Category Archives: Real estate

Chabad Lubavitch Makes An Unorthodox Move

Posted on February 4, 2012 | 82 Comments

After more than a century as a restaurant — and with parts of the building dating back over 200 years, to its days as a stagecoach stop — the former 3 Bears will turn into a Chabad Lubavitch synagogue.

Or not.

A January 23 Norwalk Hour story said that the 9,180-square foot property, on 2.73 acres at the corner of Wilton Road and Newtown Turnpike, was “poised to change hands and become the new home of Chabad Lubavitch of Westport.”

The Three Bears was a famed restaurant/inn — with 6 fireplaces — from 1900 until February 2009. It reopened for about 5 seconds as Tiburon restaurant, but the property was soon abandoned. Weeds sprouted on the once-stately site.

The Three Bears, after abandonment.

According to the Hour, John Zervos of DVB Commercial Realty said that Chabad — an Orthodox sect based in Brooklyn, and by some estimates the largest Jewish organization in the world — was “not planning on changing the outside, and the inside works really well for them with the big open spaces of the dining rooms.”

The Hour paraphrased Zervos as saying that while the group had already moved their offices into the new space, they had not yet applied for permits with town officials “to use the space as a religious institution in order to officially close the deal.” (They appear to be leasing, not buying, the building.)

The Three Bears, in its heyday. (Postcard/Cardcow.com)

The story noted that Westport’s Planning and Zoning Department received a complaint on January 4 from a neighbor “regarding activity taking place at the former restaurant.” A January 11 inspection revealed work being done on the premises without permits.

A letter sent January 13 cited violations of zoning regulations, said P&Z director Laurence Bradley. Chabad’s attorney requested a 30-day abeyance for more time to submit paperwork. It was granted, giving the group until February 23 to file its application.

Bradley noted, “they have been working and doing things without a permit. It’s been a restaurant since probably before there was zoning, so if they want it to become a synagogue, they will have to go through an extensive review and public hearings.”

Chabad attorney Ken Gruder told the Hour that the space will be used for an outreach group that includes prayer services, educational programs and religious discussions.

“It’s not a synagogue in the traditional sense, it’s so much more,” Gruder added.

But the story does not end there, with applications simply pending.

Yesterday afternoon, I received an email from a longtime Westporter. Attached was a letter the resident sent a day earlier to Bradley.

The interior of the Three Bears, also from its glory days. (Postcard/Cardcow.com)

It said: “Without proper permits for use of the premises as an office or house of worship, the group appears to already be working in the building, often at night, although the nature of their activities are unclear.” Apparently, there are 6 to 10 cars there each night.

The resident added that an “extremely bright outdoor security light in the parking area” was infringing on neighbors.

The writer expressed concern about traffic, parking and wetland impacts, and noted that the building — currently enjoying a “pre-existing approval for non-conforming use as a restaurant in a residential area” — would need a new P&Z approval process for any change of use.

One more concern: exterior alterations to historic building.

Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson (1902-94), famed Chabad leader.

In the email to me, the resident added more information: Several years ago Chabad was embroiled in a lawsuit in Litchfield, over proposed renovations that would turn a Victorian house in the town’s 1st synagogue. At one point, according to the Register-Citizen newspaper, Chabad filed suit against the town in federal court, alleging anti-Hasidic prejudice.

Right now, Chabad occupies a house on Kings Highway North that faces the medical complex.

Will they apply for permits by February 23? Will there be hearings — and if so, how contentious will they be?

Will Chabad move a mile or so up Wilton Road? Will the site of what was once Westport’s oldest restaurant become our town’s newest synagogue-or-something-like-it?

And why — despite a story last month in a Norwalk paper — is no one talking about this in Westport?

→ 82 Comments

Posted in Local business, Local politics, Looking back, Organizations, People, Places, Real estate, Restaurants

Tagged , , ,

1 Road, 3 Neighbors, 50 Years

Posted on January 30, 2012 | 17 Comments

In 1952, Mike and Galy Starzyk moved to Drumlin Road.

