A Teardown Brings A Protest

When Robert Hefner, an East Hampton consultant on historic architecture, looked at the old Gilbert King house at 1044 Fireplace Road in Springs back in 1983, it was in "excellent" condition.

Today, however, its occupants describe the house as in a "fairly deplorable state," in the words of their agent, Gene E. Cross, who explained why they wanted to remove the house and build a new one of similar architecture but larger size in its place.

Mr. Cross was representing Eric and Sheri Betuel, full-time residents here for five years, at a hearing on Aug. 19 before the East Hampton Town Zoning Board of Appeals at which concerns about preserving the area's architectural heritage were raised by a Springs resident, Heather Anderson, who stepped down from her usual seat with other members of the board to speak.

Unusual Triangle

Mr. Cross, an East Hampton planner who works both privately and for the Incorporated Village, started off by telling the board that, were all of today's setback requirements met on this property, a 30-square-foot triangle would be left for building; in other words, variances would be unavoidable.

The Betuels and their two young children, he argued, need more space, and the house would require more costly and "extensive renovations" to bring it to building codes. New construction, he said, was more desirable and more cost effective.

He also said his clients had located the proposed new sanitary system as far away from the wetlands as possible, and had just recently revised their application to increase by several feet the separation between the harbor's salt marsh and a proposed pool and deck.

Expenses Involved

Because of the expenses involved - about $200,000 to buy the property from Mr. Betuel's mother, Gloria, and approximately $450,000 for the new construction - Mr. Cross said adding the pool was an incentive for them to follow through with the project.

"I believe this is one of those cases where the best interests for our family, East Hampton, and Accabonac Harbor are all intertwined," Mr. Betuel wrote in a letter to the board.

According to Mr. Hefner's 1983 survey, done for the town and the State Department of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation, the early-19th-century house was moved to its Fireplace Road location in the mid-19th century. It has had some 20th-century alterations.

History Described

"This house appears on the 1873 Beers Atlas when it was owned by Gilbert King," Mr. Hefner's report states. "According to his granddaughter, Pauline King Maranville Field, Gilbert moved the house here from Three Mile Harbor Road."

Mr. King seems to be listed in the East Hampton History and Genealogy as Benjamin (Gilbert), an eighth-generation East Hamptoner born to Richard King in 1819. He died on Dec. 1, 1872.

"It is a historic home," Ms. Anderson said, a fact that the board should take into consideration. She encouraged the Betuels to renovate and expand the existing house and "still keep the historic look of the home."

Concerns for historic architecture were not the only ones raised. Brian Frank, on behalf of the Town Planning Department, raised environmental issues, too.

Variances Sought

The Betuels had asked the Z.B.A. for a natural resources permit, several wetland and front-yard setback variances, and a variance to clear an additional 1,915 square feet of the roughly one-and-a-half-acre lot, a good part of which is tidal wetlands associated with Accabonac Harbor.

In addition to replacing the existing, roughly 1,500-square-foot house with a new, roughly 3,000-square-foot structure, the Betuels hope to install a 16-by-32-foot swimming pool with four feet of decking on three of its sides.

A new septic system in a more conforming location (the current cesspool is in the wetlands) and a proposed scenic easement over the wetlands would be environmental benefits from the Betuels' project, Mr. Cross said. Mr. Frank recommended the board accept the easement.

No Pools In Area

Mr. Frank, however, called the requested variances "extensive," adding that the pool did not meet natural resources permit standards. Four of the eight requested variances could be eliminated by denying the pool, he said, noting in his environmental assessment form that there are "presently no swimming pools in this vicinity of Accabonac Harbor located within wetland setbacks."

The wetlands - "almost wholly pristine intertidal salt marsh" - contribute to the harbor's top water quality rating, Mr. Frank noted. The harbor is listed as part of the Peconic Estuary Program critical environmental area and is a New York State significant fish and wildlife area.

The request for the clearing variance could be eliminated, too, Mr. Frank said, by requiring the Betuels to replant the same square footage immediately landward of the wetland edge. Mr. Cross indicated the Betuels could be amenable to that.

Record Recommended

Springs has two houses on the National and State Register of Historic Places, the Jackson Pollock House and the Ambrose Parsons House (the home of the Springs Library and Historical Society), both of which are on Fireplace Road.

It might behoove the Town Planning Department and local historical societies to organize a record of historical homes around town, Ms. Anderson said, noting that the department was not aware of the significance of the Betuels' house.

"It's unfortunate . . . that we don't have any guidelines put in place" to protect such historic buildings, Ms. Anderson said, which "add to the attractiveness of an area of our town." Ms. Anderson is the president of the Springs Historical Society, though she told the board she was not speaking on its behalf.

Applicants' Intent

The town has no officially designated historic districts like those in the Village of East Hampton, which provides for greater review of any work done on the exterior of historic buildings.

At the hearing, Mr. Cross said his clients intend to use existing timbers in the construction of the new house, adding that "this house is not pristine."

"You try to save what you can, but you have to realize that times change and people are entitled to use structures and modify them," Mr. Cross said. "The intent of the applicants here is to rebuild the same house that they've got."