Catskills - Sullivan County - Ulster County Real Estate -- Catskill Farms Journal

Like clockwork, exactly as promised, a few weeks AHEAD of schedule we delivered Farm 17 to Catherine and David. A fascinating conclusion to a very validating journey we took with them. Although conclusion is not nearly accurate since for the most part this is only the middle-age of our relationship with these folks - the home build is finished but the breaking in period and small tweaks are just beginning - it's a glorious realization when you realize your aspirations have been reached. I spent years trying to achieve a level of perfect - arranging the team, rearranging the team, firing, hiring - then one day we had it - we had a team and process that satisfied me and my clients - both very discerning hard to please parties.

This is how it all started last spring sometime - innocently enough. By the way, I'm listening to Madeline Peyroux, a great bluesy singer I like a lot. She's doing a Tom Waits cover, called "The heart of Saturday Night".

"We've been looking for a second home in the Phoenicia/Woodstock area (Ulster County). It's beautiful there, but most of the properties need a lot of work. I've been intrigued by the "new old" concept, and would like to explore Sullivan County and Catskill Farms. "

Catherine""

Intrigued she was and through a thorough process of research and investigation, they feel in love with John's Farm 12 design. It's a simple shaker home with sexy lines and slight overhangs. It's always so extraordinary to me that the deal starts with such a simple start, and is shepherded (is that right?) and guided and counseled through a hundred of confidence inspiring or detracting interactions and explanations. What can I say? We are pros, we believe what we sell - the most dangerous type of salesmen known to history, the true believer. And that tis us.

Basically, people trust us - with very little concrete evidence- to help them transform and transition their lives. It's exhilarating, when we have time to reflect on it. And it happens all the time.

Brand new house with lines and personality like a 1920's flapper, or Confederate bride, or Boston debutante. Little porch over the back door for comfort, screened in porch so no summer party to be interrupted by the elements and insects.

It's the stern verticalness and straight-lines that are really appealing to me with this back elevation. Something about it, unarticulated presently, is a bit like magic to me. It's pure and straight and simple and right on.

Big red goose lamps with the red doors are hot, hot, hot.

The screened porch, with stained ceiling and porch fan - c'mon, seriously, this isn't what perfect is made of? Simple, functional, well-designed, livable.

Inside, the first time I walked in I couldn't quite figure out what was so striking, but it came to me slowly.

The floor color was subtly unlike anything we had used before, and that is enough to define any house's personality.

It's classic, classical, but then you looked around and their was something cool and fresh to contemplate. Be 8' high double back doors, the super wide staircase, the cool not quite reddish floor, the interesting lighting throughout. It's like putting a stamp on the house without losing 3 years of your life trying to do so. Catskill Farms make you look good.

Not to digress, but one of the more frustrating aspects of growing this business, and growing it in the middle of nowhere, is who we have to rely on to get things done. I used to complain about the locals and their 'spite their noses right off their face' routine, like a bad John Prine/Iris Dement song - but it actually turned out that those people were ok and not far off (or far out), but the real surprise was the recent permanent ex-pat transplants with their funny ideas, self-righteous motivations, and secure conviction of their correctness. As someone who has watched the world turn for a few years up here, it's always surprising that those who I thought would be helpful are actually detrimental the area's growth. It's like once you move into the area full-time, you become affected by the bermuda triangle of rural stubborness, close-mindedness and 'urge to improve' all you see.

Seriously, who isn't turned on by our duel barn door set up with black wrought iron hinges and cross buck door design?

A blank slate twas this kitchen until James and Catherine collaborated on a beauty.

4 panel shaker doors, radiators, wide plank floors... Just more of the same genius collaboration. I say it all the time - we are so good at what we do not just because we are a talented team, but also because we are fortunate enough to work with amazingly talented clients, who bring fresh, creative affordable ideas to each project.

This home has 2.5 baths. This is the master bathroom.

Couple funky bedrooms and color schemes. This color below got a lot of self doubt from the owners once it was up, but I like it. It's different, but not obnoxiously so.

Here's the big guest bath, with a vanity with a good story behind.

Nice strong blue in one of the guest bedroom.

Peeking out from the master bathroom into the master bedroom. That's Brian trying to hide from wide angle lens - fat chance. Or as the Navy Seals like to say, 'you can run, but you'll just die tired."

1st floor powder room, lording over the front yard.

Congratulations Ringo and David and Catherine. It really was our privilege to build you Farm 17 .

