Online Auction for Unique Water Mill House Begins January 24

Water Mill, auction
“Island in the Sky” goes to auction January 24.
Courtesy of Sotheby’s International Realty

The online auction for “Island in the Sky,” a Water Mill estate designed by the Japanese-American architect and sculptor Setsuo Ito, begins on Tuesday, January 24 at 4 p.m.

The 14.7-acre property at 984 and 984A Noyac Path has been on and off the market for several years and is listed for $7.995 million with Sotheby’s Concierge Auctions, in cooperation with Angela Boyer-Stump of Sotheby’s International Realty,

It is being offered with a $2.95 million reserve and will be auctioned off to the highest bidder once the auction concludes on January 31 via Sotheby’s Concierge Auctions’ online marketplace, casothebys.com, which allows those interested to bid digitally from anywhere in the world.

A Norman Jaffe-designed house in East Hampton Village was also on the Sotheby’s Concierge Auctions’ block recently and is currently in contract for an undisclosed sum.

The Water Mill property sits at a 300-foot elevation, one of the highest points the East End has to offer.

“For the ultimate buyer, this is an extremely rare opportunity to acquire a property and lot of this caliber for under $3 million,” said Paulina Kimbel and Caitlin Keys, vice presidents of business development at Sotheby’s Concierge Auctions, in a recent press release. “Most importantly, the auction is the perfect venue for buyers to ensure they are paying market value as they will have to compete against one another in a transparent manner.”

Water Mill, auction
The view from the pool cabanaCourtesy of Sotheby’s International Realty

Water Mill House’s History

Ito built the 12,000-square-foot sprawling house in the early 1990s on a nine-acre parcel of land he had purchased a decade earlier. The house’s size could never be replicated today due to the aquifer overlay district created just after Ito began construction, imposed to protect where the water is most pure.

The Feng Shui-inspired abode begins with a grand entryway that leads into the living room, gallery and contemporary dining and renovated kitchen area, centered around a rare open gas fireplace. There are six bedrooms, seven bathrooms and one-half bath.

The custom pool may be the most unique in the Hamptons. Elevated between the home’s ground floor and the second level, it has four points like a compass. The pool cabana features a two-tiered, open steel pyramid, all with the four points.

Some may remember that the pool and the adjacent pyramid-topped structure were featured in a music video for the Notorious B.I.G.’s break-out hit Juicy back in the 1990s.

Water Mill, Hamptons, auctions
A view of the property

The house sits on a nine-acre property and an adjacent six acres allow for a potential build-out as there is the potential for a clearing allowance that would allow for an 8,000-square-foot home on the adjacent lot and the opportunity to create what Sotheby’s is calling “an unprecedented dream compound.”

Interested buyers have to register on the site and provide proof of liquid funds, which will determine their maximum bid. A $100,000 deposit is also required, which is fully refundable to everyone who does not win.

Email [email protected] with further comments, questions, or tips. Follow Behind The Hedges on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.