Ever since our dryer broke, Susie’s been hanging laundry on the front yard of our Patterson Ave home, could this be the problem?
Just kidding, of course, still it’s odd when seven properties become available in a short period of time. Most have sold quickly, including 107 Patterson, just a few doors away from chez Fountain. They asked $4,750,000 and had a deal a few moments later (well, it was pretty soon), so that makes everyone on the street feel darned good!
177 Riverside Avenue, rumored to be sold to a builder. True, not true, we’ll find out soon.
This is pure rumor, but I’ve now heard it from multiple sources, so maybe it’s actually true; the former “Hatch” property at 177 Riverside Avenue has been sold, apparently to a builder. How much? I’d guess around $3.6M * for this 1.71 acres in the R-20 zone.
It comes with a vintage 1804 house, but, with a lot-size more than 3 1/2 times the required minimum size, that house will soon be placed into a (considerably younger) dumpster. Broker involvement also rumored…
Here’s what the tax card reveals about 177 Riverside Avenue (all publicly available information):
CRS Data Property Report for 177 Riverside Ave, Riverside, CT 06878-2212-2
* Let’s hope they got more than my guess, because I’ve deliberately estimated low…
“Ole’s Boat Yard”, 340 Riverside Avenue, one of the last remaining semi-public waterfront access points, is to be converted to a private residence (.32 acres). Started at $2.650M way back in 2009, last ask was $1.4M. Selling for…$1.2M? $1.3M?
A friend told me he’s signed a contract to buy the sliver of waterfront (creek front) property known as “Ole’s Boat Yard” at 350 Riverside Avenue. The good news is the buyer is known for skillful renovations, so it could have been worse, but what really irks me is the sale represents another addition to the long list of screw-ups and missed opportunities by the Town of Greenwich.
Remember the infamous tearing down of New York City’s Penn Station? Greenwich had its own version of that when Town government aided and abetted the destruction of the beautiful Pickwick Arms Hotel majestically sited at the top of Greenwich Avenue where the (completely boring and unremarkable) Pickwick Plaza office complex presently sits.
It was the 1970’s, the economy was rotten, and the Pickwick Arms owners, in an attempt to survive, proposed to transform some of their larger suites into luxury condominiums, an idea considerably ahead of its time (the famous Plaza Hotel ended up doing the same thing 30 years later). The geniuses who then sat on the Town Planning & Zoning Committee turned down the idea. Having no other recourse, the owners sold the place to developers and we lost a great landmark. Nice job, P&Z!
“Ole’s Boat Yard” is no Pickwick Arms, but it represents, in a small way, a piece of Greenwich’s past. Guess who stood in the way of anyone trying to maintain it as a boat yard? The Town of Greenwich and (of course) Connecticut’s reckless Department of Environmental Protection, who, among other things, prohibited floating docks on the site lest they impact the precious mud. As a Town, as a State, we have truly lost our minds.
Here’s the listing from Tedesco Real Estate.
PS. Speaking of lost opportunities, the lot next door to this place used to belong to the Town. Boatyard owner Eric Amundsen, son of Ole, started parking boats there and after around 20 years claimed adverse possession and sold the land! Now, instead of a small waterfront park, residents are treated to the sight of a six foot-high stone wall and a builder colonial. Thanks, Town of Greenwich! Another job well done!
Greenwich Bored And Razed 
