When Sheneur Menaker set about listing an unusual residence in Upstate New York, he had an advantage of sorts: a residential geodesic dome of his very own.
First, let’s focus on the $499,000 listing; we’ll get to Menaker’s dome later.
Situated at 105 Sand Hill Road in the Dutchess County enclave of Dover Plains, the 805-square-foot glass structure came from a Canadian company called Phoenix Domes, which sells the enclosures in a range of sizes for uses ranging from short-term rentals to residences to yoga studios.
The dome’s owner and seller — architect, author and former Pratt Institute dean Harriet Harriss, transformed the structure into an off-grid-ready retreat sited on 7.18 acres and equipped with a lofted bedroom, a full bathroom, a monochromatic galley kitchen and a wood-burning stove.
Although a white curtain covers some of the dome’s upper arch, offering shade and privacy, the structure sits in the middle of the woods within sight of a natural pond.
“The property itself is very magical,” said Menaker, a broker with Hudson Modern who is listing the home with Zev Eisenberg. The sellers have owned the secluded land for several years, taking care of the plot and adding terraced gardens.
The 'high-end' dome is winterized, can be off the grid
Like most domed architecture, the structure is made from steel-framed triangles and calls to mind the work of 20th-century American architect Buckminster Fuller. He posited the spheres as solutions to the post-war U.S. housing crisis, as the “structure of a dome is one of the most efficient interior atmospheres for human dwellings because air and energy are allowed to circulate without obstruction,” according to the Buckminster Fuller Institute.
Still, the geodesic dome remains a niche type of home — Phoenix markets them heavily as “glamping domes.”
Menaker uses his dome as a community gathering space, hosting sound baths and yoga sessions inside. Sound reverberates uniquely in the arched spaces, he detailed, but it’s hard to specify exactly what draws people to the structures.
Domes have “this cavernous, cave-like feel,” the agent said. “Maybe it triggers a primal feeling of our ancestors being cavemen.”
As dome options proliferate — you can order vinyl backyard domes in the mail, and “there are a lot of poorly designed ones out there,” Menaker said — Harriss’ stands out as a “high-end one in terms of being fully insulated” and winterized, with double-paned glass windows forming its shell. Solar panels, a well and a septic system give the dome its independence, with a Starlink system offering internet access and a battery providing backup power.
It also sits right near an outbuilding clad in burnt wood. This flat-roof structure could serve as an artist’s studio or additional sleeping space, Menaker detailed.
'The market is always interested in uniqueness'
In its week on the market, the dome has attracted the attention you might expect it to get. Some people have been “outright curious,” but there are potential buyers “looking at it as a full-time residence,” Menaker said. Others are considering the dome as an income property primed to capture short-term renters looking for a weekend getaway from New York City. In marketing materials, Hudson Modern says, “comparable homes in the region are generating $1,000 to $2,000 per week.”
Still, it’s small, Menaker noted, clocking in at $620 per square foot. “I think you could get a lot more for $500,000 … easily a 1,500-square-foot home.”
It is the kind of home that you will either want, or you won’t. Median home prices in Dover hover around $419,000, meaning that the dome isn’t exactly a single-family steal, but the “price point for something unique like this is quite good,” Menaker said. “I think people in my market are looking for nature and privacy, and this really checks all those boxes.”
“The market is always interested in uniqueness,” he said.