Two years later, Gordon and Dot Hall moved in across the street. Nine years after that, Bernie and Barbara Dorogusker bought a house next door to the Starzyks.

Much has happened since then. Countless families moved in, had kids, raised them, moved away. Decks were built, 2nd floors added. Trees have grown tall (and fallen).

But nearly 50 years later, all 3 families still live on the horseshoe-shaped drive near Hillspoint and Green’s Farms Road, just south of the railroad tracks (and the “Connecticut Turnpike” — I-95 — which was still being debated when the former cow pasture was developed back in 1952-53).

There may be no other place in Westport where 3 neighbors have lived so close together since the Kennedy Administration.

A 1952 ad for "Compo Manor: A Residential Community Situated in Westport, Beauty Spot of Southern Connecticut" shows "The Perfect Three-Bedroom Rancher" model home. It is "Priced at $14,500. Complete."

The Starzyks are the only original owners left. Mike and Galy were living in Bridgeport. With 2 children, they needed more room. Galy’s brother-in-law — Art Reale — told them about a new development, “Compo Manor.” The lots were small — 1/4 acre — but the $14,500 price was perfect.

Better yet, nearly all their neighbors were like the Starzyks: young, and with kids.

In 1955, Gordon and Dot Hall’s daughter was not yet born. Married 2 years, and both teachers — he at Bedford Junior High School, she at the brand-new Coleytown Elementary — they had rented “tiny, ramshackle places” elsewhere in town.

But they saved their pennies — “literally,” Gordon notes — and loved the little ranch house that was for sale. Other tract homes they’d seen — on Reichert Circle, Bauer Place and Tamarack — all faced in the same direction. The 43 Drumlin homes were built with the same 2 or 3 floor plans, but they were angled uniquely. And each setback was different.

The asking price was $20,600. The Halls paid $19,600. On their salaries — he made about $3,000, she $2,900 — that was manageable. But for 4 summers, when they took graduate courses, they rented the house out. The extra cash helped make ends meet.

“There were lots of strollers, and there was lots of sledding,” Dot recalls. “Everyone was very sociable, because (the adults) were all around the same age.”

Gordon and Dot Hall's house in 1957 (left) and 2012 (right). The 3 families that have been neighbors for nearly 50 years share the mailboxes in the photo at right.

Barbara Dorogusker is the “newest” of the 3 neighbors — but she’s got the longest local connection. A 3rd-generation Westporter, she grew up on 6 acres on Sturges Highway. Her grandmother (a former indentured servant in Poland) lived next door. The property included a pond and barn.

After graduating from Staples in 1952, Barbara married a man from New York City. They wanted to buy a house, but without much land. Bernie was a sailor; proximity to the Sound was key.

With $2,000 in the bank, they searched for a while. Finally they saw a place on Drumlin. With a big field in back — off Jennie Lane — they could look at nature, but not have to take care of it.

“It wasn’t our dream house,” Barbara admits. “But every house is a compromise.”

Her parents were “appalled. They thought we  were moving into tomorrow’s slums because the lots were so small.” But, Barbara says, “it was perfect for us.” And Cedar Point Yacht Club was just down the hill, at Compo Beach.

They built a big sunroom, and a deck. They had 2 children. “We wanted them to grow up surrounded by friends,” Barbara says. “They sure did.”

The kids created secret pathways between bushes. An empty school bus would pull up to the foot of Drumlin Road. It drove away filled.

Every summer, the Drumlin Road neighbors have a block party. Last summer's event showed an enormous span of ages -- but plenty of smiles.

Over the years, the road changed. There were many “older couples, divorced people, one-child families,” Gordon says.

Miraculously for Westport, there have been only 2 demolitions — and both were caused by accidents. One house burned; the other had a tree fall on it.

Of course, many homes have been remodeled. They’re a bit larger than they were (Gordon calls them “mini-mansions, not McMansions”). So they’re once more attractive to young couples. “We’re seeing bicycles and strollers again,” says Dot.

