Upstate House Summer 2021 by Upstate House

Summer 2021

HUDSON VALLEY/BERKSHIRES/CATSKILLS

ON THE

Cover

Mountain Majesty HALTER ASSOCIATES REALTY Cover Story on page 64

Flash Bang History At Home in a Former Gunpowder Mill in Newburgh

Dressed for Success A Bearsville Cape Cod Gets a Designer Makeover

Village Life

An Architect Reimagines a 1761 Fieldstone Farmhouse

Engineering What’s Next in Outdoor Living

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Architect Alexander Gorlin added new buildings on to a 1761 fieldstone farmhouse to create a string of pavilions that boosted the home’s square footage but kept the historic farmhouse intact. Photo by Peter Aaron HOUSE PROFILE

DEPARTMENTS SUMMER 20 21

FEATURES

HOME PROFILE: FL ASH BANG HISTORY

By Mary Angeles Armstrong, Photos by Winona Barton-Ballentine

Jill Enfield and Richard Rabinowitz’s historic Federalist-style home in Newburgh is a former muntions factory headquaters once owned by Sara Delano, mother of FDR. 38

HOME PROFILE: DRESSED FOR SUCCESS

Architect Alexander Gorlin took a 1761 Dutch colonial farmhouse in Catskill and transformed it into stunning string of building that strecth across the landscape like a small village. 64

Increased demand is causing a building materials price spike. THE SOURCE: UPSTATE RUG SUPPLY

THE STUDIO: MICHELE QUAN

The ceramicist designs one-of-a-kind art and objects in Saugerties. 14

GARDEN: GOING NATIVE

Planting indigenous flowers helps sustain local wildlife. 20 THE SOURCE: TENT

A coworking spot and community hub pops up in Stanfordville. 22

AREA SPOTLIGHT: BEACON

Apartment prices in this waterfront city rival those in Brooklyn. 24

AREA SPOTLIGHT: WARWICK

This Orange County town is just close enough for a city commute.

HOME PROFILE: VILL AGE LIFE

By Joan Vos MacDonald

MARKETWATCH: MATERIAL BREACH

Joanna Mahserdijan’s Hudson shop is stocked with antique rugs.

By Peter Aaron

Interior design Aude Bronson-Howard brought her minimalist aesthetic to renovating her Bearsville home. The result is a lightfilled oasis inside a formerly cramped Cape Cod.

BACK PORCH: SOL AR CANOPY

New Energy Works teams up with SunCommon for an innovative solar energy option made with timber framing. 70

THE MARKET I N D E X O F A DV ER T I S ER S / MAP OF THE REGION

MOUNTAIN MAJEST Y

By Ashleigh Lovelace

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M A RK ET WAT CH

Material Breach Skyrocketing Prices In March 2020, a standard sheet of 3/4-inch plywood cost $37.98. Thirteen months, one pandemic, and countless renovations, additions, and DIY projects later, the same sheet of plywood cost $95.98 at the beginning of April 2021, or 252 percent more. The same can be said for that humble workhorse, the 2 x 4, and just about any dimensional lumber, plumbing material, or electric supplies. “It’s all through the roof now,” says George Cestero, the principle for Fishkillbased Hudson Valley Construction. “There is such a shortage. When I send the guys out to get materials, sometimes they have to stop in three, four places because one doesn’t have it all.” There are several factors causing the skyrocketing materials prices, but at the heart of the inflation is a classic market imbalance: high demand relative to supply. During the height of lockdown, processing factories everywhere shut down and global trading diminished, meaning less wood was being cut and shipped, so when everything opened back up, the supply was already behind. Couple that with people trapped at home getting the DIY itch and low interest rates incentivizing people to build new, renovate, or add on to their homes, and you have a perfect storm. “I don’t think it’s actually decreased supply, I think it’s increased demand,” Mike Whitman of Quatrefoil, the Hyde Park-based design and build firm. “They don’t stock warehouses with this stuff, they create it as needed. They make drywall as needed, cut lumber as needed. Like us, they weren’t ready for this. And like us, they can’t find help.” Labor Shortages Beyond building materials, the other shortage that Cestero points to is that of skilled labor. Like many New Yorkers, he moved upstate last year, bringing his company with him. After years of high-end residential projects in New York City, his firm is finding its Hudson Valley niche in gut renovations and historic restorations. “Newburgh is exploding in terms of renovation right now,” he says. “A lot of city people are buying up the townhouses. I suspect that Newburgh is going to become the new Nyack within a few years. You can’t find anybody to do the work there.” The shortage of craftspeople is creating a bottleneck for projects and preventing existing firms from expanding. “Most of the guys who work for me have been with me for years,” Cestero says. “Trying to find someone new is very difficult. Everyone is in demand right now.” Quatrefoil owners Kathryn and Mike Whitman are in the same boat—they were at capacity pre-pandemic and have continued to work nonstop, unable to scale up because they can’t find the caliber of craftspeople they require. “People keep saying, ‘Aren’t you so excited? Aren’t you just rolling in money?’” says Kathryn. “No. We’re turning away jobs more than anything. We’re doing the same number of projects we did before the 6

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pandemic because we are the same size company. Hiring new people sounds great, but we have to find skilled labor and have them trained in our way of doing things. We look all the time, but in general, the trades across the country are one the more depleted fields.” It’s not just the builders that are backed up, but the whole ecosystem they are a part of, both public and private—engineers, architects, surveyors, local building and health departments. “A lot of people I talk to are coming to the Catskills with the beautiful fantasy of a stone cottage in the woods,” says John Shay of Shay Builders, based in Hopewell Junction. “What’s happening is they don’t realize the steps required to get this done. They are buying property without seeking approval ahead of time. But just because you buy it doesn’t mean it’s going to be suitable for a septic system. They have no clear vision, no blueprints, and they’re hitting roadblocks, then calling up to say ‘What do I do?’” Course Correction Ahead? With delayed permits and approvals from last year finally coming through, Shay anticipates a wave of building toward the end of the summer continuing into next spring. But for others who never got as far in the planning process, the collision of naive fantasy with brass tacks reality comes as a shock. And as the threat of the pandemic wanes, Shay isn’t sure the idyllic dreams will have the shelf life to outlast the backlog of work. “The realtors can sell as fast as they want, but there’s just not enough engineers in the area and architects to keep up with all the plans and approvals that have to be done,” says Shay. “It isn’t happening as fast as people would like. And I think a lot of them would love to go back to the city. The restaurants, the culture, the Catskills lifestyle—it’s a big change for them. And when they do get to build, they’re going to be shell-shocked when they see the price of lumber. So it’ll be interesting to see what happens in the next year. I wouldn’t be surprised if people get frustrated when they realize the difficulty and cost of building and just go back to the city.” Shay also points to the increasing number of price cuts he is seeing on listings on Realtor.com as a sign that the market is finally starting to regulate itself, saying, “those green arrows show that the reality is setting in for a lot of people that things are way overpriced.” He isn’t the only one who suspects that the regional housing boom is about to course correct. “The economy runs in cycles,” Cestero says. “In my lifetime, I’ve seen about six or eight of these cycles come and go. We’re probably at the peak of the cycle right now, so this would probably continue for another year or so before it starts to slow down. I’m not an economist, but I don’t see it crashing like in the past—I just see it slowing down.” Till then, it’s a good time to be in the trades. —Marie Doyon

EDITORIAL EDITORIAL DIRECTOR Brian K. Mahoney brian.mahoney@chronogram.com CREATIVE DIRECTOR David Clark Perry david.perry@chronogram.com DIGITAL EDITOR Marie Doyon SPONSORED CONTENT EDITOR Ashleigh Lovelace CONTRIBUTORS Peter Aaron, Mary Angeles Armstrong, Winona Barton-Ballentine, Anne Pyburn Craig, Lisa Green, Joan MacDonald, Diana Testa, Kathleen Willcox PUBLISHING CO-FOUNDER & CEO Amara Projansky CO-FOUNDER Jason Stern CHAIR David Dell Upstate House is a project of Chronogram Media.

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f i n e h om e f u r n i s hi ng s a n d in t er i or d e si g n 366 warren st. hudson, ny 518.822.8120 www.hudsonhome.com

We share your passion.

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THE S O U RCE U PS TAT E RUG S U PPLY

n the past 10 years, a boho-chic look that blends eclectic global influences, both old and new, has taken hold as the prevailing aesthetic. Every purveyor from Anthropologie to Wayfair, Target to ABC Carpet and Homes is hawking rugs inspired by vintage styles of Morocco and the Middle East. Threadbare Mid-Century rugs have found new life as overdyed floor coverings. Kilim is tossed around as a term for machine-loomed products with polyester threads. In the midst of this flooded market, it can be hard to uncover real quality.

Joanna Mahserdjian at Upstate Rug Supply in Hudson.

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T R A N S F O R M YO U R WA L L S mod-craft.com • 718-541-1160 • info@mod-craft.com

Upstate Rug Supply specializes in vintage hand-loomed Persian and Caucasian rugs, which includes pieces from present-day Iran, Azerbaijan, Armenia, and Turkey.

In 2016, Joanna Mahserdjian decided to carve out a niche for rugs of true antiquity and authentic provenance with Upstate Rug Supply. In high school, she started flexing her nascent design muscles by painting her bedroom walls with bold colors and stripes, hanging butterfly netting, and sourcing vintage wall art from the local flea market. In college, a series of art history classes were the breadcrumbs that led her into the realm of antique rug collecting. She started out buying for herself and soon was scouting for friends and family. “I got to know a couple people in the business and really saw that I had an eye for it,” she says. “I decided to take the leap and go out and do it on my own. I started out of my dining room with a capsule collection and a website.” She traveled all over the US hand-selecting rugs from dealers, buying from private collectors, and bidding in estate auctions, all the while growing a virtual following. Looking to up her game and provide a physical outlet for people to have a tactile interaction with the rugs, last year she teamed up with two local antique dealers to create a curated storefront called the Shop at 557 Warren Street in Hudson. Mahserdjian’s rugs are complemented by vintage wares from Ida’s Eye and the Modern Exchange. “There’s furniture, lighting, art, rugs—it gives the Shop a really layered feel,” she says. Aside from the aesthetic harmony of the mixed inventory, the shared space works functionally for the business owners. “It’s kind of like a co-op in that we don’t all have to be there every day,” Mahserdjian says. “Two of us have young kids, so we’re able to support one another in that.” Mahserdjian specializes in hand-loomed Persian and Caucasian rugs, which includes pieces from present-day Iran, Azerbaijan, Armenia, and Turkey. To a collector’s eye, the colors,

motifs, and techniques used in weaving shift considerably after the 1920s. “Because of the cultural tradition that is associated with them, and the fact that they are over 100 years old, these are the rugs that are naturally dyed,” she explains. “They’re from a time before rugs were woven for Western taste and for exporting. They were woven for collectors and for people in their tribes and their country. The quality is really different.” To an aficionado like Mahserdjian, the appeal is in the individuality of each rug. “Each one is different because the weavers had artistic license,” she explains. “They would include different tribal elements, or they would have their own personal design for each of the flowers.” She sources the rugs from within the US, handpicking from a vast network of auction houses, professionals, and individuals. With COVID restrictions on travel, sourcing proved more difficult in the past year. “I’m always hunting and always buying. But I’ve had to be creative,” Mahserdjian says. “I’ve had to look all over, spread my net a little bit wider.” On the other hand, with so many people shacked up at home, not to mention the surge of city transplants furnishing new houses, business has been booming. “It’s been keeping the shop really busy. It’s been fun,” she says. You can browse the selection of over 300 rugs online, set up a virtual consultation, or visit the Warren Street brick-andmortar to get the full experience. “Customers who have been following me on Instagram will come into the Shop and touch and feel the rugs,” Mahserdjian says. “It’s been great. And Hudson has been so welcoming. We have so many customers that pop in just to see what’s new.” —Marie Doyon UPSTATERUGS.COM upstate HOUSE

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THE STUDIO M ICH EL E Q UA N

Stoneware wall hanging with bevelled white oak bar, iron wall mounts. Courtesy of Studio Life/Style Photo by Steven Busken

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ncient, universally evocative symbols and patterns—sun, moon, spiral, stars, radiant hearts and eyes—adorn the work of Michele Quan, whose ceramics range from purely sculptural chains and garlands to decidedly functional, highly decorative curtains, birdhouses, bowls, vessels, and bells. Regardless of its purpose, each object—no two exactly alike—shares a common goal: “I’m hoping that it visually sparks a reminder to love and care for yourself and others, live your life, and breathe,” says the artist, who has cited Yoko Ono and Maurice Sendak as inspirations. “I’m not sure how I try to achieve that. I think I just try to do it for myself and then share the work it inspires me to make.” Quan grew up all over Vancouver, attending eight different schools, and found refuge in art rooms, drawing. In 1984, she moved to New York City to attend Parsons School of Design, but life had other ideas. “I got a job at a restaurant called Indochine and a nightclub called Area, got way distracted, dropped out of school in my second year and then modeled for six years,” Quan says. In 1991, she founded Me&Ro Jewelry with friend Robin Rienzi. The two parted ways 12 years later and Quan gave birth to a daughter in 2003, then rediscovered a medium she’d only dabbled in before. “Wracked over what to do next in my life I decided to take a ceramics class just to start working with my hands and get some flow going,” she says.

