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The roof: an architectural divide in the Hamptons

  Caught between federal flood guidelines and local height restrictions, an emotional debate is stirring over the shape of roofs in the Hamptons. The controversy spawned a lawsuit in the village of Southampton that pits the iconic Hamptons cottage against more efficient modern designs.

Historically built by famed architects like Stanford White, cottages have relatively modest profiles with shingled sides, and often a roof with several peaks. But these peaked roofs became a problem in 2012 when the federal government changed the country's flood insurance guidelines meaning new and remodeled homes have to be built higher.

"They're huge. They stick up over every other house in the neighborhood. It's like putting up a twelve story building in a three story neighborhood," says Pamela Glazer, a South Hampton architect.

Ascetics aside, some communities have height restrictions, effectively trapping houses between federal flood guidelines and local zoning laws. Because of this, Glazer says, more people have begun asking for flat roofs instead of peak roofs.

"In a peak roof, the peak is not giving you any more usable space. It's just making your roof higher."

But, according to a lawsuit, flat roofs are modern and "nonconforming" with the historic character of South Hampton Village.

The lawsuit was filed by two homeowners who say their neighbor demolished a classic peaked roof, shingle-style home and wants to replace it with a modern, glass-walled home with a flat roof.

"I think it's a clash of competing styles of architecture. I don't think it's as much about the height of the houses,"  says John Bennett, the Southampton attorney representing the builder of the new home.

Bennett says parts of the Hamptons have been architectural incubators for a hundred years. He adds lawsuits like these stymie exploration of new home styles.

Southampton currently has a moratorium on new building until the village can decide on how to reconcile the federal flood guidelines with local height restrictions. 

Charles is senior reporter focusing on special projects. He has won numerous awards including an IRE award, three SPJ Public Service Awards, and a National Murrow. He was also a finalist for the Livingston Award for Young Journalists and Third Coast Director’s Choice Award.
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