But not every house has been sold, re-sold, and re-re-sold.

“Why would we ever want to move?” Barbara asks. “Everyone looks out for each other here. We’ve got one story, which is great.” (She’s 77; Bernie is 85.)

“And with housing prices going to pot, why leave?”

Similarly, after the Starzyks’ kids grew up and moved away, Mike and Galy stayed. “We were comfortable,” she recalls. “There was no reason to leave.”

Sixty years later, they’re still on Drumlin Road.

“I don’t know how much longer I’ll be in this world,” 93-year-old Galy says. “But I have no plans to move.”

Nor do her neighbors. After 49 years together, there’s no place like home.

→ 17 Comments

Posted in Beach, Looking back, People, Places, Real estate

Tagged , , , , ,

Susan Wynkoop Walks The Talk

Posted on January 24, 2012 | 31 Comments

If you’re going to lead an organization, you should walk the talk.

The CEO of Ford should not drive a BMW. The Secretary of Education should not send his kids to private school.

And the head of the Westport Historical Society should not live in a brand-new McMansion.

Susan Wynkoop does more than just walk the talk. She sprints it.

Since 1990 the new president — she takes over from Dorothy Curran this Sunday (January 29) — has lived in a house built around 1683. It’s not only the oldest house in Westport — it’s the only pre-1700 structure in the entire town.

The Wynkoops' home: 187 Long Lots Road. (Photo by Larry Untermeyer)

Though she’s a native Virginian, Susan is not one of those I-always-wanted-to-live-in-the-past people. As a child, she says, “I visited Williamsburg. But there weren’t a lot of pre-Revolutionary houses where I grew up.”

She worked first for Wachovia, then the FBI. (There’s a connection: While she represented the bank at a recruiting fair, an FBI agent at an adjacent booth convinced her to switch careers.)

Serving in the agency’s New York office, she met her future husband, Morgan (aka “Dutch”). After they were married, he inherited his mother’s home — the oldest structure, at 187 Long Lots Road. He asked Susan if she’d like to live there.

The rest is history (ho ho).

Susan, Katherine and "Dutch" Wynkoop.

Over the years, she’s become passionate about preservation. “It’s hard not to let an antique home get in your blood,” she says.

Two years ago, the Wynkoops embarked on the long process of gaining WHS “local landmark” certification for their home. As a result, she says, “it can never be torn down.”

Voluminous research by the Historical Society’s Bob Weingarten revealed that the house was nearly a century older than previously thought. The dating process included examination of wood beams (possibly from ships sailing to America), and the foundation. Susan has “no idea how it survived all these years.”

Her mother-in-law bought the house in 1971, saying, “It’s stood for hundreds of years. It won’t come down now.” It’s so well built, in fact, there are almost no water leaks into the basement.

The original home consisted of 2 rooms downstairs, 2 above them. More rooms and baths were added in the 1800s, but the house has remained essentially the same. The Wynkoops have done some work — “you could see daylight through a few beams,” Susan says; they’ve modernized the upstairs, and re-insulated — but the outside looks the same.

An upstairs bedroom in the Wynkoop home. (Photo by Larry Untermeyer)

Inside, the exposed chestnut beams and original dining room pine flooring look just as they did in 1683.

“It’s not for everyone,” Susan admits. The ceilings are low, the stairs steep. But she wouldn’t live anywhere else.

“It’s been my home for 22 years — longer than anywhere else,” Susan says. “I find it very warm and welcoming. I can’t imagine a new house, where all the lines are straight and everything is perfectly plumb.”

Her involvement with the Westport Historical Society is, however, relatively recent. She’d always been a member, but not until the landmark designation process did she realize how important the organization is.

She went on the 2010 Holiday House tour, met many interesting people, and was drawn in.

Her job as president will involve fundraising and education — including raising awareness of the importance of historical preservation.