Two Bells, stoneware, hemp rope, bevelled white oak and walnut knockers Photo Bobby Fisher

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Loaded kiln at Ratsnake Studio in Saugerties; the gas kiln was made by Bailey Pottery in Kingston. Photo MQuan Studio

The clay felt good, and the bug bit hard: one class became two and then three, and Quan found herself renting a studio in the Williamsburg building occupied by sculptor Arnie Zimmerman (now of Hudson). “I called it Macho Studios,” says Quan. “No heat or AC, the water was downstairs, a stinky forklift, a kiln that would stall near the end and take at least four hours too many to get to temperature. I was there for four years and loved it. When Arnie sold the building, I moved to New Clay Studio in Gowanus. I called it Princess Studio because it had heat, AC, a drain in the floor to hose down all the clay dust, beautiful skylights, in a quiet residential neighborhood. And the kiln fires off by 7 or 8pm. No more huddling near the kiln at 11pm in the winter.” Quan considers her pottery, which is either hand-formed or thrown on a wheel, “a canvas for my love of drawing, painting, text, and color. Impermanence and interconnection are ideas that I return to often,” says Quan, “drawing inspiration from the writings and teachings of Buddhism and its extensive visual language.” Quan picked up her Eastern influences rambling through the late, great bookstores of New York, poring over both philosophy and design. Now, Quan is in the process of transitioning to her latest studio in Saugerties “which is a dream come true,” she says. “In 2001 I had worked with a life coach and dreamt of making ceramics in the country with a garden, compost, and trees. It was one of those ‘if you could do anything, bar nothing’ exercises based on a daydream from a single throwing class I took in 1991,” she says. “I lived in New York City for 36 years and love it there, but I was ready to move. In 2008, I almost bought a house in Bearsville, but the economy tanked and then I was afraid. I am counting my blessings for timing that I got it together in 2019, before COVID. There is no way I could do it now.” Like her Williamsburg and Gowanus digs, the Saugerties studio has a name: Ratsnake Studio, so named for close encounters. “There’s a huge black rat snake that lives under the stairs at the back door, comes out on sunny days and hangs out on the stairs, takes off to hunt and comes back. At first I was like ‘it’s gotta go!’ But I’ve gotten used to the snake, and this year there seem to be two. I’m really not sure how I’d feel about a bunch of baby snakes, we’ll see. Ack. I’ll take it day by day with that.” Quan’s work, which has been characterized by Elle magazine as “haute hippie,” is available through her own website and at select design outlets in New York City including Fair, Cote A Coast, GRDN in Brooklyn, and the Whitney and Guggenheim museums. —Anne Pyburn Craig MQUAN.COM

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Window installation for the Guggenheim Museum Store for the Hilma af Klint restrospective, October 2018-April 2019. Above: Michele Quan in her Brooklyn studio Photo by Bobby Fisher

upstate HOUSE

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GA RD EN

GOING NATIVE Local Plants in Your Garden Help the Entire Planet

By Kathleen Willcox

cross the country, millions of acres of habitat and farmland have been lost to development. In the past 20 years alone, about 11 million acres of farmland have been converted, fragmented or paved over, according to the American Farmland Trust. This development, and all that comes with it imperils the foundation of our country’s ecosystem, warns John Messerschmidt, owner of Poison Ivy Patrol and Hudson Valley Native Landscaping in High Falls. “When I drive around, I see people planting beautiful flowers and trees and shrubs, but they’re not from around here,” Messerschmidt says. “At first, it’s fine. Everything looks beautiful. But to the pollinators, these gardens are dead zones. There are all of these vast dead zones where there used to forests and meadows.” To make matters worse, many of these species are invasive, and when their seeds and berries are picked up and spread by birds, they take over forests and patches of trees along parking lots and walking paths, choking out 16

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the native plants that do actually support the pollinators and birds. “They’re growing exponentially, and they’re undermining the foundation of our local ecology,” he says. When pollinators find non-native plants in their usual hunting grounds, that means they can’t feed there. Insects and pollinators, which serve as one of the foundations of our ecosystem, are declining all over the world. A number of factors have been blamed, from monoculture farming, to pesticide use, to habitat loss, according to a paper published at the Yale School of the Environment. Declines of abundant insect and faunal species across North America, Asia, the Arctic and the Neotropics have been widely documented. A range of solutions will be necessary to combat this issue on a large scale, but one simple step, that every home owner is capable of taking, is decreasing the number of non-native species in their garden, researchers say. “Let’s take a chickadee, for example,” Messerschmidt says. “One newly hatched chickadee needs to eat 1,000 caterpillars before it can grow strong enough to fly and feed itself.

Butterflies on liatris. Some moths and butterflies feed exclsuively on liatris. Photo by Terri Carriker-Thayer

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There are more than 450 native bee species in New York alone, but butterflies, birds, bats, beetles, and even flies have a symbiotic relationship with the flowering natives here. That’s a single season, just a matter of a month or two. Parent birds have to find 1,000 caterpillars, or would-be moths and butterflies, which can only survive on native plants. There is a certain caterpillar that will only eat the spice bush. But the spice bush is frequently being strangled by honeysuckle and other invasive shrubs. Same thing with the Monarch Butterfly, which will only eat milkweed, which is also disappearing. It’s not just chickadees of course. All kinds of birds and bats depend on these caterpillars to survive, which depend on local species of plants. And they’re being choked out.” We can’t transform the world, but we can all, experts say, create beautiful spaces around our homes that not only please us, but feed the butterflies and chickadees. Fundamentals of Enlightened Landscaping Basic gardening principles should be considered first when selecting native plants, says Joyce Tomaselli, a community horticulture resource educator at Cornell Cooperative Extension of Dutchess County. “You want to match plants to the site,” she advises. “Think about the layout, how many plants you need, and what size. You want to carefully note how much time each area spends in the sun and in the shade and select plants accordingly.” For those who want to welcome the birds and the bees into their garden, she recommends “grouping flowering plants by shape. Pollinators like to spend time in one section of your garden for a while feeding, and hummingbirds can only feed from tubular flowers, whereas bees and butterflies prefer other shapes.”

Top: Black-Eyed Susans. Photo by Erin Maciel/Urban Landscape Studio Bottom: Woodland phlox, tradescantia that’s not yet in bloom, zizia, heuchera, leopard’s bane, phlox, service berry, and perennial sunflowers not yet in bloom. Photo by Cathy Lane 18

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There are more than 450 native bee species in New York alone, but butterflies, birds, bats, beetles, and even flies have a symbiotic relationship with the flowering natives here. Tomaselli recommends providing floral resources and shelter through native grasses, sedges, perennials, flowering shrubs, and small trees. Local nurseries often have native sections, and even if they don’t, they should be able to guide you toward site-appropriate natives. There are also nurseries that specialize in providing native plants, as well as advice for succesful siting and care. Catskill Native Nursery in Kerhonkson is one. A few popular native perennial options for pollinators are common milkweed, columbine, black cohosh, marsh marigold, jewelweed, foxglove, black-eyed Susan, and New England aster. Native shrubs include silky dogwood, northern spicebush and American elderberry. Small native trees to consider include the common serviceberry, pagoda dogwood, chokeberry. Larger trees that support local insects, pollinators, and animals include the red maple, river birch, eastern redcedar, and white oak. Start Small with a Wild Zone If replanting your entire garden seems like too daunting a task, don’t fret. “I try to not be too dogmatic,” says the Saratoga Springs-based landscape architect Erin Maciel, founder of Urban Landscape Studio. “Start small. You’ll be better off making small changes every year than getting overwhelmed,” she says. “One thing that I did as a test in my own lawn—I stopped mowing one section near my driveway a few years ago. Within one month, the entire space had transformed. I’d step out of my car, and it would smell and look like walking into a meadow. There were bees, butterflies, and crickets. There were even more birds!” Maciel cautions that there’s a difference between “wild and neglected. Sometimes, when people stop mowing and don’t do anything else, the lawn just looks sad,” she says. To create a small wildflower meadow—whether it’s a fivesquare-foot patch or your entire yard—Maciel recommends first ensuring the site gets a lot of sun. “Wildflowers need a lot of sun,” she says. “Then remove existing vegetation, including the lawn. Sod can be stripped by hand, or removed with a machine.” Next, loosen up the soil by hand or with a tiller, rake the area and spread seed for native grasses and wildflowers as evenly as you can, and compress it into the soil to encourage germination. (Walking over the area should do the trick). If no rain is expected in the next day, water the area to settle the seed in. Many wildflowers pop up in as little as a week, and the entire meadow will begin to establish itself between four and six weeks. Or start small by ousting a few bad guys. Replacing even a few of the “worst offender” invasive species, Messerschmidt says, can make an impact. Dig out the forsythia and Japanese barberry and replace it with a similar native tree. Like enlightened eating, enlightened gardening can take time, and at first, a little extra money. But over time, as with your body after a few months of eating farm-grown organic kale and pasture-raised eggs, you’ll find that your yard is healthier and more resilient. You will also be rewarded with the knowledge that you’re supplying your entire neighborhood with extra butterfly sightings and bird song.

Top: Lobelia Photo by John Messerschmidt Bottom: Echinacea Photo by Erin Maciel/Urban Landscape Studio upstate HOUSE

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THE S O U RCE T EN T

hen one of designer Darren Henault’s twin daughters first saw his new store, Tent, she told her dad, “Looks like our house, only everything’s for sale.” Lucky girls. If Tent’s interior looks like their home in Millbrook, I’d like to live there, too. Instead, best to spend some time in the shop that, like any home, is a “collection of experiences,” according to Henault. Every piece—from the Japanese handcrafted ladles and the Mexican gourd-shaped pottery to the furniture clad in luxury fabrics you won’t find in any other retail store—reflects Henault’s aesthetic. It’s all about texture, comfort, shapes and layers. Above all, he says, it’s the feel of an object. Everything in Tent has that Henault touch—literally. “My dad was in the textile industry, and he always touched new stuff,” Henault says as he moves from one item to the next, pointing out the luxe, sensuous qualities of the fabric swatches, rugs, pottery, the fused-glass drinkware and the concave teak serving hands. What products feel like is the determining factor in Henault’s store as well as his design practice. His sensibility is one that’s kept him among the top echelon of New York interior designers for 30 years. When New York shut down a year ago, he and his husband and their teenage twins settled into their Millbrook home and never really left. In June, he learned of a space—a former auto repair shop—for sale on Amenia’s Main Street and envisioned a place of his own. Why 22

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not, he thought, take his design knowledge and love of acquiring objects and put them in a store? He hired a merchandising director who’d been at J. Crew and Draper James (Reese Witherspoons’s store) and told her he wanted to open by Christmas. It seemed like an impossible feat—it’s normally, at minimum, a year-long process— but they got it done: the store opened December 18. Henault worked with vendors he knows from all over the world, and sought out others whose work he admired. Some are local artisans, but Henault is adamant that it’s more about the talent and beauty of a piece, not where it’s from. Every item has a story, and he’s happy to tell you about its provenance. All of the furniture is of his own design. The sofas are down filled and upholstered in fabrics from iconic European mills. He is the exclusive dealer for Holland & Sherry, Rogers & Goffigon, and Bennison Fabrics, all high-end textile makers. Rugs, pillows and tabletop items are selling particularly well. Henault has been collecting rugs for 30 years and has a warehouse full of them. (“You need a rug, I’ll get you a rug,” he promises.) It seems that the design approach—not his—of the last 10 years, where homes resembled sleek hotel rooms, is turning toward Henault’s style, where every glance elicits an encounter with light, texture, quality, form, and mood. —Lisa Green TENTNEWYORK.COM

Hide pillows juxtaposed with a block print from Bennison Fabrics sit atop Tent’s bespoke ottoman, designed by Darren Henault and upholstered in the traditional texture of herringbone wool by Holland & Sherry.

Tent’s wares range from bespoke furniture and exclusive fabrics to home accessories, tableware, and more. Above: An extra-deep seat and generously filled down cushions are the hallmark of Tent’s Millbrook collection of upholstered furniture.

