Weston, Connecticut

Site size: 3.5 acres

Project size: 2,400 square feet

Program: Bud and Colleen Konheim asked Specht Harpman Architects to design a light-filled, yet private modern cottage on a wooded site adjacent to the Saugatuck River in southwestern Connecticut.

Location: The house is in a river valley, a steep 80-foot drop from the main road along the ridgeline.

Solution: The architects immersed the concrete and glass house in the landscape so that a series of green rooftop terraces gently step down from the street to the river below. The house, T-shaped in plan, consists of two perpendicular rectilinear volumes: The first, along the north-south axis, contains the entrance, garage, and guest suite on the upper floor; the second volume, along the east-west axis, includes living, dining, and the master suite, all of which overlook the river through floor-to-ceiling glazing. The interior spaces can be partitioned by sliding doors and window blinds on a built-in track allow for privacy.

Construction methods: The poured-in-place concrete structure, with wood and steel framing, is clad in stucco and glass-reinforced concrete panels. Inside, the floor is polished concrete and the walls are finished with bamboo plywood panels.

Architect:
Specht Harpman
338 West 39th Street, 10th Floor
New York, NY 10018
T- 212-239-1150

People

Owner:
Bud and Colleen Konheim

Architect:
Specht Harpman
338 West 39th Street, 10th Floor
New York, NY 10018
T- 212-239-1150

Personnel in architect's firm who should receive special credit:
Scott Specht, AIA- Partner
Louise Harpman Associate AIA, Partner
Amy Lopez-Cepero, RA - Project Architect

Architect of Record:
Specht Harpman

Engineers:
Structural Engineer:
Kevin Chamberlain
DeStefano & Chamberlain, Inc.
Structural and Architectural Engineering
50 Thorpe Street
Fairfield, CT 06824

Consultant(s):
Landscape Architect:
Heather Morgan
Scape LLC
404-964-4539

Lighting:
Specht Harpman

Shading:
Jack Birtwell
Porter Preston
61 Mattatuck Heights Rd
Waterbury, CT 06705
203-753-1113

General contractor:
Michael Greenburg & Associates
292 Post Road East
Westport, CT 06880
203-226-7958

Kitchen contractor:
Prutting & Company
70 Pine Street St
New Canaan, CT 06840
203-972-1028

Photographer(s):
Taggart Sorensen
Austin, TX
512-589-1728

 

Products

Structural system
Poured in place concrete with both wood and steel frame.

Exterior cladding
Stucco over concrete
Glass reinforced concrete panel rain screen fiber C by Rieder
Concrete walls by Performance Concrete.

Roofing
Roof is EPM with LiveRoof hybrid Green Roof

Windows
Metal frame:
US Aluminum Storefront System

Glazing
Glass:
PPG Solarban 60, low e glazing.

Doors
Entrance and all sliding metal doors
Metal sliding doors by Solar Innovation Inc.

Wood doors:
Custom made by Michael Greenberg Associates.

Hardware
Locksets:
FSB and Accurate Hardware

Pulls:
Sugatsune and custom

Interior finishes
Cabinetwork and custom woodwork:
Michael Greenberg & Associates
Bamboo veneered plywood for all cabinets

Paints and stains:
Benjamin Moore
50% white dove/ 50% decorator white

Wood floors:
Select Quartersawn Ash

Concrete floors:
Larry Anderson
Architectural Concrete

Lighting
Downlights:
Juno Acculux

Exterior:
SPJ Lighting

Pendent:
Bocci Lighting

Dimming System or other lighting controls:
Vantage Light Controls
Lutron Sequoia Shading System

Plumbing
Plumbing fixtures by
Waterworks
Kallista
Dornbracht

Other unique products that contribute to sustainability:
LiveRoof, green roof system