Another challenge will be increasing the Historical Society’s membership. There are many new young families in town. The WHS needs to reach them to grow.

Some live in large new homes — built on the sites of torn-down older ones. Susan Wynkoop — owner and proud resident of a 329-year-old home — will gladly invite them in.

Downstairs in the Wynkoop home. (Photo by Larry Untermeyer)

→ 31 Comments

Posted in History, Looking back, Organizations, People, Real estate

Tagged , ,

Sherwood Island And The Mill Pond: The Prequel

Posted on January 13, 2012 | 20 Comments

Monday’s “06880″ unraveled a bit of the mystery of the house on the island in the Sherwood Mill Pond.

Now Elwood Betts adds even more details — including some history about the adjoining property, Sherwood Island State Park.

Or, as Elwood called it back in the day, Sherwood’s Island Farm.

Elwood Betts, at Evergreen Cemetery. His interest in genealogy led him to help renovate this cemetery, as well as undertake research into the history of Sherwood Island and the Mill Pond.

He should know. An 86-year-old Westport native — he was born in a house on Imperial Avenue — he is an amateur genealogist. Elwood literally knows where all the bones are buried.

And — with the help of Loly Jones — he’s written a few short histories about his ancestors, and the Westport that once was.

Growing up during the Depression, he heard stories of the great American sailing ships that dominated world commerce in the 1840s and ’50s, and the members of his family who captained them. A painting of the packet ship “The Adeline Elwood” — of which his great-grandfather Charles Elwood was captain — hangs proudly in Elwood’s Park Lane home.

He and Loly wanted to find out more. Research at the Westport Library led to the grand list of 1917. Fannie Elwood — a descendant of Capt. Elwood — was one of the top taxpayers in town, assessed $30,350 for “Sherwood’s Farm” on the island bearing the same name.

The original gristmill.

The island was not far from the site of a gristmill on what we now call the Sherwood Mill Pond. In 1705, the 1st mill had been built on what was then called Gallup Gap Creek. (Gallup Gap itself was located where the Sherwood Island connector is today.) In 1790 Daniel Sherwood bought the mill.

After his death in 1828, it was rebuilt. It thrived for years, specializing in kiln-dried corn meal shipped to the West Indies, on boats that docked right at the mill. Oysters were also grown and harvested in the Mill Pond, fetching up to $20 a barrel at the Fulton Fish Market.

The gristmill has been replaced by the house on the right. Back in the day, ships sailed right next to it to load cornmeal, oysters and other goods.

The growth of railroads cut into business, though, and after standing idle for a while, the mill was destroyed by fire in 1891.

Meanwhile, back in 1787, farmland on Fox Island had been given to Daniel Sherwood Jr. as a wedding present. It became known as Sherwood’s Island, and he and his wife Catherine Burr farmed onions and potatoes there.

The Sherwoods had 11 children. The youngest — identical triplets Franklin, Francis and Frederick — all had long and storied careers as sea captains. In 1865 Franklin retired, and became a gentleman farmer on Sherwood’s Island. Indentured servants — immigrants from Russia, Greece and Switzerland — worked the land and helped with household responsibilities.

When Franklin died in 1888, his daughter Fannie Sherwood Elwood inherited the entire 24-acre property. She was the wife of the son of Elwood Betts’ great-uncle, Captain John B. Elwood.

The productive land was surrounded on all sides by unusable marshlands. By the end of World War I, farming there wound down. In the 1920s, it became difficult to support the taxation on the large assessed valuation of the property.

Elwood remembers swimming there with his Sherwood cousins, and visiting the homestead on the island. It provided a great vista, all the way to Long Island. Traveling there — on a winding path — seemed “a journey into a distant world, set apart from the (Westport) community I was accustomed to.”

In 1932, Aunt Fannie sold her property to the State of Connecticut. The house fell into disrepair; the farmland became overgrown. By the late 1930s, it and other open farmland throughout Westport started growing quickly back into wooded areas. Elwood calls this a “dramatic change in the landscape.”

