Surfboard House

Completed five years after Hurricane Sandy, the Surfboard House reclaims a beachfront site in Breezy Point, Queens, where the previous home was destroyed by the storm. Conceived as a resilient retreat for a Brooklyn family, the project responds to both its coastal setting and a complex set of environmental and regulatory constraints.

Breezy Point is a dense, pedestrian-oriented community where houses are linked by narrow paths and cars remain at the perimeter. The unusually wide site provides 68 feet of south-facing beachfront, while flood regulations required the house to be elevated six feet above grade. Co-op guidelines limiting height and setbacks produced a building footprint much wider than it is deep, allowing nearly every room to overlook the ocean.

The stepped south façade wraps windows around the corners to capture diagonal views along the shoreline. Angled rooflines and sloping ceilings further direct views toward the horizon and sky, filling the compact house with light while strengthening its connection to the landscape.