"For us, it's all about the view."

Living by the water has always been essential for Gary and Patricia Lucas. Gary grew up in Oceanside, Long Island, and the Lucas family has been spending summers in the Hamptons since their children were young. As often as they can, they take well-deserved breaks from their busy careers in building and real-estate development to enjoy the boating lifestyle they love.

Five years ago, they discovered the 1.4-acre grounds of the Sag Harbor property that would become their retirement home. They knew immediately it was exactly what they were looking for. What struck them was not the existing home on the property, but the property itself. "We didn't even step into the house that was here at the time," Gary says. "We walked straight back to the dock to look at the view."

It was an unparalleled bay vista, overlooking the federally protected Mashomack Preserve on Shelter Island. "That's why we fell in love with this place," says the couple's son Andrew, who works with his parents at their family building firm, Mirage Property Management, and helped supervise the construction of their dream home. "The water has always been important to my family ... and the Preserve across the way can't be built upon, so it's a view that will never be taken away."

A Home Built for Entertaining

The family worked together to design and construct a spectacular house that would augment—and not detract from—the property's natural beauty. "We built around the massive beech trees and ancient oaks," says Andrew. "We planned the house so we could keep them, and laid it out to save as many as possible."

That wasn't the only stipulation that went into planning. The Lucases knew that they had to build a house suitable for such magnificent grounds, one that befitted the long, culturally rich history of Sag Harbor.
Image of the Kitchen

"My parents wanted the house to look like it belonged here," says Andrew. "My mother incorporated classic Hamptons touches into this home," with unique features such as the incredible custom windows Patricia architected. They're multi-paned, with elaborate, varied grills for extra interest.

"Windows became important to the design of the house. Since the whole family will spend summers here, in the Hamptons tradition, it's all about keeping the house light and airy. We used a lot of white trim, balanced with warm woods for a cozy feel," says Andrew. "And you can see how many windows are incorporated."

Because of the Lucas family's attention to detail, the building process for their coastal dream home was a hard-won, intricate process. "Things like a slate roof, all the windows—and making sure each part of construction is just right—that can take time," Andrew says. The Lucases bought this Sag Harbor gem five years ago and didn't actually begin building until three years later. It was another two years until the house was finished.

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