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COM M U N IT Y

BEACON No Ceilings

By Brian P.J. Cronin Photos by David McIntyre

any of the Hudson Valley’s river towns have undergone a resurgence in the past 20 years, with an influx of new residents, cultural offerings, and developments. Only one of them, however, is on the state flag. That’s Mount Beacon with the sun rising behind it on the New York State Coat of Arms, created in 1778. At 1,611 feet, it’s not the tallest mountain in the state by a longshot, but as the site where George Washington’s troops would set signal fires during the Revolutionary War, it was the most culturally significant mountain for Colonial-era New Yorkers. With all that history, it may be surprising that “Beacon,” as we know it, has only existed for a little over 100 years. It wasn’t until 1913 that the City of Beacon was formed, after the villages of Fishkill Landing and Mattawan, hemmed in by the river and the mountains, grew in the only direction they could: Into each other. Since 2000—after a few decades in which half of Main Street was boarded up—the city has undergone another vigorous growth spurt in surprising new directions. The groups of artists that had begun putting on shows and congregating around Hudson Beach Glass 24

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helped draw the attention of the Dia Foundation, who opened up the world renowned Dia:Beacon museum on the shores of the river. Beacon became a global destination practically overnight, but it took a few more years for that mile-long Main Street with vacant blocks to entice visitors to stay awhile. For years, travel guides that mentioned Beacon simply said to go to Dia, hit Homespun Foods on Main Street for lunch, and then leave. You can still have a pretty perfect day going to just those two justifiably iconic destinations. But it takes more than a few Richard Serra sculptures and a great sandwich to spur a renaissance. THE SCENE Somehow Beacon continues to expand and swell. The slew of galleries that have attracted artists and art-lovers alike have gotten more prestigious, with the New York City outposts Fridman Gallery and Parts & Labor expanding to Beacon. The roving cinema club Story Screen now runs an actual multiscreen movie theater on Main Street and a drive-in during the summer. The town’s two craft breweries (Hudson Valley Brewery and Two-Way) were joined last year by an outpost of Rockland-based Industrial

Arts Brewing. The city’s beloved doughnut shop Glazed Over just got company with the opening of vegan doughnut shop Peaceful Provisions; lines for both continue to be out the door. Even the city’s venues for live music will be expanding once “live music” can be a thing that happens again. For now, there’s free jazz and noise (and Japanese food) at Quinn’s, classical music at the Howland Cultural Center, and folk at the legendary Towne Crier Cafe which relocated to Beacon in 2013. But now the city’s oldest church, after a deconsecration ceremony by its dozen or so remaining congregants, will be transformed into a 500-seat performance venue with its own bar and small hotel. “Beacon’s a really cool city and it just keeps getting cooler,” says Charlotte Guernsey, a Beacon resident who opened Gate House Realty in 2001. The unparalleled growth has not been without its consequences. With the attention has come gentrification, with many long-time residents, senior citizens, and marginalized groups being priced out of town. New housing is being built at a furious clip, but much of it has ended up driving real estate prices up while also angering locals who feel that the taller buildings and questionable

THE FACTS ZIP CODE: 12508 POPULATION: 13,968 MEDIAN HOUSEHOLD INCOME: $75,297 PROXIMITY TO MAJOR CITY: New York City is 60 miles to the south.

TRANSPORTATION: Beacon has its own MetroNorth Station. It’s a little over an hour to get to Grand Central Station by train. I-84 runs across the north end of Beacon, Route 9D runs through the city’s west end, and Route 9 is about a mile to the east. Stewart International Airport is 14 miles west in New Windsor.

NEAREST HOSPITALS: St. Luke’s Cornwall is six miles over the Hudson River in Newburgh, Vassar Brothers is 15 miles north in Poughkeepsie.

SCHOOLS: The Beacon City School District has four elementary schools (Glenham, Sargent, JV Forrestal, and South Avenue), one middle school (Rombout), and the Beacon High School. Private schools are Hudson Hills Academy Montessori (Pre-K-7) and New Covenant Learning center (Pre-K-4).

POINTS OF INTEREST: Dia:Beacon, Long Dock Park, Dennings Point, Madam Brett Park, Mount Beacon, Quinn’s, the Howland Cultural Center, Hudson Beach Glass, the Towne Crier, Bank Square Coffee, Above: Bank Square Coffeehouse Opposite: Beacon’s artistic character is evident in its many murals.

Yankee Clipper Diner, Hudson Valley Brewery, Binnacle Books, Two-Way Brewing, Industrial Arts Brewing, Happy Valley Arcade Center, Glazed Over Doughnuts, Peaceful Provisions, One More Bite, Trax Espresso, Big Mouth Coffee, Isamu, Melzingah Tap House, Ama

architectural decisions detract from the smalltown feel that made the city so livable in the first place. And yet, with all the growth and attention that the city has received, its greatest attractions may be the ones on the New York State flag. It’s still possible to find a secluded spot on Mount Beacon or down by the river at one of the city’s many parks and feel as if you’re the only person in the world. THE MARKET How much longer you’ll be able to find those quiet spots is anyone’s guess. Beacon’s real estate market had been booming for 10 years, and the pandemic has shifted it into overdrive. Guernsey remembers the first time, in 2005, when the city’s inventory of detached, singlefamily homes, dropped from its usual level of around a 100 or so to around 50. “We were beside ourselves,” she recalls. As of press time it was 23, and every agent in her office is working with between six and 12 buyers. “ Lots of buyers and not much to sell,” Guernsey says. “That’s it in a nutshell.”

Still, transactions are happening. As Claire Browne, an agent at Gate House says, buyers just have to be ready to stomach the process. “Get an agent that you trust,” she says. “Put down as much as you can put down. For the most part, everybody gets a house, you just have to be able to stick out and be flexible.” So what does flexible mean these days in Beacon? Older condos in older developments may be your best bet. As of press time, a threebedroom, two-bath, 2,000-square-foot condo built in 1973 was listed at $259,000. Detached houses were starting around $320,000. Most of the highest-priced listings in town are actually new condos being built in some of those controversial new developments. If you want more than one bedroom, that’s probably going to cost you at least $750,000, topping out at $1.3 million for a two-bedroom, two-bath, 2,641-square-foot. Or you could get a recently renovated row of handsome brick townhouses, containing eight total units, for just under $2 million. When the real estate market’s this hot, you may just need to become your own landlord.

Wood-Fired Pizza, Hudson Valley Food Hall, BJ’s Restaurant, the Snooki Shop, the Roundhouse, and Story Screen Beacon Theater

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COM M U N N IT Y

WARWICK

estled between four mountains at the southeastern corner of Orange County, Warwick provides a refuge for city escapees in search of Upstate vibes and ample green spaces without the overlong commute. “It’s amazing to stand on the mountaintop and see the city skyline, and meanwhile a bear could be sneaking up behind you,” says Hannelore Chambers, who left corporate finance behind 12 years ago and has zero regrets. “We wanted to start our family and give the kids an active childhood, and especially in the past year, being able to get out and ski three times a month, hike, swim—it’s been a huge mental health boost,” says Chambers. “So is the really nice blend of people—families who go back 12 or 13 generations plus a lot of folks who’ve moved up since, and a community life that offers so many opportunities to work together that you form deep connections.” Warwick contains three villages (Warwick, Greenwood Lake and Florida) and nine hamlets, Amity, Bellvale, Edenville, Greenwood Forest Farms, Little York, New Milford, Pine Island, and Sterling Forest. In each village 26

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STILL THRIVING By Anne Pyburn Craig

center and scattered throughout the wild open spaces, black dirt, and well-preserved history are independent businesses ranging from old-school staples to cutting-edge trendy. A spirit of neighborly collaboration and forward thinking pulls it all together nicely. The valley was already a hot destination in 1700, with fierce competition for land grants until the Wawayanda Patent became official in 1703. Early industries included the Sterling Works, where the 500-yard iron chain that secured the Hudson River from British ships during the Revolution was forged. Through the 19th century, the action centered in the hamlets, where mills, iron forges, carding factories and craftspeople flourished. The railway, which opened in 1862, brought wealthy holidaymakers to build the painted lady Victorians that still adorn the Village of Warwick’s historic district. Warwick was an early adopter of smart growth principles, passing a PDR (purchase of development rights) bond issue in 2000 and revamping its zoning in 2002, and repurposing a onetime prison as a lakeside recreation zone and office/technology park.

THE SCENE Chambers led the committee that turned out 1,000 local volunteers to build an inclusive playground; now she’s on the board of Wickham Works, a nonprofit producing community events, and overseeing the creation of HelloWarwickValley. com, designed to showcase the town’s assets. “Even in local groups, people will ask things like, ‘Is there a place to eat with a view of the lake?’” she says. “We want to make sure everyone knows: Yes!” The website is just one of the ways that Warwick residents have joined forces. Seniors and the disabled get their errands and transportation handled through the Friendly Visitor Program at no charge. During the pandemic shutdown the Warwick Relief Market gave local merchants a signal boost on Facebook, and Nourish Your Mind, an integrative therapy center with a strong focus on the brain/gut connection, quadrupled its practice. Local eateries have taken the opportunity to improve and expand outdoor seating. “Warwick Thai, this hidden gem in the village center, has added gorgeous plants and lighting,” says Phyllis Emmerich, owner of Warwick-based marketing firm Branded 845. “Pennings Farm just reopened— reservations are a good idea for indoors, but they

THE FACTS ZIP CODE: 10990 POPULATION: 31, 547 MEDIAN HOUSEHOLD INCOME: $86,241 PROXIMITY TO MAJOR CITY: Warwick is 58 miles from New York City and 118.2 miles from Albany.

TRANSPORTATION: Warwick is located 17.2 miles from NY-17. New Jersey Transit provides commuter bus service from Warwick to New York City and the surrounding areas, and a free Park-nRide is located on Rt. 17A. The public-use Warwick Municipal Airport is located within the town.

NEAREST HOSPITAL: St. Anthony Community Hospital is located in Warwick.

SCHOOLS: Warwick Valley Central School

Above: The beer garden at Pennings Farm is a favorite local attraction. Opposite: The east arm of Greenwood Lake. Photo by Luke Gordon

have two beautiful big hillside lawns for walk-ins.” “We love being able to just relax with our friends, get a table at a winery or brewery with board games for the kids and kick back with a glass,” says Chambers. “Then head to Greenwood Lake, rent a boat, and hit a lakeside restaurant for a beautiful evening on the patio.” THE MARKET “There’s not enough inventory to meet the demand, and it’s intense,” says LucyAnn Tinnirello, office manager at Green Team NY Realty. “A little ranch or bi-level that would have sold for $325,000 to 330,000 is now $349,000 to $389,000 or better. Even fixer-uppers are selling for $279,000 to $299,000. “One of our agents just put a listing on three days ago and she’s had 17 showings. It’s still the COVID market, and bidding wars get intense; everyone involved needs to stay kind and caring and careful of what they do, but the watchword is ‘If you want to sleep in it, don’t sleep on it.” The median listing price in Warwick in late April was $463,950. True to Tinnirello’s observation, the only choices available for under $200,000 were raw land and a lone twobedroom described as ready to tear down. One four-bedroom two-story in the village and a three-bedroom townhouse were the only homes listed at under $300,000—just barely under.

Between $300,000 and $400,000, possibilities include a renovated three-bedroom ranch with hardwood, tile, stainless steel appliances, and new deck at $339,000; a fourbedroom listed as a multi-family “investment opportunity” at $335,000; a partially completed barn conversion for $349,900; and a fourbedroom Colonial with detached two-car garage for $375,000. Above $400,000 one begins to find pristine ranches and Colonials in prime village locations; one recently renovated bi-level with four bedrooms and two full baths advertised “phenomenal views” at $419,900. A threebedroom ranch with stone facade on a four-acre lot was priced at $599,000. Three and four-bedroom colonial and ranch houses with over 2,500 square feet, spacious porches, and renovated kitchens and baths were available in the $600,000 to 800,000 range. And if you’ve more than that to spend, you might find a genuine Victorian estate—one on 5.7 acres, featuring vaulted beamed ceilings, screened conservatory, sumptuous primary suite and pool with waterfalls was listed at $989,000 in April. Above a million, says Tinnirello, competition remains fierce. “We’re seeing a lot of one-pointsomething listings, and they’re selling fast,” she says. “For cash, no less.”

