{"id":750322,"date":"2026-07-08T10:45:25","date_gmt":"2026-07-08T10:45:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/750322\/"},"modified":"2026-07-08T10:45:25","modified_gmt":"2026-07-08T10:45:25","slug":"a-norman-jaffe-designed-house-in-southampton-new-york-is-demolished","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/750322\/","title":{"rendered":"A Norman Jaffe-designed house in Southampton, New York, is demolished"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Bliss House, an oceanfront home completed in 1979 and designed by late modernist architect Norman Jaffe in Southampton<\/a>, New York, has been demolished<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Today the Bliss House is a pile of rubble. Hamptons 20 Century Modern<\/a>, a local preservation nonprofit founded by interior designer Tim Godbold<\/a>, said on social media<\/a> another house will likely be built in its place.<\/p>\n

The Bliss House was known as a work of \u201corganic modernism,\u201d Godbold said, and for its \u201cweathered cedar, soaring geometric forms\u201d and \u201cexpansive glazing\u201d that merged with nearby sand dunes, forming a \u201csculptural composition.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Milton Gilbert House, another home designed by Jaffe in New Jersey and completed in 1976, was also recently demolished<\/a>, per Hamptons 20 Century Modern.<\/p>\n

\"NormanMaterials are being transported from the site. (Tim Godbold)<\/p>\n

The demolition of the Bliss House is the conclusion to a multi-year series of court battles between the home owner, Orest Bliss, and preservationists.<\/p>\n

The Southampton Village Board of Architectural Review and Historic Preservation, DOCOMOMO<\/a>\u2019s New York chapter, and others have been trying to save the house since 2021, when Bliss first shared plans to demolish it and sell the property.<\/p>\n

Orest and Tish Bliss commissioned Jaffe to design the house in the late 1970s. <\/p>\n

At first the Southampton Village Board disapproved of the design, and asked for the building to be setback from the street and shrouded by bushes, to remain invisible. The board later changed its opinion and embraced the house.<\/p>\n

Jaffe was pronounced dead in 1993<\/a>, after he had mysteriously disappeared the summer of that year. Barnes Coy Architects renovated and expanded the Bliss House in 2000, doubling its size.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"NormanThe Bliss House site today (Tim Godbold)<\/p>\n

In 2021, the Southampton Village Board rejected Bliss\u2019s application to demolish the house and sell the land.\u00a0<\/p>\n

A state judge in 2023 ordered the village board<\/a> to reverse its decision and allow demolition to take place. The board subsequently filed an appeal.<\/p>\n

In 2024, the New York chapter of DOCOMOMO filed an application to landmark the Bliss House on the National Register of Historic Places, as well as three other modernist homes in Southampton<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The village board lost the case in the New York court of appeals in 2025. The next year, in 2026, Bliss sold the house to an LLC, called 88 ML Holdings.<\/p>\n

Godbold visited the Bliss House site after it had been wrecked. He said he had contacted the LLC to get permission to photograph the building before it was demolished, but the LLC didn\u2019t respond to his requests.<\/p>\n

\u201cOver the past few years, I\u2019ve sat through countless Architectural Review Board meetings\u2014sometimes speaking in support of preservation, other times simply watching the process unfold,\u201d Godbold said on Instagram<\/a>. \u201cWhile this outcome wasn\u2019t in preservation\u2019s favor, it was inspiring to witness the determination of so many people who care deeply about protecting our architectural heritage. Their passion and commitment deserve real respect.\u201d<\/p>\n

Godbold added: \u201cEvery case teaches us something. Although not every battle is won, others have resulted in important houses being saved. Preservation is a long game, and the work must continue.\u201d<\/p>\n