Pequot Turkey Trot
32nd Annual Thanksgiving Day Road Race in Westport Connecticut.

Let me tell you what it was like and how the spirit lives on. At the top of the street was the Old Remarkable Bookshop. Painted pink it was a landmark for over 50 years. Here you could meet authors like Robert Mitchum and M. Scoot Peck who wrote the Road Less Traveled. It was a great place to kill some time before Boarders and Barnes & Noble squeezed them out.

There are however some steadfast mom and pop business that have weathered gracefully with each passing year. Oscars delicatessen is located two doors down and has been a staple since the 1940’s. Westport Pizza owner Mel Mioli has feed many generations of Westporters the best tasting pizza.

A local grocer, Gristedies was the most fantastic place to have a house charge. They’d bill you monthly for your fresh vegetables, fish, and meat. The closest thing to this nostalgic experience today is Calises Market where Paul Newman used to get his meat from the butcher. Tavern on Main use to be Chez Pierre and the ambience hasn’t changed in over forty years. The only thing I can think of is that the colonial fireplace now gas operated.

Walking down Main Street as a long time resident and witness to change one can still feel grounded by these recollections and memories. This is what makes Westport so special for so many people. Not only the legacy residents but also the newbie’s too.

The community thrives year round on Main Street. Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, High School raffles and fundraisers can be seen most weekends dutifully raising money for good causes.

The annual Sidewalk Sale in June and the Art Festival in July are events not to be missed. The kids always look forward to the annual Halloween Parade where they can be seen happily marching up the street to Town Hall collecting treats from the local merchants along the way.

To nurture your cultural needs the downtown area comes alive. The Westport Playhouse Theater renovation was spearheaded by Paul and Joanne Newman to the tune of $35M. There are weekly performances and a summer season stock series of plays that gain national attention.

Just a stones throw away from the Playhouse is Winslow Park, which is the designated area for dog lovers and walkers. Here you can throw a Frisbee and mingle with other dog owners. The park was the former property of the Baron Von Langendorff the perfume magnet. His mansion still stands across the Post Road behind the newest bank in town.

The downtown area including Main Street offers the local residents a unique small New England town lifestyle, where you can walk to everything you need. If this is important to you; then this is a neighborhood worth looking into.

If you’re considering Westport as a community to live I’d love to share my passion, knowledge and experience with you. Please feel free to call me at 203-814-6100 or email me at livingwestport.com to set up an appointment so you too experience the allure of this special place so many of us are proud to call home.

Vail gets hard-headed about skiers’ helmets 

Jan. 12: Ski helmets are becoming a safety trend on the slopes. Vail ski resort now requires all employees to wear ski helmets while on duty, as well as children 12 and under who are enrolled in ski school. NBC’s Jack Chesnutt reports from Vail, Colo. 

 http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/34824541#34824541

The Mouth of the River

The Saugatuck River ebbs and flows effortlessly towards Long Island sound and that abeyance sets up a true New England experience that can make one feel like they’re truly home.

Saugatuck’s deep-rooted heritage will stay with you wherever you go. Time passes but one can always count on it being as authentic as you’ve always remembered.

Restaurants:

Some of the best dining in town is located here. Eatery’s such as Viva Zapata’s’ (who’s original founder Duke Mernegar borrowed the money for his liquor license from Paul Newman) has been a landmark watering hole for two generations! The Black Duck and Mario’s are also well known landmark establishments that haven’t change in over forty years.

The Black Duck

Mario's

Saugatuck offers world-class waterfront living at its best. Just off Railroad place sits Stony Point Road, which was once owned by William Phelps Eno’s personal banker. Eno invented the traffic sign and lived across the way on Saugatuck Avenue in a thirty-two-room great Gatsby style mansion.

Local Highlights:

Things haven’t changed so much in 100 years. Amazing Nantucket style homes by Michael Greenberg and Peter Cadoux now gracefully command the landscape.

Peter Cadoux Designed Fine Home

Sailing has always been an important part of Westport. Prominently situated at the head of the river is the Cedar Point Yacht Club. Its junior sailing program is renowned in New England. Wednesday night competitive sailing is considered a requirement for potential new membership. The club is on a peninsula known as Saugatuck Shores.

Cedar Point Yacht Club

A charming arched hand hewed bridge welcomes you to this tight knit family neighborhood. Quaint beach cottages and contemporary homes with deep-water docks set the stage for an active waterfront lifestyle experience.