Luiz Aragon, head of the Planning Division of Sullivan County, only in the community for a few years at most, not even a resident of New York (unless you count the fake apartment above his gallery), and now proposing to TAKE YOUR LAND through a fear-mongering 'don't turn Lumberland into a suburb' zoning initiative. Luiz Aragon states (I can hardly believe it) that most of the land in Lumberland is in private hands, so is at risk of over-building and bad use practices!! Private property bad - government knows best good. After at least 5 conversations with his department and his chief of staff Heather Jacksy where he denied having anything to do with the Lumberland zoning other than technical assistance and facilitation, he now comes out at last in The River Reporter and admits that this aggressive and non-necessary new zoning provision was his idea, and that he supports it in theory, and in relation to Lumberland. What is Conservation Subdivisions? It's when the planning board requires a developer of over 5 lots (or a homeowner with more than 25 acres) to give 50% of the land to 'green space'. FIFTY PERCENT!!. And if you have wetlands, slopes or other non-buildable areas, that land doesn't count so they want MORE THAN 50% of your land. And what is this 'green & open space'? It's shared land - taking your land, and making you share it with your neighbors with trails, homeowners associations, tree counting, and wildlife management. And are these people smart enough to look around and find one example in Sullivan County where this idea was used, or proved profitable? Did Luiz Aragon talk to anyone doing business in Lumberland to see if they thought this was a good idea? Let me ask you something - would Steve, Wendy, John, Daniel, Richard, Bryce, Thom, Justin, Jason, Courtney and Bronson like to share a trail in their backyard with their neighbor? Would they like the expense, politics and administrative burden of a Homeowners association to manage their 'green space'? I think it's exactly what they don't want. And maybe he's never been to the Lumberland Planning Board, so maybe he doesn't understand that neither the planning board nor the applicants will be prepared to handle these complicated zoning programs. It's ludicrous and infuriating that Luiz Aragon thinks he can come into this community and take away our private property, without any real knowledge of the few success stories that exist in this economically downtrodden town. I think it's clear, that if Luiz Aragon is going to mess around with the livelihoods of the existing business community, it's only fair that he gets the same treatment, because while he wants to change 200 year old land use rights, maybe I want to change self-dealing and self-enrichment at the expense of others. As a business person most of you readers trust as a forward-thinking community member, I ask you to boycott the Brookhouse Gallery until Mr Aragon gets real, and stops attempting to harm this community with pie-in-the-sky theories of land use. If you go back and read this blog, you will find zero political posts - but I'm so insulted by his arrogance that has now changed.

Luiz Aragon's full email, and what it really means (what I love most is he confidently cites sources from 1999, 2002, 2003, and 1996, like the world has not drastically changed since those text books were written) -

"While Lumberland has an abundance of open space, the predominance of the land is in private ownership. A whittling away of this open space through conventional subdivision, even into large lots, would result in a suburban style community not in keeping with the parameters set forth in the Town’s Comprehensive Plan. "

Lumberland has been around for 200 years, and surprisingly, it is no more cut up or subdivided than it was 200 yrs ago. There have been a total of 3 subdivision plans approved by the Lumberland Town Planning Board in 2011, resulting in 7 building lots. Very little 'whittling' by any measure.

"All communities were once an abundance of open space, including cities and suburbs. Once rural areas have become monotonous suburbs resulting in the degradation of qualities Lumberland seeks to preserve. Even in the case of large lot subdivision, the open space is still not protected, and can result in a suburban feel."

He knows how to use the land better than we do? Where exactly are the qualities being degraded? I think most people would agree the limited development that does happen helps businesses like his and others survive.

"Conservation subdivision ... is a development strategy strongly connected to preservation of rural areas"

What he forgets to mention is that preservation is necessary where there is growth pressure. There is no growth pressure in Lumberland, and western/southern Sullivan county has never seen a development boom because we are too far away from anything to be a bedroom community.

"Conservation subdivision is currently a part of the Town’s zoning law, and the Planning Board currently has the right to require a conservation subdivision from a developer proposing to subdivide property."

Very true, and this option should remain that way - it should not be mandated.

"Research shows that homes in conservation subdivisions sell faster, sell for more, and can save on construction costs when compared to similar homes . In South Kingston, Rhode Island, lots in conservation subdivisions cost an average of $7,400 less to produce and sold in about half the time compared to lots in conventional subdivisions. In 2009, researchers in Iowa determined that developers underestimated the importance that potential home buyers place on open space. Residents responded they would be willing to pay up to $2,000 more for homes with proximity to open space."

