Located on Staten Island, the clients of this new home, devoted much time over the years searching and waiting for a site to become available in an upscale community, situated on the highest point in the borough of Staten Island. They desired to have a home designed to accommodate their large family and their various recreational activities and hobbies. 

 

A pre-existing condemned house was demolished to make room for the new structure. Once assessed, the site conditions, an adjacent residence and required codes created restrictions which played a significant role in shaping the home. As a corner lot the setbacks off the street were wide and existing protected trees (such as a 150-year-old beech) created a non-conventional building envelope. These restrictions along with an extensive program influenced the concept to break up the structure into wings which are organized around a front and rear courtyard.  The south (Bedroom) wing hugs the street line to allow for as much backyard space as possible. The living area wing intersects the bedroom wing forming a front entry courtyard.

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Additionally with code limitations on square footage, utilizing the cellar level became key to achieving many of the required program elements. The site design incorporated a sunken courtyard to access and bring natural light down into the rooms.

 

The wings and structures such as in the garage are clad in variations of stone, brick, limestone, slate and zinc. This is done to break up the scale of the structure, respect the local historic context and create the feeling of a micro village.