Saugatuck Island Bridge

Even the heart of Saugatuck has an interesting history. Ricky Ricardo and Lucile Ball even made it an integral part of their move to the Country from NYC. They lived in Westport and rode the Metro North railroad too. The fictional characters from the popular TV sitcom “Bewitched” Darren and Samantha Stevens also called Westport home.

I Love Lucy

Bewithced

The charming stationhouse is in keeping with the 19920’s architecture, but has been modernized recently with handicap access and increased parking availability. Approximately forty-five miles from New York City’s Grand Central Terminal, the Westport commute is convenient for commuters and day-trippers.

The modern day Saugatuck is alive and well. Riverside Avenue winds its way along the river to Main Street and downtown. Here you’ll find some unique business establishments with a colorful history.

Westport Train Station

The Saugatuck Rowing Club is a jewel by anyone’s standards. The entrepreneur Howard Winklevoss founded it because his sons were both avid rowers. You may have heard of his twin sons? Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss were the true creators of the Facebook business model at Harvard. They recently received more than sixty-five million dollars as a settlement from Facebook. The club is styled after a Nantucket colonial and offers the finest fitness, rowing and training programs in North America.

Saugatuck Rowing Club

The rowing head coach Olga Vengerovskaya is well known on an International basis. She is a recruiting ambassador. Many junior rowers at the club go on to row for Ivy League schools including Harvard, Yale Princeton and Brown.

Woman Rower

Saugatuck Rowers

Other well-known companies were founded on the banks of the Saugatuck River as well. Marketing Corporation of America, which was founded by Jim McManious, Save The Children and yes-even Martha Stewart the diva of home economics, got her start at 1232 Saugatuck Avenue.

Saugatuck is the gateway to Westport. From the “Great Gatsby” estates of the past to the new Nantucket colonials of today it blends the history of yesterday with the modern day lifestyle. It offers everything one could want in a convenient, safe and easy to navigate location. Weather its fine dining, boating, fishing or family seaside living Saugatuck fits the bill.

If you’re considering Westport as a community to live I’d love to share my passion, knowledge and experience with you. Please feel free to call me at 203-814-6100 or email me at livingwestport.com to set up an appointment so you too experience the allure of this special place so many of us are proud to call home.

The Saugatuck Yacht Club

Electric Trolley Compo Beach Circa 1920

Trolley Main Street

Traffic calming planters and speed humps has made the beach safer for young families. The beach is commercially groomed on a daily basis and residents take pride in making sure that it is pristine.  A sensibly priced beach and recreational pass enables residence’s to access the beach, golf course, tennis and pools.

These enhancements to the beach area have made it a model environment for other local towns to follow.

The spirit of the community has embraced the beach area and strives to continually enhance it. One of the most recent projects is the rebuilding of the children’s “Compo Beach Playground”. The layout and features are designed by the children and built by volunteers.

The state of the art playground is fun and safe place for kids to let lose and just have fun. One of the best features is that it’s constructed from all-natural splinter free materials.

If you’re a boater then you’ve come to the right place. Compo Basin Marina was completely renovated and now sports a modern concrete dock system, which is typically used in private marinas and yacht clubs. It is recommended to register with the Parks and Recreation Department for a slip as soon as you can because there is a waiting list for this first class facility. There is also dry rack storage for windsurfers, kayaks, and small one-design sailboats as well.
One of my favorite pastimes is barbequing or hosting a clambake near the famous colonial cannons, (This historic site is where British troops landed in 1777 a raid on Danbury, CT) while watching the spectacular sunsets with family and friends. Another favorite is riding bicycles to watch the spectacular 4th of July firework display where the whole town turns out at Compo Beach to celebrate.

Mid Summer Day Compo Beach

Westport, Norwalk, Danbury and Fairfield Avenues all run perpendicular to Long Island Sound and make up the quintessential cottage style beach neighborhood.

My Listing on Danbury Avenue • Compo Beach

Here young families, “empty nesters”, writers and artists all come together to create one of the most special beachside communities in town. F. Scott Fitzgerald summered in the beach area in the 1920s where he worked on his novel “The Beautiful and Damned”.

F. Scott Fitzgerald summerhouse at Compo Beach

Everything you need is at your fingertips. Whether you’re visiting with friends close by or strolling down to Elvira’s deli for a cup of “Joe” and a Sunday Times Compo Beach is know for its convenient location and laid back lifestyle.