District serves over 3,000 students in five buildings: Pine Island Elementary, Park Avenue Elementary, Sanfordville Elementary, Warwick Valley Middle School, and Warwick Valley High School. Students living in and around the village of Florida attend Florida Union Free School District, which serves about 840 students in two school buildings: Golden Hill Elementary (pre-K through grade 5), and S. S. Seward Institute (grades 6-12). Greenwood Lake students attend Greenwood Lake Union Free School District at Greenwood Lake Elementary and Greenwood Lake Middle School, after which families may choose between Warwick Valley High School and Chester Academy High School. Nearby independent school options include Calvary Christian Academy (Baptist, K-12 and homeschool program), St. Stephen St. Edward School. (Roman Catholic, pre-K through grade 8), and Tuxedo Park School (pre-K through grade 9).

POINTS OF INTEREST: Appalachian Trail, Wawayanda State Park, Greenwood Lake, Wickham Woodlands, Wallkill River National Wildlife Refuge, Glenmere Mansion, Warwick Inn, Applewood Winery, Clearview Vineyard, Landmark Inn, Pennings Farm and Cidery, Demarest Hill Winery, Warwick Village Historic District, Mt. Peter Ski Area, Warwick Mountain, Bellvale Farms Creamery, Warwick Valley Winery and Distillery, Shalimar Alpacas, Florida Farmers Market, Warwick Valley Farmers’ Market, Long Pond Ironworks, Frazzleberries Country Store, Iriniri Design, Fizzy Lifting Soda Pop Candy Shop, Warwick House of Antiques.

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HOUSE PRO FILE

The second-floor primary bedroom is the same round footprint as the first floor living room. The couple decorated the space with furniture brought from Germany in 1939 and art from their childhood homes. “I love standing in the middle of the room because you can hear an echo,” explains Enfield. “Even though we are on a busy street, the walls are so thick that the house is very quiet.”

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FLASH BANG HISTORY At Home in a Former Gunpowder Mill By Mary Angeles Armstrong Photos by Winona Barton-Ballentine

Richard Rabinowitz and Jill Enfield’s Federalist-style home sits on a verdant and leafy acre in Newburgh. Part cozy home, part monument to local history, the stone house was once the headquarters of the Orange Mill gun powder manufacturing complex.

ichard Rabinowitz revels in uncovering his home’s murky past. “Even the roofer gave me a history lesson,” Rabinowitz explains of a recent maintenance project. “I climbed up with him and he showed me 192 years of roof repairs.” It seems there are many stories buried under those eves. Built in the 1820s, the Federalist-style house he shares with wife, Jill Enfield, features a street side rotunda and solid stone walls. Originally the headquarters for the Orange Mill gunpowder company, the home and adjacent park were once central to Newburgh’s thriving gunpowder industry. Enfield’s work is explosive in its own right. Utilizing the 19th-century wet-plate collodion process, she captures images by applying a coat of nitrocellulose—an explosive also used in rockets—onto glass, creating portraiture that exposes her subjects in flashes of illumination. Her work synthesizes the past with the present: The subjects are current, but the themes she explores are perennial and her creative process subverts her home’s historic beginnings with a creative bang.

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To create her most recent work, the “New Americans” series, Enfield printed pictures of recent immigrants onto 45 discarded windows and then built a glass house from the portraits that were, quite literally, exploded onto the glass. The installation was first displayed at Ellis Island and then in multiple other locations. “Collodion is made from gun cotton,” says Enfield, describing the common term for nitrocellulose, the volatile sibling of gunpowder—smokeless but more explosive. “It’s ironic that we ended up in a gunpowder mill, we’ve really come full circle.” Set in Stone “We’ve always liked places that exude history,” says Enfield. “As well as places that were well built, so it was hard not to fall in love with this house the moment we drove up to it.” In 2014 the couple decided to leave city life behind. Rabinowitz, who had worked in advertising as well as publishing, began organizing photo workshops through his business, the Digital Photo Academy, and was no longer based in New York City. The pair still needed an easy commute into Manhattan, however, where Enfield continues to teach at Parsons School of Design. “Grand Central Station is one of my favorite buildings,” she explains, “so we began searching along the lines that travel there.” They soon found Newburgh—central to the Hudson Valley’s many charms and relatively walkable. The historic, 3,300-squarefoot, two-story home with its colorful history fit them to a T.

Most of the home’s interior is covered in a variety of wallpaper prints, which provide a colorful backdrop to the couple’s eclectic art collection. The home’s dining room includes photos by various artists and an Edmond Casarella sketch, The Bull, from 1954 A second-floor guest bedroom is decorated with a mix of images, including three color etchings by Mexican artist Leticia Tarrago; photographs by Lewis Hine and Abe Frajndlich; and paintings by Violet Baxter and Jim Marshall. There is also a portrait of Enfield by artist Emilio Klein and a portrait of Rabinowitz as a child. 30

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Enfield, a photographer known for her expertise in alternative and historic techniques, maintains a large dark room and office in the home’s basement. Hanging above the sink are a line of experimental cyanotypes for an online class Enfield is leading.

In Enfield’s office is one of her first self-portraits, created when she was trying to master the wetplate collodion process. She took the original photo with the camera pictured, and then printed it onto glass. The print was scanned into her computer and then utilized as the cover of her second book on alternative photographic processes.

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The former headquarters-turned-stately home sits on a hill overlooking the Round House gunpowder mill, known affectionately by some Newburgh locals as the “Witches Castle,” and now maintained as part of the Algonquin Park historic district. The mill was originally built in the 1700s and first used to produce chalk and then lumber. Asa Taylor, a local businessman, bought it in 1816, along with more than 300 acres of surrounding land, and converted the mill to manufacture gunpowder. Under a series of owners, it became known as the Orange Mill gunpowder complex. According to local historian Joe Santacroce, the convex design of the gunpowder mill worked to deter the impact of accidental blasts. “They must have experienced one or more blasts prior to the construction of the offices,” he explains. The Orange Mill officials decided to incorporate the shape of the Round House mill when they designed their headquarters in the 1820s. The two-story building, which included a first-floor testing

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laboratory in the large, round front room and a suite of offices above, also included a carpenter’s shop in the rear and a testing range right behind the home, all of it completed by 1828. Initially, the gunpowder “was used to blow up tree stumps as they were building the cities around here and to flatten land for the local roads” explains Rabinowitz. As the operations expanded, the facility also began to manufacture high-quality cannon and rifle powder. In 1859, the mill was bought by the Smith and Rand Powder Company which ramped up its manufacturing capacity even further, providing gunpowder for the Union Army during the Civil War. According to Rabinowitz the mill changed hands several times and sometime around 1901 the offices were remodeled into a residence. In 1909 the property was bought by Colonel Fredric Delano (uncle of FDR), who preserved the mill and surrounding land. After his niece Sarah Delano (FDR’s mother) inherited the property, she donated it to the city of Newburgh as a historic park.

The round living room was once used as a test lab for the gunpowder mill. When the mill was converted to a residence, the fireplace was added, along with a plaque commemorating workers who had died on the premises. The Steinway Parlor Baby Grand piano has been in Rabinowitz’s family since the 1950s. Since moving to the area in 2014, the couple have collected multiple works by local Hudson Valley painters, including the painting of a red chair on the fireplace mantel by Anna West.

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Glass House Explosions Both Enfield and Rabinowitz tend towards historic preservation and prefer the antique over modern design. “We don’t really like modern construction which seems to reflect a decaying society that has made the priority of built-in obsolescence,” she explains. Together, they’ve amassed a large collection of artifacts, photographs and artwork documenting their family histories and dating back to the 19th century. Historic documentation runs in Enfield’s family and her work is also inspired, in part, by her family’s own story. “My family has been involved with photography since 1875,” she explains. Natives of Frankfurt, Germany, they operated a camera store there until 1939. At the onset of World War II, the family was able to move to Miami and open a camera store with the help of Ernest Leitz II, the head of the Leica Camera company, who helped smuggle hundreds of Jews out of Germany in what’s become known by historians as the “Leica Freedom Train.” After immigrating, Enfield’s father Kurt joined the United States military, serving with the 7th Division Photographer’s Corp documenting the war in Japan. “The old movie reels shown in theaters during World War II were often filmed by my father or my uncle Paul,” she says. She followed in her family’s footsteps not only becoming a photographer, but also almost exclusively relying on historic techniques to create her work. “I started using alternative processes almost from the beginning of my career,” she explains. Along with several exhibits, her expertise has produced the book Jill Enfield’s Guide to Photographic Alternative Processes: Popular Historical and Contemporary Techniques. Bird’s-Eye View of History The day the couple first happened upon the former Orange Mill Headquarters Enfield told Rabinowitz, “this place is wonderful, but I’m guessing that it will be a disaster inside.” However, they were happily mistaken. Since its gunpowder days, the headquarters had been slowly transformed into a comfortable home that never lost its historic charm. Downstairs, subsequent owners converted the testing laboratory into a large living room, adding a giant stone fireplace with a plaque commemorating a worker who’d died on the premises. (According to Santacroce there are probably multiple burial sites on the grounds from additional accidents.) A covered porch, curved to match the round exterior, was added to the front of the home offering views to the mill. The carpenter’s shop in the back of the building was converted into a mother-in-law apartment and then opened again into an extra bedroom. Between the two spaces an open kitchen and large dining room was added. The cellar—which was once a storage facility complete with underground tunnels leading to the mill across the street—was converted into an additional bedroom. The upstairs offices had become two small bedrooms, an additional sitting room, a bathroom and a circular master bedroom with the same footprint as the testing laboratory downstairs. Former owners also added a pool to the now 1.3 acre grounds. “It was not only different with its large round frontal area, and historical, but it was very comfortable,” Enfield explains. “The house is not too big but big enough that we can both work here without being in each other’s way.” Right away Enfield realized that the partially finished basement would be perfect for a darkroom. “I was able to build a beautiful old fashioned wet darkroom,” she says. She also has a digital office downstairs and additional storage. On the first floor, Rabinowitz has an office and conversation pit with views over the surrounding landscape. The covered porch and pool area also serve as ad-hoc work spaces. The walls throughout the first and second floors have provided ample space to hang Enfield’s own work and their collection of art, photography and antiques. However, it’s the bird’s-eye view of history that both Rabinowitz and Enfield enjoy the most. “The tall trees create our own private paradise, you see the stars and you feel like you’re in an oasis,” Enfield explains. “But we can always see Algonquin Park across the street from our front porch.”

Top: Enfield and Rabinowitz on the covered front porch of their home. Bottom: The side view of the house emphasizes the front rotunda. upstate HOUSE

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SP O NSO R E D

BACKYARD BLISS

Four Summer Projects to Elevate Your Outdoor Space

Benjamin Moore, whose Arborcoat stains have advanced technology that provide durability and protection for your wood deck. Before you commit, Williams recommends testing out a range of opacities and colors with pint-sized samples, which will help you envision the final look.

Freshen Up Your Stain The perfect place to start on your outdoor endeavors is with a new stain for your deck. If you feel like your project is approachable enough to tackle on your own, Williams emphasizes the importance of properly prepping any surfaces first. Her go-to source is premium paint brand

Add Low-Maintenance Decking If you don’t have a deck yet, this summer might be a great time to add one to your home. Creating a deck might sound like a large investment, but it will reward you with more time spent enjoying nature or dining with family and friends for years to come. Williams recommends selecting durable materials that will survive the elements and require little maintenance over your deck’s life. USAmade Trex is a high-performance, eco-friendly alternative to wood decking that is made from 95 percent recycled material and comes in a wide array of colors, styles, textures, and railing options to create the look you want. “So often people think that composite is out of their price range,” Williams says. “With escalating pressure treated lumber prices, you might even break even or be ahead with an investment in composite decking like Trex, and it saves you the time, labor, and money you would otherwise spend over the years on a wood deck.”

hen it comes to DIY home projects, there’s no better season than summer in the Hudson Valley. Those sun-soaked days are perfect for getting outside to enjoy the good weather while working on that list of projects that you’ve been waiting all year to start. “The opportunity to beautify our outdoor living spaces is one of the most enjoyable parts of summer as a homeowner,” says Kim Williams, SVP of Retail Operations at Williams Lumber and Home Centers. With multiple locations, including two kitchen and bath showrooms in Pleasant Valley and Rhinebeck, Williams has been a go-to source for home improvement in the Hudson Valley since 1946. With Williams’s help, we’ve rounded up four projects that fit a range of budgets and will help add years of enjoyment to your outdoor space.

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Above: Here’s one way to enjoy your outdoor space to the fullest. Dive into the world of pellet grills, which add delicious wood-fired flavor to anything you’re cooking. These all-inone grills allow you to smoke, grill, roast, braise, barbecue, and even bake. Opposite: Unilock’s pavers echo the timeless, rustic charm of natural stone while offering a durable and low-maintenance solution for hardscaping. Composite decking from Trex comes in a wide array of colors, styles, textures, and railing options to help you create the look you want.

