existing mechanical room. New French doors replaced the existing garage doors in the living room. The floors, originally poured concrete, were replaced with limestone slabs. All of the first floor ceilings were refinished with clear Poplar and remaining second floor wooden floors were preserved and refinished.

The new master bedroom is en suite with his and her baths and a walk-in closet which replaced a warren of rooms consisting of a great room, kitchen & laundry room. Other design consideration was given to an additional bathroom, which was reconfigured and leaving the original built-ins in the master bedroom which were refinished.

A New York City firm, Murdock Young Architects, won two Archi awards for work on the East End. The firm received an Archi for single and multi-family residential design for a private residence in East Hampton and won an Archi for small projects for a private bathroom in a home in East Hampton.