Absolutely frightening baloney. Why look to Iowa? Luiz has so little understanding of these communities he lives in that he is comparing us to Rhode Island, and Iowa. Sullivan County is a very unique place.

"It is a misconception that everyone wants their own 5 acres."

I'm just wondering how much real estate has sold up here that has enabled him to come up with this outrageous statement. People actually want more, not less, in my opinion. I don't know of a single client out of 200 that we have that want to share their land.

"For those potential buyers who ask for 5 acres, it is important to know what that 5 acres represents, since many of the qualities a purchaser expects from a 5 acre parcel, will not be protected or delivered by a 5 acre parcel. "

It's called getting out of your car with your real estate agent or builder and looking at the land.

"For home-buyers, the open space is a valuable amenity for aesthetic and recreational reasons, as well as for economic reasons. Homes in conservation subdivisions tend to appreciate faster than comparable homes in conventional subdivisions and to sell for higher prices than similar homes on larger lots in subdivisions without significant open space amenities. Buyers are willing to pay more for land adjacent to protected greenspace. Homes in conservation subdivisions, despite smaller lot sizes, can sell for significantly more than those in conventional developments."

Very irresponsible statement with little current evidence of being true.

"Buyers are willing to pay more for land adjacent to protected greenspace. "

Not when it's their backyard that they are paying taxes on. People enjoy private property.

"Other points about conservation subdivisions.

• The cost of developing the lots can be reduced, which can support the inclusion of some affordable housing units as part of the development project."

(Affordable Housing in a rural subdivision geared to second homeowners - frighteningly stupid idea).

"• Future service costs for public infrastructure, such as roads, sewers and water lines, are lower because roads and water/sewer lines can be shorter."

(We don't have public infrastructure, sewers, waterlines - duh)

"• Property values within conservation subdivisions can appreciate faster than properties in conventional subdivisions due to the added amenities provided by the adjacent open space."

(Absolutely not true in this area)

"• Residents enjoy the recreational opportunities and views provided by the preserved open space."

(With over 100,000 acres of protected land within 15 minutes of Lumberland, do we really need to take people's back yards as well?)

"• A larger network of protected areas and open space can be created if open space is connected across several developments and potentially support trail networks for walking, biking, and hiking."

(So instead of enjoying the woods, let's make trails)

"• The clustering of houses can encourage more walking and more frequent interaction with ones’ neighbors, fostering a stronger sense of community"

(Communities aren't forced - they are made organically, and from what I have seen, people aren't coming up here to unvoluntarily get to know their neighbor who is walking through their open space in their back yard).

The total and complete lack of appreciation of why people move to the area. Yes, everything he says has a time and place, but the time is not now and the place is most definitely not Sullivan County, or more specifically, Lumberland NY.

The one result of Fritz Mayer's River Reporter article is that we finally have some honesty from Luiz Aragon and his Planning Department - finally he is fessing up to believing in these development theories instead of running from them like he has been.

Bottomline, Lumberland has done such a terrible job over the last 200 years that we need Luiz to come in and save us from ourselves with development models that don't work?

Really? At least no other town will let the Planning Department in the door after this email. Sadly, Luiz probably doesn't even realize how insulting these ideas are to the average citizen of Lumberland.

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Ok - my annoyance at retarded zoning and clueless people has passed. So, let's talk fishing. As someone who is incredibly not handy with 'projects around the house', not talented at outdoorsy stuff like hunting, gardening, fishing, it's always a challenge when I aspire to turn over a new leaf and develop that side of things. Typically it starts and stops with a trip to an expensive outfitter like Orvis, dropping some coin, getting my line all tangled amongst a bunch of swearing and putting it all in the closet corner for some 'future usage'. Well, I guy I know - Tony - runs a service that I've known about for a few years but for some dumb reason I never connected the dots that his services might be of a lot of interest to my homeowners and local readers. He does fishing lessons - "fly fishing and light action spin" full and half day fishing trips on the local rivers in a driftboat. His fishing blog - And articles and videos - Sounds like the perfect way to spend the afternoon with your weekend guests (or even better, impressing that weekend girlfriend who's just getting to know the area - talk about 'instant cool' and facilitated 'relations' later on.) It's amazing when you realize you live somewhere and don't take advantage of the all the reasons other people come to the area to experience - like living in NYC and never going up the Rockefeller Center or Empire State building or visiting the Intrepid. Enjoy. Beware Tony's got an odd sense of Humor - lol.