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Create a Lasting Hardscape “Pavers don’t have to be just for a patio,” says Williams. “They can be used around your pool area, to create a path through or to your garden, or even for your driveway.” Williams likes Unilock pavers and walls because they echo the timeless, rustic charm of natural stone while offering a durable and low-maintenance solution for hardscaping. If you’re looking for an eco-friendly option, the brand also has a selection of permeable lines that help rainwater rejoin your local ecosystem. Prep Your Outdoor Kitchen for Success Grilling is one of the best ways to enjoy your outdoor space to its fullest, so summer is the perfect time to invest in a kitchen setup. You can start simple with a classic Weber charcoal kettle grill or go all-in with their Summit multi-burner gas grills, which have enough bells and whistles to put your indoor range to shame. To take your grilling game to the next level, pair one of their gas grills with the brand’s smartphone-controlled Weber Connect Smart Grilling Hub, which allows you to monitor and manage cook times and temperatures from afar. If you’re looking to explore the wider world of smoking, Williams recommends investing in one of the new styles catching on with backyard chefs. Electric pellet grills available from both Traeger and Weber burn wood pellets made of compressed sawdust from hardwoods like pecan, hickory, or cherry, adding delicious wood-fired flavor to anything you’re cooking. These all-in-one grills allow you to smoke, grill, roast, braise, barbecue, and even bake! If traditional smoking is more your speed, try a Japanese kamadostyle smoker like those from Kamado Joe. These egg-shaped smokers are made of ceramic, which is known for evenly distributing heat and holding in moisture. This allows them to maintain a more consistent temperature that can sustain the low heat needed for smoking—but rest assured they’re great for higher-heat charcoal grilling, too. No matter which projects you choose to pursue this summer, make sure to take time to enjoy the fruits of your labor. Intimate dinners on your deck with family or friends or a daily sunset stroll along your garden paths will help you appreciate your hard work and make the most of those dreamy days of summer while they’re here. upstate HOUSE

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PRO FIL E

DRESSED FOR SUCCESS A Bearsville Cape Cod Gets a Designer Makeover By Peter Aaron

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Above: The tri-level bluestone patio features built-in planters and a view of the pool and the (often misty) mountains beyond. Opposite: Japanese-inspired elm console in living room corner with contrasting wide-plank floor stained to achieve an older patina effect.

here’s a newer way of living now that wants to bring the feel of the outside in, to bring more of the light in,” says Aude Bronson-Howard, a designer and the director of the newly launched, Hudson Valley-based firm ABH Home Design. Bronson-Howard’s three-bedroom, three-bath house in the Woodstock hamlet of Bearsville is a sublime manifestation of her airy, light-filled vision of home living. Built in 1961, the 2,000-square-foot Cape Cod was considerably darker and outdated inside, with dowdy window configurations that weren’t taking full advantage of the magnificent mountain views that surround the property when she acquired it in 2018. But with Bronson-Howard overseeing, her longtime collaborative contractor Manuel Molero and his crew have since transformed the structure into a home whose interior feels fresh, contemporary, spacious, and inviting.

Formerly a drab shade of early 1960s light green, the home’s exterior has been brought to life with a more fashionable scheme of crisp charcoal gray with black trim. Step in through the front entry and the contrast with the understated tones outside is dramatic. All the interior’s skim-coated walls and ceilings (including the latter’s exposed wooden beams) have been given a clean, seamless, flat-white treatment and the flooring has been redone in pale, wide-plank maple. Round the corner to the left and the living room spreads out before you, the sunlight flooding in through a massive, vista-framing picture window that replaces the original, obstructive, multi-paned affair and a distracting radiator. Overhead hangs a modern, drum-shaped Arlo light fixture, one of several pieces of space-age lighting found throughout the house. Much of this area of the house’s newfound openness owes to the removal of the wall that had

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The primary bedroom was completely renovated to raise the ceiling from seven feet to 10 feet. A picture window was installed to frames the eastern light. Dumas the poodle (named for Alexandre Dumas), guards the bed.

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The dining room features locally sourced bluestone floor with a silverleaf vine chandelier and table and chairs from Arhaus. The passageways between the kitchen and the dining room and living room were substantively widened during the renovation to allow in more light and better flow.

long closed it off from the kitchen, another sunny room, which Bronson-Howard has outfitted with unobtrusive, light-toned cabinetry. Off the opposite side of the kitchen is a large sunken dining area with still more windows—like most of them, the original hand-cranked windows, repainted a glossy black to offset the soft white of the walls—that make for a near-al fresco eating experience in any season. Opposite the living room, a dedicated TV room puts the flatscreen far away from the usual eyesore perch in the main entertaining space. “I want the people who live here and visit to really be able to feel a sense of space and comfort, of calmness,” BronsonHoward explains. “For it to be an oasis—but an oasis that actually functions for their everyday lives.” Dressing DeNiro The Bearsville remodel marks the newly Hudson Valleyensconced ABH’s debut on the local home design scene. But while her business may be new to the area, Bronson-Howard has been creating interiors for private and commercial clients for two decades, and her reputation for innately knowing what looks and feels good—and for working comfortably with clients who seek the same—has long been legendary in the greater world of design. In fact, one could say her resume is, quite literally, the stuff of movies. Raised in Paris and New York, Bronson-Howard started in fashion, working for Yves Saint Laurent and creating a line

of menswear for the venerated French design house’s US market. After 10 years with YSL, she transitioned to costume design for feature films, and the list of cinematic titles for which she has clothed characters is staggering: Scent of a Woman, Carlito’s Way, and Donnie Brasco among them. In addition to working with A-list directors like Martin Scorsese and Brian DePalma, she has designed outfits worn by Marlon Brando, Brad Pitt, Al Pacino, Diane Keaton, and, most frequently, Robert DeNiro. Bronson-Howard has also supplied her services to TV advertising campaigns for such clients as Nike, BMW, and Chanel. In the early 1990s she branched out into home design, working with private clients in New York, Westchester County, and Europe as the field increasingly became her dominant focus. The transition, she says, was a natural one, and it informed her approach to the Bearsville renovation. “More and more, people are moving toward working at home, especially since COVID started,” she says. “And they really want a lighter, less-cluttered feel. So that’s really what my goal has been with what we’ve done here.” The colorful accent pieces that Bronson-Howard has tastefully placed throughout the house give its rooms just the right splash of whimsy and dimensional pop; the tripod metal ellipse sculpture that stands in a bedroom and echoes a nearby framed reproduction of a classical drawing of an ellipse. “[The print] is something that the previous owners had left behind, upstate HOUSE

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Custom zebra print on vintage Charles Rennie Macintosh ”dug-out” chairs.

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and I just really liked it,” she says. “Later on, I found the ellipse sculpture, which just went so perfectly with the picture.” A more tangible type of dimensional creation, though, involved increasing the space overhead in the two upstairs bedrooms, whose entry doors directly face one another. Typical of a Cape, the upstairs headroom was low—a claustrophobic seven feet in each room. At Bronson-Howard’s direction, Molero raised the ceilings in both spaces to a lofty 10 feet apiece, following the peak of the roof. The results are capacious, cathedral-like ceilings in the mirroring chambers, which have been made even more accommodating by the natural light pouring in through the enormous square main windows that have taken the place of the much smaller original openings. Like the central living room window, they act as frames for the gorgeous, seasonally changing scenery outside. “In one of the bedrooms, the big window faces east and looks out on the woods,” says Bronson-Howard. “It’s really beautiful, how the sunlight comes through the trees in the morning.” For nighttime light, the eastern bedroom’s futuristic chandelier, by Jonathan Adler Lighting, further illuminates the reasons why Bronson-Howard cites the welcoming space as her favorite room in the house. A central element of the upstairs full bath is a retro-Deco stainless steel medicine cabinet (by Restoration Hardware) and matching wall sconces; the first floor’s half bath is likewise appointed with retro fixtures. Another full bath can be found

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in the finished basement, whose unusually high ceilings and wealth of windows maintain the relaxing mood that permeates the home and makes that level ideal for use as a guest quarters or family space. The multi-level patio entertaining area feels like a natural extension of the living room, Mobius-looping BronsonHoward’s concept of bringing the outdoors inside. Defining the tiers of the open-air space is a series of open horizontalbeamed dividers, painted to match the house’s exterior and ingeniously incorporating custom-made planters brimming with lush flowers and shrubs. Further echoing the home’s dark-grey outer walls are those of the cabana that serves the in-ground pool and, at the eastern border of the property, the 500-square-foot outbuilding (made by joining two sheds purchased from and delivered by Brad’s Barns in Kingston) that presently functions as Bronson-Howard’s textile studio. Gone from the grounds is a horizon-blocking three-stall garage that had stood dead-center at the backyard’s edge. Currently, Bronson-Howard is developing a line of colorful throw pillows, examples of which, naturally, adorn the Bearsville house. She’s also looking forward to returning to the European industry trade shows where she sources many of her design materials and ideas, when COVID-19 sufficiently subsides. Until then, like so many others, for much of the time she’ll be at home—which in this case is certainly a delightful place to be.

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THE EMPOWERED HOMEOWNER

EASY WAYS TO MAKE YOUR HOME MORE COMFORTABLE AND ENERGY EFFICIENT WHILE SAVING MONEY

f you’re a homeowner, chances are you’ve spent plenty of time thinking about how to reduce your energy costs and consumption. In the Mid-Hudson Valley, Central Hudson is a leader in helping its customers reduce emissions in support of New York State’s ambitious climate goals of reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Since 2009, its customers have saved nearly $76 million through its energy-efficiency programs and avoid more than 946 million pounds of greenhouse gas emissions each year. “Investing in energy efficiency is by far the most cost-effective way to save energy and reduce emissions,” says Charles A. Freni, President and CEO of Central Hudson. “These measures pay for themselves, and our programs allow customers to start saving right away.” From easy do-it-yourself options to larger projects, there are many ways to save money while making your house more comfortable and energy efficient. LIGHTING Lighting is one of the easiest places to start saving energy. According to Central Hudson, upgrading just six incandescent light bulbs to LEDs can add up to $90 of yearly savings—and LEDs last 15 times longer. LEDs have also become much more affordable, and Central Hudson customers can take

advantage of additional savings at local retailers with reduced pricing, courtesy of the energy company. To further reduce your energy consumption, you can install dimmer switches on your LEDs, use motion sensors for outdoor lighting, and opt for solar fixtures with batteries that store energy from the sun to illuminate outdoor spaces. WATER According to the EPA, the typical family wastes an average of 9,400 gallons of water annually from leaks—the same amount needed to wash more than 300 loads of laundry! Switching to just one newer, more efficient water-saving showerhead can help a family save up to 2,900 gallons of water a year. Central Hudson also offers reduced pricing for name brand water fixtures at local Home Depot locations. HEATING AND COOLING If your HVAC system is more than 15 years old, or if you’re just looking for more efficient options than your current system, consider: Natural Gas Converting from oil or propane to natural gas for heating can save money in the long-term, lower your carbon footprint, and according to

the National Association of Home Builders, can even increase your home’s resale value by about four percent. Central Hudson offers rebates and incentives on energy-efficient natural gas appliances to homeowners and businesses making the switch. Heat Pumps Air- or ground-source heat pumps are cost-saving, energy-efficient alternatives to traditional furnaces and air conditioners. These two-in-one systems provide both heating and air-conditioning for yearround comfort. Central Hudson helps customers cover the upfront investment of installing a partialor whole-home heat pump system with rebates and incentives that can easily add up to thousands of dollars, depending on the size and age of your home. Solar Energy If you’re looking for the benefits of solar without the installation costs, you can subscribe to a share of a local solar farm through Central Hudson’s Clean Energy Marketplace and save 10 percent on electricity supply costs annually. To learn more about Central Hudson’s energy efficiency programs, rebates, incentives, and tips on saving energy, visit CentralHudson.com/incentives. upstate HOUSE

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PRO FIL E

VILLAGE LIFE

A Linear Design Helps a Catskill Farmhouse Take Center Stage By Joan Vos MacDonald Photos by Peter Aaron

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hen the owners of a Dutch Colonial fieldstone farmhouse in Catskill were ready to renovate, they first considered a conventional arrangement of additions. They wondered if the best option was to surround their 1761 house with extensions, but architect Alexander Gorlin had a better idea. He did not center his extension plans on the farmhouse, but instead added living space in a way that let the farmhouse take center stage. He designed a row of interconnected structures to frame the ridge of the hill on which the house stood, with the oldest structure as the starting point. “Originally, they were thinking of having it in the center and doing wings on either side and I said that would diminish the existing house, because the additions would overshadow it,” says Gorlin. “I suggested that it be designed more like a train with additions on a caboose. It was meant to be like a little village of barns.” The architect likes to joke that the design was inspired by Amtrak, because he took Amtrak north from his New York City-based office to view the Catskill property, but it was really the landscape that ultimately dictated his choice of design. The architectural concept of spaces strung together in a linear fashion makes the most of the home’s stunning mountain and river views. The house overlooks a valley Gorlin describes as “quite extraordinary.” “It just spills out and the valley is at a slight angle, so it creates a slightly forced perspective, all framed by the Catskills on either side,” says Gorlin. “And Olana is in the distance. It’s really quite dramatic.”

