Navy Beach
Lot size: .63 acres
Building size: 2,000 sq. ft.
Location: Montauk, NY
Program: Single Family Residence
Photographer: Bates Masi + Architects
Contractor: LSM Development Corp.
The site for this home on a bluff overlooking the bay with sunset views has one challenge: the noise of a nearby railway. To address the issue the design explores two sound attenuation strategies, mass on the ground level and separation on the upper level. These strategies create distinct architectural languages which enhance the experience of the home.
A language of masonry on the ground level allows the house to be embedded into the hillside and utilize the earth to provide shelter from the noise. Thick masonry walls extend from the hill and project beyond the facade, creating acoustic shadows at the door and window openings that are further protected by acoustic laminated glass. The wall projections conceal functional outdoor storage closets and pool equipment space. The masonry walls also form the pool, elevating it to the main living level and allowing for vanishing edges on two sides. These vanishing edges not only heighten the drama of the view, but the cascading water also creates ambient noise to help mask the sound of the nearby trains. The masonry finish itself extends from the exterior to clad interior walls as well. It is sand-cast brick with a rust-like color. It references the manganese garnett minerals that were deposited in the glacial moraine and that continue to tint the sandy beach at the base of the bluff.
On the upper level, a strategy of acoustic separation allows for the change to wood materials, both literally and experientially lighter than the ground level material language. The separation strategy is expressed as a series of layers in the facades. The outermost layer is a privacy screen of vertical dowels. The custom made stainless steel clips that support the dowels were inspired by oar locks on row boats. They lock the dowels in place with friction-fit wood pegs instead of screws, reducing the stress at the fasteners usually created as the wood expands and contracts with moisture. The same hardware is re-purposed inside as drawer and door pulls. The dowels too reappear as an interior motif in custom light fixtures, speaker grills, and hvac registers. The second layer of the upper level facades provides the structure and weather barrier. It is a wood framed wall clad in a soft coniferous wood siding. The third layer is an independent wood framed wall that supports the interior finishes and is hung off the outer wall on vibration isolation clips to create acoustic separation. The interior finish matches the exterior siding and extends to the ceilings, interior doors, and millwork as well, creating a minimal palette that does not distract from the primary experience of the place: the view.
The site conditions define an architectural language for the design, one which address the site’s acoustic challenges. In so doing it allows the family to focus on the positive aspects of the site that drew them there: the spectacular views and connection to the landscape.
A language of masonry on the ground level allows the house to be embedded into the hillside and utilize the earth to provide shelter from the noise. Thick masonry walls extend from the hill and project beyond the facade, creating acoustic shadows at the door and window openings that are further protected by acoustic laminated glass. The wall projections conceal functional outdoor storage closets and pool equipment space. The masonry walls also form the pool, elevating it to the main living level and allowing for vanishing edges on two sides. These vanishing edges not only heighten the drama of the view, but the cascading water also creates ambient noise to help mask the sound of the nearby trains. The masonry finish itself extends from the exterior to clad interior walls as well. It is sand-cast brick with a rust-like color. It references the manganese garnett minerals that were deposited in the glacial moraine and that continue to tint the sandy beach at the base of the bluff.
On the upper level, a strategy of acoustic separation allows for the change to wood materials, both literally and experientially lighter than the ground level material language. The separation strategy is expressed as a series of layers in the facades. The outermost layer is a privacy screen of vertical dowels. The custom made stainless steel clips that support the dowels were inspired by oar locks on row boats. They lock the dowels in place with friction-fit wood pegs instead of screws, reducing the stress at the fasteners usually created as the wood expands and contracts with moisture. The same hardware is re-purposed inside as drawer and door pulls. The dowels too reappear as an interior motif in custom light fixtures, speaker grills, and hvac registers. The second layer of the upper level facades provides the structure and weather barrier. It is a wood framed wall clad in a soft coniferous wood siding. The third layer is an independent wood framed wall that supports the interior finishes and is hung off the outer wall on vibration isolation clips to create acoustic separation. The interior finish matches the exterior siding and extends to the ceilings, interior doors, and millwork as well, creating a minimal palette that does not distract from the primary experience of the place: the view.
The site conditions define an architectural language for the design, one which address the site’s acoustic challenges. In so doing it allows the family to focus on the positive aspects of the site that drew them there: the spectacular views and connection to the landscape.