A 1930s map showing subdivision possibilities for Sherwood Island.

Gradually, the State of Connecticut bought more and more property — eventually 234 acres. The 1st parcel — adjacent to Burying Hill Beach — had been purchased in 1914. In the decades that followed, influential landowners in the Green’s Farms area fought the state. By 1937, however, key parcels were acquired — remarkable, considering the dire straits of the Depression. The 150-year-old homestead was demolished. Sherwood Island — the 1st state park in Connecticut — opened to the public.

Had the state not prevailed, a housing development — with hundreds of homes — may well have been built on the land. Westport would look far different today.

In fact, much of the nearby Sherwood Island Mill Pond looks not greatly different from the 1930s — or decades, even centuries, earlier.

Ships no longer dock there, and the “old mill” itself is gone. But the tidal pond is there. Sherwood Island — “Sherwood’s Island — is one marshland away.

And Elwood Betts remembers it all.

Sherwood Island Mill Pond today. (Photo/Wendy Crowther for WestportCT.gov)

→ 20 Comments

Posted in Beach, History, Looking back, People, Places, Real estate

Tagged , ,

108 Cross Highway: The Sequel

Posted on January 5, 2012 | 48 Comments

Last month, “06880″ reported on the proposed demolition of 108 Cross Highway.

The “Henry Munroe House,” I wrote, is one of the few dwellings in town “documented as being built by a free black.”

Henry Munroe, a farmer, bought the land from John Burr in 1802. His descendants were members of Green’s Farms Church. One was the housekeeper for Peter Sturges, at nearby 93 Cross Highway.

As America celebrates the 150th anniversary of the Civil War, Westport prepares to obliterate a house that predates that conflict by half a century. And was built by someone who himself was historically significant: a free black Westporter.

Or not.

An anonymous commenter just posted (on the original story’s “comments” section) that a descendant of the Munroes is disputing the Connecticut Freedom Trail information about the family — the reference to them being black, which led to a townwide controversy over the fate of the house.

108 Cross Highway

The commenter noted the words of the family member, who identifies himself only as “Mike.” On the Freedom Trail website, Mike has written:

I am a decenent [sic] of this Munroe family listed … as African Americans.

This is not correct. The term African American did not exist in that time era. The terms used were Colored, Black, Mulatto, Indian. My family has even been listed as Blackish on the census. People keep changing their race description to African American which is historically incorrect and in fact the family are American Indian.

….This is how history gets changed!

The person who posted on “06880″ added, parenthetically, about the fact that the Munroes may have been Indians, not blacks: “Not that it matters or anything.”

But does it not matter? If the Munroes were not black, does that change the discussion about demolishing the 207-year-old house?

If they were Indians — or had mixed blood — does that make a difference?

“06880″ readers: What do you think?

→ 48 Comments

Posted in History, People, Places, Real estate

Tagged , ,

You’ve Got Mail!

Posted on January 4, 2012 | 6 Comments

By 3:30 yesterday afternoon, Dennis Kassimis was exhausted.

It was the day after a federal holiday — always a busy time for the Westport Post Office, which he serves as postmaster.

It was the first “real” workday after Christmas. Westporters who had been away were laden with packages to return, gifts to send back — and, of course, mail to pick up from PO boxes.

Plus, it was the 1st day in the new, but decidedly smaller, Westport post office in Playhouse Square.

Dennis Kassimis

Over the weekend, the move was made. Kassimis downsized — from 7000 square feet in the downtown location that opened in 1935, to 2700 square feet in the former location of Derma Clinic.

But unlike empty nesters looking for less space, the Post Office staff remains the same. There are, however, fewer sales windows — only 2 — plus 1 to pick up items.

There’s a lot less space everywhere — including the lobby.

The newness of the facility — clerks not sure where everything was, people still moving boxes around, along with the tightness of the waiting area, where bundled-up patrons were burdened with extra packages — made for a tough 1st day.