This stone cottage, from 1761, was reimagined by architect Alexander Gorlin with the additional of a series of pavilions whose scale would not overwhelm the original cottage.

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The original structure was transformed into the main living space. The low ceiling was removed to reveal original beams.

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The first pavilion connected to the stone house serves as the kitchen and family room. Sliding glass double doors open on to the patio with expansive views of the Hudson Valley.

A Community of Spaces Each segment of the expanded home features a different profile. The original farmhouse is a tall, boxy, single story, but then the adjacent kitchen/dining addition is shorter. The next linked structure is the tallest, then the final rectangular building is again shorter. Varying heights, angles and shapes make the additions seem more like a rural village, a community of spaces rather than a single home, yet ironically the variety refocuses the eye on the dimensions and textures of the original 1,500-square-foot farmhouse. As with so many 17th- and 18th-century upstate homes, the farmhouse was cobbled together using the Hudson Valley’s ubiquitous fieldstone. Yet that distinctive exterior was once obscured by less attractive renovations. “When we found it, the house was totally encrusted with vinyl siding,” says Gorlin. When it came to choosing exteriors for the extensions, variety was key, but the materials needed to harmonize and suit the environment. Rather than duplicate the fieldstone exterior, Gorlin referenced other buildings on the property. He chose exteriors of corrugated steel and board-and-batten siding for their ability to contribute texture and visually align with existing outbuildings. His palette of colors favored a warm brick red inspired by an existing Civil War-era hay barn, and the pale gray of weathered cedar shakes and river rocks. “The idea was that each structure would have its own character but they would in a sense defer to and complement the existing house,” says Gorlin. It was an unconventional approach, but the homeowners trusted Gorlin’s creative vision and were rewarded with a singularly beautiful result. The expanded home settles into its location as if it existed there for centuries, while interior design choices integrate living spaces with outside vistas.

Indoor-Outdoor Synchrony The original farmhouse structure has become a sunny great room with wideplank wooden floors and a generous fieldstone fireplace. An arc of internal pavilions connects the original farmhouse to the rest of the house and links to each of the structures, with the entryway facing the kitchen/dining area. “We opened up the original house, which was one floor plus an attic, and created a true great room,” says Gorlin. “With the thick stone walls, it’s the most dramatic of the rooms. It connects to the kitchen, a dining area, and then a screened porch.” The home’s interiors were designed and furnished by New York City-based interior designer Garrow Kedigian. As Gorlin mirrored the farmhouse aesthetic in his overall design, Kedigian integrated farmhouse-inspired materials, textures, and colors throughout the interiors. Exposing some of the original farmhouse timbers and beams, he repurposed others for use in interior features, such as bannisters, and lined the vaulted ceilings with pine planks to complement the wood of the existing beams. Wood and stone, similar to materials found in the original structure, are featured generously throughout the home’s interiors. While the great room features wooden floors, slate tiles cover the pavilion floor that leads to it, echoing the exterior fieldstone walls visible through the pavilion’s tall glass windows. In the kitchen, pale white oak cabinetry is set against gray ceramic tiles and light stone countertops, making the glass walled room seem even brighter. Furnishings that Kedigian found for the home include 19th-century antiques, mid-20th-century chairs in the exact brick red found on the exterior and a few custom pieces designed for comfort. The color scheme of putty, gray, and red, accented with the grass greens and golds of the valley below synchronizes interiors with the exterior vistas. upstate HOUSE

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Above: White oak kitchen cabinetry is offset by a backsplash of earth-tone ceramic tiles. Right: The owners worked with interior designer Garrow Kedigan, who blended modern furnishings with a palette of stone tones and splashes of barn red to connect the interior to the outdoors.

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FAMILY

Gorlin’s design frames every room to take advantage of the spectacular views.

Enhancing with Light To realize the renovation project Gorlin and Kedigian worked with contractor Eric Carlson of Norseman Construction in Catskill. The renovation tripled the amount of living space and the home now contains about 4,500 square feet, plus a large basement. The primary suite and three guest bedrooms are located in the red rectangular structure bookending the house, while a media room/den structure features a private place for one of the homeowners to write about the Civil War, one of his interests. The den opens to a sun porch with a valley view. As an architect, Gorlin is best known for projects that favor open spaces and reflective surfaces. Named one of Architectural Digest’s Top 100 Architects since 2000 and the winner of numerous American Institute of Architects awards, he is also a noted architectural critic and scholar. As much as his designs vary—from a glass and concrete waterfront home in Nova Scotia to the renovation of an award-winning temple in Chappaqua to an actor’s

sleek loft in Manhattan—Gorlin’s projects all share an airy sky-filled sense of place. “When creating projects, I try to create something that has gravity and substantial quality to it and is rooted in its site, whether it be a city or a countryside,” he says. “And that also uses light and materiality to enhance the place.” The farmhouse is firmly rooted in its countryside location, providing a very different environment to the one the homeowners previously enjoyed. The homeowners sought an alternative to city life, says Gorlin, and they found it on the 200-acre working farm their distinctive home is set on. “They lived in a glass tower in Manhattan, but then in the country their life is completely different,” says Gorlin. “Now they’re farmers. It’s still a working farm and he enjoys being involved in that.” For the homeowners, the farmland is rarely out of sight, as every room in the house is oriented to optimize the expansive rural view. “It really is about country living,” said Gorlin. “Inside and outside.”

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REA LT O R G U ID E

HUD SO N VAL LEY R E A LTO R GUIDE

n late April, The New York Times reported on migration patterns during the pandemic. Out of 926 metro areas across the country, the cities of Hudson and Kingston were both in the top 10 of places folks moved to in the past year. This influx has triggered an unprecedented rise in home prices across the Hudson Valley, Catskills, and Berkshires, continuing a trend that’s been building over the past few years. It’s also meant that buying and selling property in the most competitive market the region has ever seen can be tricky. All-cash offers, sales 30 54

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percent over asking price, sight-unseen sales, and bidding wars have become common. If you’re looking to buy or sell, having a broker or real estate agent you trust to help guide you through the lengthy process is essential. Trying to choose the right person or firm to work with can be confusing—especially for first-time home buyers, since they most likely have little or no experience in what’s involved in the real estate-buying process. Read on for an introduction to select real estate professionals in the Hudson Valley, Catskills and Berkshires.

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SPO N S O RED HOU S E FEAT U RE

MOUNTAIN MAJESTY This modern Saugerties home has views for miles

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here are some upstate towns that are always in the limelight, like hip and walkable Hudson or quaint and quirky Woodstock. Then there are the hidden gems like Saugerties. With easy access to the artsy, historic Village of Saugerties on the Hudson River and Catskill Mountain hikes just minutes from your back door, Saugerties offers its residents the best of both worlds. If settling down in Saugerties sounds like it could be your style, the house on Ledgesite Road is ready to seal the deal. Tucked on just shy of 10 acres at the base of Overlook Mountain, and located 10 minutes from the center of Woodstock and 20 minutes from the Village of Saugerties this breathtaking modern home has panoramic mountain views to match. To reach the secluded house at the property’s center, you turn off West Saugerties-Woodstock Road to a private drive, then gently descend toward the house—a cliff of bluestone on one side and dense woods with a quiet stream on the other. As you approach the house, the region’s famous bluestone begins to peek through the soil everywhere. It emphasizes the rock walls, made from the same stone, that curve around

the property, providing a labyrinthine elegance reminiscent of the nearby bluestone quarryturned-sculpture-park, Opus 40. The exterior of the house is a modern blend of concrete, gray wood siding, and metal on both its angled western face and roof. The materials contrast with the acres of verdant woods on all sides yet feel at one with the cool-toned bluestone the house rests upon. Currently owned by Jennifer Hicks, founder of 11 Jane Street Art Center in Saugerties, the 3,192-square-foot home, which was built by a local builder, was redesigned and renovated by Bearsville-based architect Barry Price in 2011 for increased energy efficiency and comfort. Since the house is perched on a steep easternfacing ledge, two of the home’s three levels offer those gorgeous mountain views—of Overlook to the west and the Berkshires to east. The main entrance to the home is located on the second floor, which is the main living space. After you enter the foyer, the great room, located just to the right, reveals its majestic mountain scenery on two sides. The room’s impressive views are enhanced by the magnitude of its 14-foot vaulted ceilings and eight supporting beams, both milled from hardwoods cleared from the site.

With easy access to the state-ofthe-art kitchen, dining space, large outdoor patio, and separate covered porch, the open-concept great room always remains a focal point for the home’s indoor-outdoor experience. Opposite: Tucked on a ledge at the base of Overlook Mountain, this modern Saugerties home is surrounded by some of the region’s most impressive views. The West side of the house offers unparalleled views of Overlook and on the East side, the Village of Saugerties is set against a backdrop of the Berkshire Mountains beyond.

An eight-seat dining table sits to the right, and plush couches on the opposite end of the room offer a perch for the serene floor-to-ceiling view of the Berkshires beyond. Polished concrete floors, steel supports around the wood beams, and a black Rais wood stove set against a bluestone-tiled wall provide the room a chic, industrial feel. The floors have radiant heat, which helps keep the soaring space cozy. Next to the dining table is a sliding door that provides access to the large concrete patio that wraps around the house, perfect for entertaining. A door on the other side of the room leads to a large covered porch on the north side of the house, which was added during the renovation. With its multiple access points to the outdoors, the great room always remains a focal point for the home’s indooroutdoor experience. On the western side of the room is the open kitchen, with a custom, solid-wood island that houses a six-burner Wolf range. On the wall behind it is a custom stone basin sink, surrounded by countertops and a backsplash made of cooling blue-gray Pietra Cardosa stone, with dark walnut-hued, solid-wood cabinets below. To the right is another wall of cabinetry that is home to Bosch double wall ovens and a stainless steel Liebherr refrigerator. Directly off the back of the kitchen is a hall that leads to both the upper and lower levels, as well as the open office

space that occupies the west end of the main level. The office floors are white oak and there is a floor-to-ceiling picture window on one side with an inset casement window that opens to welcome in the breeze. The room offers copious natural light and a breathtaking view of Overlook Mountain that is sure to make anything you’re working on that much more pleasant. Upstairs is the primary bedroom with ensuite bath, walk-in closet, guest bedroom and full guest bath, a potential third bedroom currently used as a sitting area, and a laundry alcove with energy-efficient Bosch washer and dryer. The primary bedroom is located on the east end of the house and shares those floor-to-ceiling views of the Berkshires with the great room below. With a sitting area next to the window and a south-facing private deck accessible via sliding door, the room is a quiet refuge high above the treetops. The ensuite bath is tiled in hues of gray-blue. More Pietra Cardosa stone ties the room together as the countertop for the two-sink vanity and accent tile for the white Kohler jacuzzi tub and glass shower room. A large picture window provides secluded views of the woods to the north. Down the hall is the guest bedroom, which has floor-to-ceiling views of Overlook and a skylight to let in even more sun. upstate HOUSE

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The light-filled primary bedroom is a quiet refuge high above the treetops. It has room enough for a sitting area to take in the floor-to-ceiling view of the Berkshires and access to a private south-facing deck.

White oak floors and expansive windows on three sides create a serene atmosphere in the office/studio space on the second level.

