By Thane Grauel

WESTPORT — One of the oldest houses on Saugatuck Shores might soon come down to make way for a new, FEMA-compliant structure twice its size.

The Colonial Revival house at 14 Cockenoe Drive was built around 1936, according to land records, or 1938, according to the applicant.

East of the canal, only two houses appear to be older — 25 Cockenoe, a classic Cape Cod built around 1926, and 12 Cockenoe, built around 1922, according to land records, or 1935, according to the town’s Historic Resources Inventory.

Fourteen Cockenoe Drive is a 0.19-acre parcel on the shore of Long Island Sound and adjacent to stone jetty and the island association’s beach. It was purchased by Bluewater Cockenoe LLC in January 2022.

The Zoning Board of Appeals in 2015 approved a variance allowing reconstruction of the house. It was not acted on, but the variance is still in effect.

The latest variance request before the board, heard last month and set for further discussion Jan. 10, seeks to demolish the old structure, which was extensively damaged in Superstorm Sandy. It also seeks to expand the footprint, and, as approved earlier, move it to the east.

That will require various setback and coverage accommodations.

The applicant gave a presentation at a public hearing Dec. 13. The existing house encompasses 1,672 square feet. The new house would be about 3,400.

A neighborhood petition was submitted in opposition to the application with 15 signatures.

“The property at 14 Cockenoe Drive is located at one of the most prominent locations on Saugatuck Island, and is admired by all of its residents,” the petition reads. “The specialness of this small site requires careful reflection to understand the sensitive conditions that make it so unique.

“It sits at an intersection that is in the direct line of sight of many of its neighbors who deeply value their views of the Long Island Sound that surround it. Any expansion of the building beyond its existing footprint will adversely affect the neighbors by encroaching on their view …,” the neighbors’ petition adds.

A few neighbors spoke at the hearing. One was Lawrence Hirsch, who lives diagonally across Cockenoe Drive from the house.

He said he spoke in favor of the earlier variance, when the property had another owner.

“The property has not been occupied for over a decade,” Hirsch said. “He had allowed that house to fall into complete disrepair. At one point, the Town of Westport designated that house as a blight.”

“And we were all very anxious to get rid of that house,” he said. “So, when he came up with a plan to get rid of that house, we accepted it, reluctantly … and that’s true to this day, by the way.”

The ZBA lacked a quorum at its December meeting, and continued the hearing to its Jan. 10 meeting.

Thane Grauel, executive editor, grew up in Westport and has been a journalist in Fairfield County and beyond more than three decades. Reach him at editor@westportjournal.com. Learn more about us here.