The Latch, a luxury condominium development in Southampton Village created by The Beechwood Organization, has received two prestigious awards from the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB).
The development, designed by Jim McMullan of Fleetwood & McMullan and Jason Poremba of Jason Thomas Architect, earned a Platinum award for Historic Preservation and Restoration and a Gold award for Single Family Community Under 100 Units.
“This is a high honor greatly appreciated by Beechwood and the entire team who worked with us to bring forward the best of the past for future generations to enjoy this beautiful property,” said Steven Dubb, The Latch’s developer and the principal at The Beechwood Organization.
In the early 1900s, the property, known as The Village Latch, was “the Grand Annex to Southampton’s Irving Hotel across Hill Street,” Steven Dubb, Beechwood’s founder and CEO, told Dan’s Papers in 2020. “Reported guests included Presidents Theodore Roosevelt and John F. Kennedy, the duPonts, Fords and Vanderbilts, and Hollywood stars,” he said.
In 2016, Beechwood bought the approximately five-acre parcel with an inn that was operated 67 rooms across several run-down buildings.
The two turn-of-the-20th-century buildings — the iconic main Latch building and the adjacent Terry Cottage, which had been moved from across the street — were designed by noted Gilded Age architect Sanford White of McKim, Mead & White (White designed many iconic Hamptons homes, such as the Sevens Sisters homes in Montauk, the most famous of which talkshow host Dick Cavett sold last year).
With the architects’ designs and consultation from Zach Studenroth, the village historian, the exteriors have been preserved. With work complete, cedar-shingled white structures, designed in Federal Revival Period with Dutch Colonial touches, have been returned to their former glory.
The original 40-room Latch building was converted into two townhouses. Beechwood renovated the interior of the Terry Cottage and it remains a single-family home.
Behind the two historic structures, visible from Hill Street, are 17 new townhouses and a McMullan-designed clubhouse on a private cul-de-sac. The townhomes appear connected by a single shingle-style facade. The homes feature open floorplans and high finishes and appliances, while the clubhouse provides a fitness center and outdoor pool.
Pre-construction sales began in 2021 with homes ranging from $2.6 to $7 million — and all units were sold by the end of the year.
Part of the NAHB‘s Best in American Living Awards, they are considered the nation’s top honor for home builders in the largest network of craftsmen, innovators and problem-solvers. An awards ceremony was held at the 2022 International Builders’ Show in Orlando, Florida.
The Latch also received a Vision Long Island Smart Growth Award in 2021.
This was the third project in Southampton Village for Beechwood, one of the largest developers of single-family and multifamily housing in New York State. The developer was also behind 69 luxury condominium units at Bishops Pond on South Magee Street, as well as Bishops Grant on North Main Street where there are four estate homes.
Founded by Michael Dubb, Beechwood has built more than 7,500 homes in 60 communities across the New York metro area since 1985, including new developments in Saratoga and New York City.
Original Article from Behind the Hedges
Author: Taylor K. Vescey