“We’re getting the kinks worked out,” Kassimis said with a weary smile. “We’re trying to get rid of the clutter.”

Kassimis is sure things will be better soon. He’s already pleased with the PO box area — which finally offers 24-hour access to box holders.

He went from 758 boxes in the old facility, to 678 in the new one. But all 80 boxes that disappeared were inactive. So no one lost a PO box — and everyone got to keep the same number.

The line yesterday at the new post office was literally out the door -- at least, one of the doors.

As a result, the new boxes skip a few numbers here and there. A few years from now, that will no doubt be a trivia question posed to “06880.”

Kassimis is also happy with the parking. There was no dedicated lot downtown; now there are plenty of Playhouse Square spots.

At 3:30 yesterday, they were all filled. One woman parked by the curb, nearly blocking access to the condominiums behind.

Full disclosure: I live in those condos. The new post office will make access a bit more difficult. And the extra traffic will no doubt make leaving the shopping center a lot harder.

Interestingly, the reason for the move was the financial situation of the US Postal Service. Since we all now communicate by email and IMs, and send everything by FedEx, the Postal Service is in tough shape.

Though — judging by yesterday’s lines — there are still plenty of Westporters who need the post office.

Welcome to the neighborhood, post office and patrons! For the sake of us who live (and shop) here: Please drive and park safely!

A woman idling outside the post office -- making driving difficult. She was there when I went in, and was still there when I came out 20 minutes later.

→ 6 Comments

Posted in Downtown, Local business, People, Places, Real estate

Tagged , , ,

What’s Up With This House?

Posted on December 27, 2011 | 24 Comments

I know this place is in Weston — but it’s just a few yards past the Westport border.

Plus, a very alert “06880″ reader asked me about it. So I figured it qualifies for our blog.

It’s 40 Weston Road — on the left side heading north, just before Broad Street.

The 1st thing you notice is the mailbox:

But it’s the house itself that really grabs you. There are nearly a dozen cars in the circular driveway. Enormous artwork hangs on the house; a few sculptures add even more interest.

(It’s not easy to see in the photo above — but check the far right side of the house, above the 1st-floor window. I didn’t want to trespass.)

A check of public records shows it’s got 11 bedrooms and 10 baths. Built in 1998, it’s 9,274 square feet, and sits on 2.02 acres.

So what’s the deal? Is it a hotel? A home for some religious sect? One of Mitt Romney’s mega-mansions?

Inquiring minds — including the “06880″ reader who originally asked — want to know.

Click “Comments” if you’ve got a clue.

→ 24 Comments

Posted in Places, Real estate, Totally random

The Last Lot

Posted on December 10, 2011 | 2 Comments

If you’re like me, you pass the vacant lot almost every day and wonder:  How can such valuable property just sit there?

The answer is: not much longer.

What may be the last undeveloped Post Road parcel in town — across Roseville Road from McDonald’s, directly across the street from Cumberland Farms — may soon be developed.

The lot at the corner of Post Road and Roseville Road. (Photo/Kirk Lang for the Westport News)

Tuesday night (December 13, 7:30, Town Hall), the Zoning Board of Appeals will review a request for variances. Property owner William Taylor hopes to construct a 2-story office building on the small piece of land, which ever since I can remember has been a weed- and brush-filled occasional parking lot for trucks.

The office building would include Taylor’s law office, and other tenants.

The bad news: Parking will include a deck — accessible through a new entrance off Roseville Road. That means even more cars will soon fly through the least-observed red light in town.

The good news: It’s not a bank.

→ 2 Comments

Posted in People, Places, Real estate

Tagged ,

108 Cross Highway

Posted on December 5, 2011 | 45 Comments

There are teardowns. And then there are teardowns.

It’s one thing to buy a 1960s split-level on a private road, knock it down, and build a monster McMansion. Your neighbors may (or may not) like it, and the old house probably has little historical or architectural significance.

Then there’s 108 Cross Highway.

As reported by WestportNow.com, a 2-story “vernacular” may soon be demolished.