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Downstairs on the first level is a studio space currently used as a living room. It’s outfitted with acoustic panels from the previous owner, who was a musician. The studio also has a floor-to-ceiling window that faces west, and private, walk-out access to the driveway. Just beyond the studio is a large storage room with a utility sink. There is also a separate room that stores the home’s efficient electricals, including the whole-home air filtration and recovery system, an addition during the renovation that provides enhanced air quality. Outside, there is access from the south part of the property to the Sloan Gorge Preserve, 88 acres of land protected by the Woodstock Land Conservancy. On the north side of the house, there are trails that lead to a quiet pond and a waterfall, which is perfect for contemplation and summer fun alike. Beyond the eastern bounds of the property, there is nothing but hundreds of acres of protected forest. The house provides the perfect lens to take in the vast surroundings. It’s easy to see how life here integrates with the quiet mountain backdrop—lazy summer days spent entertaining on the patio; winter nights drinking in the sweeping views of the landscape from the comfort of the great room or tucked in bed. The house on Ledgesite Road exemplifies the best of what Saugerties has to offer—a world of luxury and solitude just a little way off the beaten path.

upstate

REAL ESTATE LISTINGS

Houses | Land | Property | Brokers

37 Ledgesite Road Saugerties $2,200,000 Listed by Laura Foster Licensed Real Estate Salesperson Halter Associates Realty (845) 679-2010 Halterassociatesrealty.com

his ultra-luxury home is located on a beautiful private drive and nestled under beloved Overlook Mountain, a crown jewel of the Catskill Region. The three-bedroom, four-bathroom home was built by a local builder in 2007, and was completely renovated and re-designed by the well-known architect Barry Price in 2011. Privacy is absolute here, with the home perched on a tall ledge to embrace the location, views, and beauty that surrounds. The main entrance is on the middle level, opening up to the soaring living area, a media den, half bath, and office/work area. The upper level features the master suite with ensuite bath and walk-in closet, two spacious bedrooms, laundry area, and a full bath. On the lower walk-out level, you’ll find a studio space, another half bath, and a large storage area. Entertain your friends on the outdoor patio, relax and unwind on the covered porch, or walk the gorgeous trails that meander through the property, with many acres of protected land just a short walk away. A true Catskill Mountain stunner!

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ELEANOR ROOSEVELT’S

LOOKING FOR A HOME

childhood home, Oak Terrace is s 10,000 SF Mansion set back

in a wonderful location you can improve? This architect designed 3BR, 2.5 bath Rhinebeck one story has a wonderful floor plan,

Here are 6 ensuite BRs, a 700 SF LR w/a 16 ft. ceiling, a

up to 2 large rooms that can be anything you want. 6.64 private high, level acres. Quiet area yet close to the Village. Well built,

on 25 acres overlooking the Hudson River & Catskill Mountains. grand stairway w/a dome & skylights, 8 redone FPLs, & new

mechanicals w/18 zone heat & AC. Interior finishing remains

25 ft LR w/ built-ins a vaulted ceiling & a FPL, large MBR suite, DR & EIK. Also, Breezeway, full basement, garage, & stairway charming, great light. $395,000.

undone & is left to the astute buyer. $5,250,000.

PAU L HALLENB EC K R E A L E S TAT E , I N C . A HEATED POOL & GUEST HSE

IN RHINEBECK VILLAGE,

6 3 7 0 M I LL S T R E E T • R H I N E B E C K , N EW YO R K • 1 2 5 7 2 P H O N E : 8 4 5 - 8 7 6 - 1 6 6 0 • FAX : 8 4 5 - 8 7 6 - 5 9 5 1

ONE STORY LIVING is easy & convenient & this home in Pine Plains is one you will love. There’s the vaulted granite K, open DR & LR also vaulted, MBR suite and 2nd guest suite, heated sun room & family room, + there’s CA, a two car garage, two car ports, & a level, useable buffered yard. Wow, a lot for. $320,000.

BUILD YOUR DREAM HOME in Rhinebeck Village, steps from dining & shopping yet back on a dead-end street. This lot has level, useable land, sidewalks already in place, central water & sewer, underground electric, plus geothermal well & plans. Bring your plans as this lot is ready to go. $275,000.

Completely energy efficient, this 2 story home, built in 2017, has geothermal heating & AC. There are 3 BRs, 3.5 baths,, 2 luxurious MBR suites, a stunning K open to the FR, formal DR, den, JUST oak floors, & highIN RED HOOK. LISTED end finishes. Walk to restaurants & shops! This 3 BR, 3.5 bath Red Hook Contemporary has vaulted ceilings, skylights, CA, a FPL, & a huge, amazing high end chef ’s kitchen w/6 stainless appliances & two granite topped islands. There are two MBR suites, & the land is private, level & useable. Move in ready! $510,000.

HERE ARE 12.98 ACRES with a direct overlook of the Hudson River & Catskill Mts. Rhinecliff & Amtrak are close by as are the wonderful amenities of Rhinebeck Village. Special land like this is rarely available. We will happily take you there & show you the possibilities. $838,000.

A FABULOUS HIGH-END RENTAL, this 3900 SF Tudor Contemporary is at the end of dead-end rd. on 3.9 acres. There are dramatic Hudson River & Catskill views, a huge dream K, 4 MBR suites, one on the first floor, CA, a FPL, vaulted ceilings, & a huge sunroom. Also, a 60 ft walled terrace & fabulous gardens. $7,000 per month.

ENJOY SWIMMING & BOATING when your purchase this level buildable lot just into Columbia County. Steps away is lake access from this town park where you can relax, picnic, launch your boat, or swim. This is a wonderful opportunity, rarely available so come take a look! $59,900.

on prestige Chestnut Street, this 4 BR, 4 bath, 3049 SF Vintage Colonial is awaiting your transformation. Here are great bones

w/9 ft ceilings, large windows, & a great floor plan. The lot is level & useable, there’s a full basement, 2 porches, a 2 car garage, & this

home is walkable to the Village center for shopping & dining. Just reduced to. $799,999.

w w w. h a l l e n b e c k r e a l e s t a t e . c o m • i n f o @ h a l l e n b e c k r e a l e s t a t e . c o m

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WHERE EXPERIENCE AND HARD WORK MAKE A BIG DIFFERENCE

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You’re closer than you think to ﬁnding your dream

AS SEEN ON THIS MONTH’S COVER

home, and we can make that dream a reality. Our team of leading agents will give you access to more distinguished listings and the individual attention you deserve. Give us a call to get started! >

SAUGERTIES $2,200,000 SAUGERTIES $13,000,000

WOODSTOCK $2,500,000

STONE RIDGE WOODSTOCK $1,799,900

WOODSTOCK $1,795,500

$965,000

WOODSTOCK $1,499,000 GLEN SPEY $1,275,000

SAUGERTIES $949,000

SAUGERTIES $850,000

WOODSTOCK $599,000

WOODSTOCK 845 679-2010 I KINGSTON 845 331-3110 I HALTERASSOCIATESREALTY.COM

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INCREDIBLE 90-ACRE MAGICAL NATURAL PARADISE This property has it all: spectacular panoramic Catskill mountain views and sunsets; a beautiful, serene deep spring-fed lake; and miles of roads and trails all within minutes of thriving Hudson. Proposed as a housing development that was approved in 1989, valuable initial infrastructure has been constructed including mile-long engineered roads with 15 house sites (each with its own tax map number), plus three drilled wells. Adjoins 500 acres of conservation land with additioanl walking trails. Near shopping, fine dining, culture, services, and transportation, yet only two hours to NYC… $1,895,000

RURAL GREEK REVIVAL FARMSTEAD Built 1847, the Van-Rensselaer-Kipp House looks like a little temple in the countryside and features front pediment with handsome fan-light and portico columns with unusual lattice grillwork. Light-filled interior includes original details. Eligible for listing on the National Register, it is a pristine highly intact example of rural Greek Revival architecture with a number of remarkable outbuildings that provide an important agricultural context. Minutes from thriving Hudson, the 43 acre property includes prime farmland, great for the modern farmer… 1,250,000

STRIKING SPACIOUS COMMERCIAL BUILDING 19th century brick building on a double lot in Hudson with 7,200 sf commercial/residential space. Two period storefronts total 3,000 sf with 16' ceilings; could be one or two retail spaces, restaurant, cafe or gallery. Upstairs, a tastefully renovated 4,200 sf duplex has options for single family living, apartments or B&B, as currently used. The expansive light-filled second floor has two fireplaces, in the comfortable living and dining areas, custom kitchen, three spacious bedrooms with fireplaces, sitting rooms and luxury baths. The third floor has four additional bedrooms with baths. A private garden and garage are at the rear… $1,750.000

POST & BEAM COUNTRY CONTEMPORARY Three level home is tucked away at the end a country road on almost four acres. Double height great room has impressive fireplace and opens to large wrap-around deck. Includes open chef’s kitchen, four bedrooms, two baths, plus walk-out lower level media room, and two-car garage. Striking floors, ceilings, and paneling showcase native woods. Tranquil setting minutes to all of Columbia County… $825,000 66

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MID-CENTURY HIGH-STYLE RANCH Two angled stone-clad wings welcome you to the entrance which opens to the living room with vaulted ceiling and fireplace, spacious kitchen and dining area, opening to a huge deck. Two bedrooms and baths complete the upper level. The lower walk-out level contains a third bedroom and bathroom, various other work and play rooms and two-car garage. Secluded 25acre property (consisting of three lots) has lovely vistas and large swim pond… $649,000

Hudson Valley Properties Millbrook Real Estate Serving All Counties in the Mid-Hudson Valley

$3,000,000 | Stanfordville | Round Hill Farm Lovely farmhouse with contemporary flair, privately situated on 62 acres of quality farmland with views to the Catskills. The 5,800 sq.ft. main house features a grand sitting room with 20 ft. high fireplace with fieldstone from the property. Master suite with windows on 3 sides and French doors to bluestone patio. Carriage house has heated space, 4 bays and a 2nd floor gallery. Small pond, rambling path through the grounds and beautiful pastures. George Langa | m: 845.242.6314 | o: 845.677.3525

$3,000,000 | Pine Plains | Spectacular Building Site 207 acres offer several prime building sites. On a gently sloping piece of land set well back from the road, this site has extensive views of surrounding farmland and hills beyond. Multiple open fields, large pine grove and hardwood forests. Can be sold as 1 parcel or as 2 separate parcels. Property features 2 beautiful ponds, waterfall and graceful stream that meanders elegantly through the property. Extremely versatile and unique. MLS#385484. George Langa | m: 845.242.6314 | o: 845.677.3525

$2,795,000 | Town of Clinton/Washington | Large Parcel with Much to Offer 215+ acres with views, pastures, forest, water, wildlife galore, an orchard and bordering the Wappinger Creek. There is already a site development concept for cluster housing with larger parcel division. The property crosses the Clinton/Washington line with easy access to both towns. Easy commuter access to the Taconic State Parkway and Route 82. Great for subdividing, a private estate or compound. MLS#398262. Diana Wiemer | m: 845.234.0038 | o: 845.677.3525

$2,450,000 | Stanford | Exquisite 1828 Spacious Country Farmhouse on 35 Acres 5,000+ sq.ft. home has exposed beams, brickwork and wideplank floors. Custom eat-in kitchen with Sub-Zero appliances opens to patio. Grand 3rd floor bedroom suite has vaulted ceilings and bath with clawfoot tub. Resort-style amenities include a pool, poolhouse, tennis court and caretaker’s suite. Large barn for an equine enthusiast or a venue with its finished loft. Visit www.196willowbrookrdub.com. MLS#399161. Corinna Deigan m: 845.475.4794 | William Spinelli, Jr. m: 845.401.7650

$2,200,000 | Stone Ridge | Superb Country Estate; Two Homes, 23 Acres Prime rural setting outside of Stone Ridge hamlet yet 10 minutes to Kingston. Two impressive homes plus two substantial, top-shape barns set on 23 acres of privacy and tranquility. Both homes are truly high quality for longevity and ease of maintenance throughout. Suitable for Post-COVID-19 estate, horses or gentle person farm. Total of 5 bedrooms, 5.5 baths in tip-top shape. MLS#20210776. Harris L. Safier | m: 914.388.3351 | o: 845.340.1920

Call For Pricing | Millbrook | Impeccable Location Original part of this magnificent 5 bedroom, 8+ bath house dates back to the Civil War era. The living room with double fireplaces and large dining room offer excellent entertainment spaces. Principle en suite with fireplace, 2 walk-in closets and 2 adjoining baths. Guest wing offers 2 additional bedrooms and baths. The 3rd floor has extra entertaining space with 2 bathrooms. Tennis court, basketball court, pool, approximately 100 acres and more. MLS#388982. George Langa | m: 845.242.6314 | o: 845.677.3525

$949,000 | Beacon | Soho-Inspired Penthouse Living Perched on 4th floor with endless views from your rooftop deck; 41 ft. balcony overlooks downtown Main Street. Polished concrete heated floors, reclaimed wood beams, rough cut timber window sills, gas fireplace, recessed lighting. Gourmet kitchen with Wolf gas stove, Sub-Zero refrigerator, 2 pantries, granite 10' island. Baths with heat lights and tiled showers. MLS#391140. Other condos, from $749,000. Michele Rios | m: 845.242.5762 | o: 845.244.2164

$559,000 | Kingston | Rare Offering of Executive Ranch Ranch on .89 acres on the view side of Kingston’s Dietz Court is finally ready for the next chapter. One-level living with an unspoiled Mid-Century vibe and spectacular year-round protected views. Inside, you can make selective updates or fully reinvent the house, building on a solid base of key features, with a large basement, well-maintained systems, newer roof and dramatic stone fireplace. MLS#20204843. Hayes Clement | m: 917.568.5226 | o: 845.340.1920

$475,000| High Falls| Charm, History and Hygge Charming and bright 1860 cottage, originally a cooperage, is beautifully renovated with 2BR, 2BTH. 2.58 acres with stone walls, sweeping lawn and farm and mountain views. 1,328 sq.ft. with a 375 sq.ft. bonus family room in the finished walk-out basement. Kitchen has new appliances, dining room with wall-of-windows, living room with FPL, den and spacious bedrooms. Neighboring farm and market.. MLS#399357. Judith L. Schneyer | m: 845.242.8453

BHHSHUDSONVALLEY.COM | BHHSMILLBROOKREALESTATE.COM upstate HOUSE

| SUMMER 2021 • 67

See Hudson Valley's Best Properties Representing the Best of The Hudson Valley for Over 20 Years

Colonial Investor’s Delight Catskill, NY. 4BR. 1 Bath $795K. Web # 20645544 Sterling H. Swann 518-660-1310

Brand New Construction Warwick, NY. 4BR. 3 Bath.

