Garage Would Mirror Manor House

Because East Hampton Village restricts the height of a garage to 20 feet, Jim and Gretchen Johnson, owners of a century-old house at 31 Old Beach Lane called Nid de Papillon, need a seven-foot variance for a garage which, their attorney told the Village Zoning Board of Appeals on Friday, will have the style and characteristics of the Elizabethan-style manor house itself.

Nid de Papillon (“Butterfly’s Nest”) is a “fanciful house,” built for the publisher Robert Appleton at a cost of approximately $60,000, according to “East Hampton’s Heritage: An Illustrated Architectural Record,” edited by Robert Hefner, the village’s director of historic services. The 20-room oceanfront house, across Old Beach Lane from the Maidstone Club, is characterized by a faux thatched roof and, inside, a private speakeasy. It stands on a rise overlooking the double dunes.

The proposed 925-square-foot garage will be sited about seven feet lower than the residence, Richard Whalen, the Johnsons’ attorney, told the board. Mr. Whalen pointed out that there are no accessory buildings on the property, and said the Johnsons are “long due” a structure that would provide a garage, storage space both on the second story and in the basement, and a pool house for a nearby swimming pool. It would have a bathroom accessible only from the exterior.

“The reason for the variance is so that it is architecturally, historically, aesthetically similar to the Nid de Papillon residence,” he said. “That’s really the sole benefit.”

When the Johnsons bought the property in 1983, Nid de Papillon was in a severe state of disrepair, Mr. Whalen told board members. “The Johnsons have invested considerable time, energy, and effort into restoring and preserving this historical building. Therefore they want to make sure any other structure built on the property is architecturally compatible.”

Alex Antonelli, the Johnsons’ architect, recalled that his first visit to the site had left a “big imprint.” Nid de Papillon, he said, was meant “to integrate both the early English cottage style that was predominant in the East Hampton community back in that time, with the notion of the butterfly’s nest, the cocoon of a butterfly.” From the beach, “those dunes roll right into the house,” he said.

“The gray roof, the fact that they used cement as the exterior of the building itself, all meant to integrate the building into the natural landscape. For me, it was a pretty profound moment. It looked like the house was not only built a hundred years ago, but it was built with this love of the land. I have never seen anything like that personally in all of the other architectural commissions I have had.”

Each meeting with his clients underscored “the fact that they were purely interested in preserving this canvas, this piece of art they bought,” Mr. Antonelli said. “They were challenging us on every occasion, especially Gretchen, to see the detail and form and proportion of the original house, in a way that only an artist could.”

The board’s only concern, as expressed by Frank Newbold, the chairman, was “accessory buildings that morph into separate cottages.” While he did not believe that was the Johnsons’ intention, “we don’t want to set a precedent or create a situation where sometime in the future someone might take advantage of that.” The proposed garage’s second story “does have full-size windows, and it has quite a beautiful balcony on the western side that’d look over the sunset.”

The balcony would be adjacent to a similar feature of Nid de Papillon’s master suite that overlooks the swimming pool, Mr. Antonelli said. “There are many elements on the design that we’ve presented that are literally taken from Nid de Papillon,” he said. “It’s all an attempt to try and put Frank Newman’s designs to paper as he would have seen it originally.” Frank Eaton Newman designed the house, which was built by E.M. Gay.

Mr. Newbold asked if the Johnsons would agree to an annual inspection to ensure that the storage areas had not been converted to habitable space. Because the proposed garage would include a bathroom, the code allows for that. “We don’t have objection to that, to the extent it’s required by code,” Mr. Whalen replied.

“I think I speak for all of us: The intention is wonderful,” Mr. Newbold said. “It is a gift to East Hampton and everyone that walks down the beach.” The hearing was closed, and a determination will be issued at an upcoming meeting.

Two decisions were announced at the meeting. Jeffrey Schneider, a developer and builder, was granted a variance to construct a 748-square-foot detached garage in a front yard at 20 Hook Pond Lane. In a contentious hearing last month, neighbors, including Howard Dean, a former governor of Vermont and candidate for president, complained bitterly about the 6,450-square-foot house under construction there, which he and others said was vastly out of scale with the other houses on the private lane. Mr. Schneider, however, told the board he could attach a garage to the house as of right, resulting in even greater mass, and would do so if his application for variance relief were denied.

The approval was granted on the condition that an attic above the garage would be used only for storage and accessible only by a pull-down stairway.

The board also granted Peter and Pamela Flaherty variances allowing four air-conditioning condensers to remain within the required side-yard setbacks at 63 Cross Highway.