June 2009

MEET THE MAKER

THE BUILDER OF A $60M. HOUSE TELLS US WHY HE’S WORTH IT

How’d you get into this business? My father was a builder, so my brothers and I grew up on Long Island learning the carpentry trade. I started my own carpentry business and then in 1978, when my father’s partner retired, we decided to merge our businesses to form Telemark Construction and moved to the Hamptons. Did you build your own home? Yes, mostly with my own hands. We are set up high on the moraine in Wainscott. It’s somewhat modern with Scandinavian flair and very modest but with great outdoor spaces. We’ve never considered selling; we love where we live. What architect have you enjoyed working with? We built Robert A. M. Stern’s own house in East Hampton, a transformation of a two-bedroom ranch into a magnificently designed structure in three separate phases over three years. The vision impressed me. What challenges do builders face today? Implementing products that are new to the market as a result of the mandated green building movement but that have not been tested by time. Tell us about an incredible innovation. In the Ross Wellness Center, we integrated a Brazilian hardwood that did not contribute to the slashing and burning of the Amazon rainforest. I took a trip up the Amazon river and a 200km ride into the heart of the jungle to photo document sustainable-yield forestry and selective harvesting. Tell us about The Hamptons Green Alliance, which you recently founded. It’s a group of building professionals who are leaders in the green building movement that organized to educate the consumer through a website. Information about green building is confusing, fragmented and, in many cases, downright wrong. The trades people who actually perform the installations and build the structures are the best people to consult. What do you consider a signature of your work? Quality. People notice it, they feel it underfoot. We build homes that people experience with all their senses. It’s a similar feeling to closing the door of a luxury automobile—solid. I hear your daughter has followed you into the business—did you encourage her interest in architecture as a kid? She has degrees in both fine arts and architecture. She has a jewelry line, does her fine art and works at Bates Masi Architecture in Sag Harbor. We’re working together to design an addition for my home. In ten words or less: what do you do all day? Talk on the phone and write emails. Administration.What do you do during a slow building season? Service and maintenance branch that focuses on small projects, property management and concierge service. Concierge service? What’s something you’ve done for a client? For one family, we decorated and prepped their home for Christmas—tree and all. For another, we built a dog coffin. Dog coffin? Our client raised Yorkshire terriers and when one passed away, she asked us to build it a coffin. We asked for measurements and she instructed us to measure its body—the remains were in their fridge. It was a kosher kitchen, too.