Fire destroys 'ahead of its time' Fire Island Pines beachfront home

Fire destroyed an architecturally significant Fire Island Pines beachfront home Wednesday, authorities said.

No one was injured in the fire, which started about 1 p.m. at the home at 141 Ocean Walk, according to the Suffolk County Police Department and Joe Geiman, Fire Island Pines Fire Department first assistant chief. About 90 firefighters from 14 departments responded to the fire, which Geimen said was brought under control about 7 p.m. Detectives believe the fire was not criminal in origin. 

The mid-century home was designed by architect Steven Robinson and commissioned by lawyer and businessman George Davison-Ackley in the 1970s, according to Pines Modern, a nonprofit dedicated to preserving architectural and historical heritage in the Pines. A subsequent owner included advertising executive Peter Rogers. Newsday was unable to reach the current owner Wednesday evening. 

In a phone interview, Geiman said the fire spread from the wood house to a propane tank, a nearby wooden boardwalk and a boardwalk vehicle. 

Because large fire engines cannot drive on the boardwalks that run through much of the Pines, firefighters drove a pumper truck as close as they could reach on Fire Island Boulevard, then dragged its hose about 1,000 feet to the fire scene, Geiman said.

An adjacent home at 142 Ocean Walk was scorched but did not burn after firefighters worked to protect it, Geiman said. 

That house — known as the TV House for its unusual televisionlike profile — also has a storied past, dating to the 1960s, when it was commissioned by set designer Edwin Wittstein and art director Robert Miller, according to Pines Modern.

In an interview, Christopher Rawlins, a Manhattan architect and Pines Modern co-founder who lives part-time in the community, said 141 Ocean was notable for its steeply raked roofs, "optimized for heat retention in the winter and solar gain in the summer." Technologically it was "incredibly ahead of its time," with features like anaerobic composters to process wastewater. 

Fire is a perennial threat in the Pines, a square-mile, largely LGBTQ community with densely built, mostly wood houses. In 2024, a $1 million home on Cottage Walk was destroyed less than two weeks after the new owner moved in. In 2017, a massive fire fanned by 30 mph winds destroyed four homes on Ocean, Pine and Cedar walks. "Everything has to be transported across these narrow wooden boardwalks," Rawlins said. "It's always been about lightweight wood construction, which, of course, is flammable ... We need to be more proactive about making things more fire resistant." 

In an interview, John Dempsey, president of the Fire Island Pines Historical Society, said of houses like 141 Ocean: "These aren’t replaceable. They are unlikely to be built the same way as before."

Newsday's John Asbury contributed to this story