$789K. Web# 20821670. Maryann Johnson 212-381-2328 Michael Stasi 518-660-1303

Hudson Investment Hudson, NY. Commercial Unit with 1 Bath. $849K. Web # 20631441.

Michael Stasi 518-660-1303

200 Acres of Meadows and Fields Cooperstown, NY. 3BR. 2 Bath. $645K. Web # 20445725

Michael Stasi 518-660-1303

Investment in the Heart of Hudson Hudson, NY. 2 Bldgs. 10BR. 13 Bath. $3.245M. Web # 20740891. Nancy Felcetto 518-660-1301

Rare 19th Century Carriage House Hudson, NY. 9 Rooms, 2.5 Bath.

$998,000. Web # 20240609

Nancy Felcetto 518-660-1301

Modern Country Estate Claverack, NY. 4BR. 4 Bath. $1.875M. Web # 20644918. Jean Stoler 518-660-1309

Private Country Paradise Clinton Corners, NY. 4BR. 6 Bath. $1.195M. Web# 20814343. Nancy Felcetto 518-660-1301

Private Country Compound Hannacroix, NY. 3BR. 3 Bath.

$1.19M. Web # 20340482 Stephan Delventhal 518-660-1306

6 8 • online at upstatehouse.com All information is from sources deemed reliable but is subject to errors, omissions, changes in price, prior sale or withdrawal without notice. All rights to content, photographs and graphics reserved to Broker. Equal Housing Opportunity Broker.

Deep Clove Farm

$795,000

Rare 1742 Dutch stone house farmstead on 36 acres. 3 BR/2 BA with original floors & exposed handhewn beams. New kitchen, Wolf gas range, new baths. Open living spaces, 1st floor master stuite, 2nd floor wide open, loft space. Modern mechanicals, woodstove in living room & noise-canceling windows. Multi-purpose retreat with new, heated, saline 60’ x 18’ pool, dining patio, firepit, dog run & raised bed gardens. Dairy building is now a gym. Even larger industrial barn w/ much potential. Aweinspiring renovated silo, mostly cleared rural acres w/ pond, stone walls & trails in New Baltimore.

❚ Emily Iason 914.671.4097 ❚ David Ludwig 917.365.1894

Romantic Rhinecliff River Views $575,000

Simple & elegant 1890s 2 BR/1 BA Victorian on hill in Rhinecliff, facing the Hudson River. Handsomely updated eat-in-kitchen flooded with natural morning light, bright living room, spacious dining room. two upstairs bedrooms (one w/ river view) & updated bath w/ claw-foot tub. Mini staircase to attic space (3rd loft bedroom or office)—with the best view of the river! Character-defining features like Douglas fir floors, original moldings & doors with period hardware. Blue stone patio, landscaped, fenced-in front yard & detached 1-car garage. Front porch. Steps away from Amtrak & Hudson River.

Space to breathe. Land to roam. Gardens to grow. Fantasies become realities on garydimauro.com.

❚ Sheri Sceroler 845.546.1714

Far View

$2,390,000

Gorgeous 3 BR/4 BA property in Hillsdale with all the attributes of an elegant country estate. Distinctive retreat on 14 acres looking west w/ iconic mountain vistas proximate to Hudson & the Berkshires, architecturally renovated for comfort & luxury. Beautifully sited, original stone walls & perennial plantings. High on a hill, overlooking a pond. Added chef’s kitchen, open plan dining & living area, library. Views from every window & garden terrace. Laundry room with storage & separate entries. Perfect for anyone seeking safety, security, an elegant & comfortable country life.

❚ Pamela Belfor 917.734.7142

Stanford Farmhouse & Modern Studio

Lucie Vine Clerk House $844,900 Dragonfly $4,295,000 Hinterlands Estate $1,880,000 $649,000 One-of-a-kind offering provides serenity, amazing grounds, Sensational 7000+ sf country manor estate on 129.5 acres Elegant country retreat in Rhinebeck with capacious

3 BR/2 BA farmhouse from 1910, complete 2017 renovation. Vaulted kitchen w/ wood-burning FP flows into dining & living rooms w/ beamed ceilings & large windows. Mud/laundry room & office on 1st floor. Modern studio/ outbuilding w/ metal roof, concrete floors, woodstove & outdoor shower, endless pool/hot tub. Multi-level decking & 3 man-made ponds—2 w/ fish & fountains, the 3rd swimmable. Privacy fencing, gazebo, zip line on 5+ acres.

❚ Lillian Lin 917.270.9336

& Kinderhook Creek. 5 BR/4 BR home w/ barn (apt./studio) on 9 creekside acres. Updated mechanicals & antique elements maintaining the architectural integrity of this historic property. Charming adjacent barn has been stylishly updated w/ modern conveniences. All the features of a new home with 19th century character & charm. Located in Old Chatham/Malden Bridge, convenient to Berkshires, Albany, Village of Chatham, Amtrak and Chatham hunting country.

with mature trees & 2 natural ponds. Meticulously restored 6 BR/6 BA home in Hillsdale with gourmet kitchen, library with FP, private master suite perched on upper level overlooking 3-story living w/ 2 FPs. All BRs have ensuite baths. Separate guest quarters below w/ own entrance. Secluded estate blends with wooded landscape for seamless indoor/ outdoor living, landscaped terraces & swimming pond.

❚ Pamela Belfor 917.734.7142

Tivoli NY • Hudson NY • Catskill NY Rhinebeck NY • Kingston NY

❚ Pamela Belfor 917.734.7142 ❚ Matthew A. Carey 203.763.9599

floor plan, cathedral foyer & sweeping staircase. Formal semi-circular living room with polished wood floors with mahogany inlay & gas fireplace. The formal dining room can accommodate 16+ guests. The family room has a fireplace & wet bar, and the gourmet kitchen opens to 16’ x 31’ indoor pool with jacuzzi. There is a library, master suite, and 4 private ensuite bedrooms, plus a finished basement/media room with full bar.

❚ Tracy Dober 845.399.6715

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INDEX O F ADVERT IS ERS INDEX O F A DVERTI S E R S ABH Home Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

GH Builders Hudson Valley . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Michael Puryear Furniture Maker . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

Associa . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Glenn’s Wood Sheds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

ModCraft . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Augustine Landscaping & Nursery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Grandberg & Associates Architects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

Murray Engineering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Barbara Carter Real Estate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57, 71

Grist Mill Real Estate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

Ogawa-Depardon Architects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

Barker Hudson Real Estate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

Halter Associates Realty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65

Paul Hallenbeck Real Estate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64

Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices

Hammertown Barn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Peggy Lampman Real Estate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66

Hudson Valley Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55, 56, 67

Herrington’s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Brown Harris Stevens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68

Herzog’s True Value Home Center . . . . . . inside back cover

Cabinet Designers, Inc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

The Hudson Company . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1

Central Hudson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

Hudson Home . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

ChoShields Studio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Hudson Valley Construction Group Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Coldwell Banker Timberland Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

Hudson Valley House Parts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

Coldwell Banker Village Green Realty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

Innovation Glass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . back cover

Conklin Architecture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

James Wagman Architect, LLC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Country House Realty & Red Cottage Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Janson Scuro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52

Davala Real Estate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .56, 71

Jeff Wilkinson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

Stinemire Engineering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

Dirty Girls Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

Kate Aubrey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

Stone Ridge Electric Co., Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

Exposures Gallery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

Kathryn Whitman Architecture, PLLC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52

Sunflower Natural Food Market . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

Finch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Kimlin Energy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Wild Pistil Urban Garden Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52

FN Furniture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

L. Browe Asphalt Services Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

William Wallace Construction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

Gary DiMauro Real Estate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69

Larson Architecture Works . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

Williams Lumber & Home Center . inside front cover, 36, 37

M A P O F TH E REG I ON 70

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online at upstatehouse.com

Phinney Design Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52 Pioneer Millworks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Quatrefoil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33 Rennie Cantine Overlook Benches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33 Roman Professional Engineering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 Rosendale Waxworks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59 Shay Builders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42 Spivak Architects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

The Barbara Carter Team

Your resource for residential, commercial, and new construction Hudson Valley Real Estate

BarbaraCarterTeam.com BarbaraCarterTeam@gmail.com

CENTURY 21 ALLIANCE REALTY GROUP Fine Homes and Estates and Commercial 1136 Route 9, Wappingers Falls, NY | 203 Main Street, New Paltz, NY

22 Gaffney Lane, Kinderhook, NY

A curated guide to Hudson Valley homes

upstater.com PART OF THE

FAMILY

Beautifully located on a 1.47 acre corner lot your green space is here. Relax in the hot tub over looking the yard & full sized patio with a built in fire pit. Lounge in the sun next to the pool or catch the game from the comfort of the pool house; equipped with a full bathroom, kitchen, living & dining space, & bedroom. A full cathedral ceiling with exposed beams greets you in the kitchen of the home. Granite counters, a floor to ceiling stone fireplace, & plenty of workspace are sure to please. This home & location will forever keep giving. Walk to the village center & enjoy the farmers market, restaurants, library and shops. Steps to the rail trail.

davalarealestate.com • philmont, ny • 518-755-2385

upstate HOUSE

| SUMMER 2021 • 7 1

B ACK PO RCH TH E S O L A R CA N O PY

here’s enough solar energy reaching the Earth in one hour to meet the world’s energy needs for a year. But barriers to adoption, like the upfront cost of installation, have limited the number of homeowners who’ve chosen solar for their energy needs. Another common obstacle is that rooftop solar excludes a lot of people from converting to solar. Tom Berry, vice president of marketing at SunCommon, explains that the Hudson Valley and Vermont-based solar-installation company needed to create a workaround to roof-mounted panels. “Either their roof wouldn’t support solar, they didn’t want it on the roof, or their roof was facing the wrong direction,” says Berry. The answer: the Solar Canopy. SunCommon teamed up with timber frame home builders New Energy Works to produce these multi-

SunCommon’s two-car Solar Canopy generates enough power for the average one-family home year-round.

function structures that provide both clean energy and shelter. They cover parking areas, patios, woodpiles, and can be used as gathering spaces. “It’s a beautiful structure that has many different functions either providing space for socializing outdoors or to keep the snow off your car in the winter.” Berry says. The timber frame structure is secured with six-foot ground screws that can be installed on grass, pavement, dirt, and gravel. The canopies come in four basic models. One car fits under the Canopy Compact ($39,000), and its 18 solar panels generate enough power for a small house. The standard version is the Canopy Single ($53,000), which has room for two cars, and 24 solar panels that produce eight kilowatts—enough to power the average home yearround. The Canopy Double ($78,000), has space for four cars, and has 42 solar panels that produce 10 kilowatts—making it a great option for households with greater electricity needs. Custom-built Solar Canopies are also available. Like other solar energy installations, the Solar Canopy requires a significant upfront investment that saves money in the long-run. “Over time, the canopy pays for itself because you’re generating the energy and you’re getting the credit on your bill for that energy you push back into the grid,” Berry says. In order to make it affordable for everyone, SunCommon offers solar financing with no upfront cost and low monthly payments. They also offer a discount program for low-tomoderate income level households with a gross income at 80 percent or less of the median county income. —Diana Testa

SUNCOMMON.COM

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online at upstatehouse.com

YARD BOSS GARDENING MULTI-TASK TOOL SYSTEM

Cultivate • Edge • Trim • Dethatch • Clean Up

Kingston Plaza • 151 Plaza Road • www.Herzogs.com • (845) 338-6300

All Glass Homes

design-build • worldwide www.VS1Home.com Photo by Julian Safford.