Category Archives: Sullivan
Borscht Belt to Rise Again… as a Casino?
Word in yesterday’s Wall Street Journal was that a 432-room Borscht Belt hotel, the Nevele, could get a new owner. The place has been shuttered since 2009, though we know the area has been hurting for far longer than that. Many wonder what could revive the area. Fancy ski resort, a la Belleayre? Or just plain gambling? That’s what the developers, Claremont, are hoping for, and Gov. Cuomo is, too. Currently casino gambling is allowed only on Indian reservations. What do you guys think? Bring gambling to the Borscht Belt and hope it rises again? Or have you got a better idea?
Grants for Upstate Businesses
If you have a dream of moving north and opening up a little shop of your own, here’s some incentive: Sullivan County has started a Microenterprise Program to give grants of between $5,000 and $35,000 to local start-ups. Personally, I’d try to figure out how to reinvent a bungalow colony, which is still my dream.
Freemont Contemporary with 57 Acres, $499,000 — Good for a Group!
So many of our readers have gone bananas over modern houses for sale in upstate New York that we’ve started to scour listings looking for them. I’m less successful at it than Upstate Jane, who has a great eye for both real estate and design. But this place piqued my interest. It was built in 1984, and thus has a certain dated postmodern feel going on, a mishmash of styles that works in some places and is less successful in others. Operative word is windows. Some of them, I love — that wall of windows, some of those modernized eyebrow windows. Others look a little outdated, but nonetheless I get the sense that this place has a soothing feel inside.
And outside…57 acres! Pond, woodlands, some pastureland. The selling point, in addition to the house, seems to be its potential to split the land up. They write, “The property has frontage on two roads, so could be subdivided, as follows:
Upper 25 acres: $129,000
Lower 25 acres: $119,000
House, barn, pond and remaining land: $249,000.”
How about seven acres and that house for $249,000? Seem reasonable? Stats on the jump.
38 William Brown Road, Freemont Center (Matthew J. Freda) GMAP
Asking Price: $499,00
Beds: 4
Baths: 3
Year Built: 1984
Land: 57 acres
Taxes: $7,871.00
Features: Dividable land, pond, barn, cathedral ceilings, sunroom
Illustrious Upstater: Actor Mark Ruffalo is a Sullivan County Resident and Anti-Fracking Activist
I’ve loved Mark Ruffalo since he sexed-up Michelle Pfeiffer in In the Cut. Here’s further proof I know how to pick ’em: Mark is not only a full-time Upstater, according to this new New York Times’ piece, he’s also become an anti-fracking activist in his adopted hometown of Callicoon. That rhymes with swoon.
Swan Lake Contemporary, $219,000
Here’s the first line of the listing for this Swan Lake contemporary with three beds and three baths: “OWNER SAYS SELL AND WILL ACCEPT ANY REASONABLE OFFER.” Always a nice place to start. I’m feeling a little less gung-ho about Swan Lake since a few have written in to say that the lake itself is not so delicious — more a body of water to look at than to swim in. But if that doesn’t stop you, this is a nice size and a nice price, with a motivated seller. Last purchased in 2002 for $175,000 by a Manhattanite. It’s also for rent, for $1750 a month. If you can get that, you could cover your mortgage several times a year. Stats on the jump.
Swan Lake Villa Rental with Pool
I got wind of this four-bedroom chalet-ish rental on Swan Lake through the local parents listserv in my neighborhood, and it caught my eye. Hilltop pool! 360-degree views! Mod furnishings that look more Heywood Wakefield than IKEA! It says its on 10 secluded acres, which I did not realize was a possibility on Swan Lake. Hm.
Perhaps most interesting is the rental price. Starts at $350 per night and $2500 per week. A similar property, with five beds and three baths, in need of a designer’s touch, is $165,000. Let’s say you spend $100,000 renovating and adding a pool (is that too modest an estimate, if the property only needs cosmetic changes?) — I still think you could make most of your mortgage and expenses back if you rented it out for one week a month. The house above is a world more appealing than other Swan Lake rentals I’ve looked at, so that’s a lesson, too: if you want to make a little income off your country house, beautify it right.
Town of the Week: Swan Lake
Of course, there’s no town to speak of in Swan Lake, N.Y. According to one loyal reader who owns a co-op home in a bungalow colony there, “There is a place called Mike’s Deli where locals hang out, that is it!” There’s a tremendously unpretentious country club, and a wonderfully misnamed development called “Presidential Estates,” a four-season compound of humble homes — neither presidential nor estate-ish — that has a pool and tennis courts, as well as lake access. There’s also the Swan Lake Resort Hotel, which seems not to have a website, but here’s a video remembrance of it from its Borscht Belt days, when it was called the Stevensville Lake Resort (Stevenville was once the name of Swan Lake — the latter name is better, yes?).
So what’s to recommend the hamlet of Swan Lake, 111 miles from the 11215 zip code and 1o minutes southwest of downtown Liberty, NY (which, in all its potential and complications, deserves its own post)?
The lake, of course. It’s private, with few motor boats, except for those owned by folks who have deeded rights to them (if you want that, look for a home that comes with motor boat rights, but I think motor boats ruin a lake, myself). Although we’ve heard from residents that it’s not great for swimming — really just a body of water to look at, which is perhaps why those places with pools are in such high demand.
And then there are the prices: they’re good. The most expensive home for sale in Swan Lake, NY is $599,000, and there are dozens under $100,000 (which our Five Figure Friday correspondent will be covering in the future). Most of the homes are newish, mid-20th century, little low-ceilinged cabins that can be renovated into stylish, comfy mod getaways if you have the right design sense. (By the way, we recommend our newest correspondent, Upstate Jane, who owns Dichotomy Interiors and has done amazing things transforming small, dark humble little places into hip pads).
We’ll be concentrating on the mid-range stuff this week, $100,000 to less than $300,000. Happy hunting!
Feral Pigs Run Amok in Sullivan County
We’re lifting this from the wonderful Watershed Post blog. After all, we seek to present the most important information so you can make a clear decision about where to buy, rent, live and visit in upstate New York. So we thought you should know about the pigs. Sounds funny, actually serious.