Elvira's Deli

Its proximity to Long Island Sound and distinction as the oldest residential section of Westport have also contributed to Green’s Farms’ reputation as a promised land for the most well-to-do suburban settlers. The settlement prospered and grew, eventually taking the name of one of the founding farmers, John Green

Greens Farm Academy
The Westport Public School system is ranked consistently in the top five percent in the State of Connecticut. However, if you require a traditional English boarding school structure for your children, Kindergarten through the twelfth grade, Greens Farms Academy fits the bill. It was founded by Mary Bolton who was a cultured lady from England in 1925. The mission of the school was to educate students modeled after the best private schools in England.
The school is situated on the old R. T. Vanderbilt estate on Beachside Avenue on  26 acres. The Vanderbilt’s enjoyed summering in Westport and built their favorite estate under the supervision of Architect H.T. Lindeberg. He designed the elegant English-American stone house, which was situated on a hill with commanding views of Long Island Sound. The property was purchased for $250,000. Can you believe that?

Greens Farms Academy
http://www.gfacademy.org
35 Beachside Avenue
Greens Farms, CT 06838

203-256-0717

Application Deadlines:
Completed Kindergarten applications by December 16^th
Completed 1st – 5^th grade applications by January 22^nd
Completed 6-12^th grade applications by January 22^nd

Burying Hill Beach
Burying Hill beach is the hidden jewel of Westport’s beaches. The beach got it name for a burial place near by that settlers used until about 1725. It’s off the beaten track at the end of a sweeping turn on Beachside Avenue, which is known as Westport’s Gold Coast.

Burying Hill Beach Sunset

You make a right turn just before Greens Farms Academy to access the beach.  The well-known movie producer of Miramax Films, Bob Weinstein’s beach side estate is on your left.

It a quaint beach with spectacular views and is not widely used by town residents. There is a secluded area up on a small hill that offers BBQs and a picnic tables, a clean restroom and changing area is also available. Life Guard supervision is available during the summer season.

Some of the best fly-fishing can be had when the full moon causes the Sand Eel hatches. There have been 40lbs plus Stripers pulled from these waters on such occasions.

Greens Farms Train Station
Not to far from Burying Hill Beach is the Greens Farms Train Station. It’s nice that Westport has two train stations for commuters. It’s convenient. The station is right out of a Norman Rockwell painting. There is ample parking here and Westport Town parking fees apply. Mini Bus service is also available.

Traveling west towards the Post Road is the famous Turkey Hill Road where Martha Stewart got her start in the pristine colonial that she renovated over a twenty-years. She filmed her Martha Stewart show here in her antique barn and also threw great Thanksgiving diners for her friends and family.

Martha Stewart

Turkey Hill Road is one of Westport’s most exclusive addresses along with Morningside Drive, Clapboard Hill and Devon Road. Here properties range $1.5 million up to $8 million. A new construction by Coastal Builders on Clapboard Hill sold in November of 2009 for $6.8 million.

76 Clapboard Hill . Coastal Builders

If you’re looking to build a home in this area Mattera Construction and Snellman Construction are known for producing some of the best high-end homes in the Westport market.

Beachside Avenue
Saving the best for last is Westport’s Gold Coast on Beachside Avenue. Homes here can fetch up to $25 million! Famous entertainers and business moguls reside here.

Donahue House

Phil Donohue and Marlo Thomas

Phil Donahue and Marlo Thomas reassembled one of the great properties in early Westport by purchasing three contiguous lots—112, 114 and 116 Beachside Ave. comprising 7.7 acres. Donahue bought the adjoining property some years ago and caused some controversy when he demolished a home to improve his water views.

Don Imus

Don Imus also calls Beachside Avenue home. His house is currently on the market for $30 million! Martin Davis Gulf & Western’s CEO lives in a spectacular stone Tudor Estate with gated stonewall over looking Long Island Sound.

The retailer JC Penny has kept a French Chateau style mansion on Beach Side Avenue for over thirty years!

From the Gold Coast of Beachside Avenue to the pastoral rolling farm land of Nyala Farms, where cows grazed only thirty years ago, Green’s Farms hasn’t really changed that much over the years.

The five farmers from Fairfield who, in 1648, first singled out the area as prime real estate were visionaries. To this day residents are still attracted by the same rich desirable land and waterfront living the original settlers coveted.

If you’re considering Westport as a community to live I’d love to share my passion, knowledge and experience with you. Please feel free to call me at 203-814-6100 or email me at livingwestport.com to set up an appointment so you too experience the allure of this special place so many of us are proud to call home.