108 Cross Highway

It’s sad enough that the house is definitely old — dating back to 1805.

It’s sadder that it’s a handsome home, adding pleasure to the streetscape of that much-traveled stretch between North Avenue and Roseville.

But how about this:  according to the Westport Historic District Commission, the “Henry Munroe House” is one of the few dwellings in town “documented as being built by a free black.”

Henry Munroe, a farmer, bought the land from John Burr in 1802. His descendants were members of Green’s Farms Church. One was the housekeeper for Peter Sturges, at nearby 93 Cross Highway.

As America celebrates the 150th anniversary of the Civil War, Westport prepares to obliterate a house that predates that conflict by half a century. And was built by someone who himself was historically significant: a free black Westporter.

Because the home was built more than 50 years ago — waaaay more — the demolition application must come before the Westport Historic District Commission.  That sounds good.

Westport has been a town for over 175 years. Free black man Henry Munroe built his home on Cross Highway 3 decades before the founding of Westport.

However, the commission can prevent a teardown only if it is part of a Local Historic District (there are 4 6: Kings Highway North, Jesup Road, Violet Lane and Gorham Avenue, plus recently added Evergreen Avenue and 20-26 Morningside Drive South ), or a property owner asks for designation as a Local Historic Property (there are over a dozen).

If that is not the case — and, with 108 Cross Highway, it’s not — all the commission can do is impose a 180-day waiting period. That, supposedly, gives time for someone to propose an alternative to demolition.

Right now, Westport does not provide tax breaks or credits in exchange for protective covenants on deeds. (The money saved could theoretically be put toward renovation or restoration of the property — which might even enhance the resale value.)

The demolition application will be heard at a Historic District Commission meeting at Town Hall on Tuesday, December 13 (7 p.m.). A large turnout is expected. Many will argue for the 180-day delay, in hopes that a solution can be found.

For inspiration, just look across the street. For years, 113 Cross Highway was a dump. Despite its history as an 1800s farmhouse and (later) pioneering gas station, it was an eyesore — and in 2006, about to be torn down.

At the last second, Mike and Kim Ronemus stepped in. They bought it, then lovingly renovated it and several outbuildings.  Today it’s a jewel of the neighborhood.

They had to jump through countless bureaucratic hoops. But they persevered — and won an award from the Connecticut Trust for Historic Preservation.

113 Cross Highway -- a view of the renovations from the back. (Photo/Douglas Healey for the New York Times)

108 Cross Highway is in far better shape today than 113 was a decade ago. It’s also more historically significant. But — to paraphrase Thomas Paine — eternal vigilance is the price of preservation.

The 1st step takes place December 13, at Town Hall. All creative solutions are welcomed.

→ 45 Comments

Posted in History, Organizations, People, Places, Real estate

Tagged , , , ,

From The Heart Of Texas

Posted on September 16, 2011 | 34 Comments

The other day, an alert “06880″ reader wrote:

I grew up in Westport.  I lived there from the time I was born until I graduated from Staples.

I’ve been in Texas the past 35 years, but deep down inside I felt some day I would move back home.

I just found out the other day that my childhood home was torn down, so I started looking at houses in Westport that were for sale.

Maybe you can tell me why Westport has become such an expensive place to live.  For the price of what homes go for in Westport, I could get one here for half the price.

I really miss Westport, but it just doesn’t seem like the same town anymore. When did it become so high class?  Thank you for your time.

Wow — there’s a lot there.

Tear-downs.  Housing prices.  “High class” — whatever that means, and which may or may not be tied in with the first 2.

This is one for crowd-sourcing — the collective (and probably contradictory) wisdom of “06880″ readers.  Let’s hear what you have to say.

Click “comments” to respond — and please stay on topic!  Our Texas ex-pat depends on you.

This Beachside Avenue home goes for $24,950,000. A fair price, or overvalued?

→ 34 Comments

Posted in Real estate, Westport life

Tagged ,