Sunday, May 11, 2008

'Upstate living' in Ridgewood

Kermit Westergaard grew up on the Upper East Side, far from hammers and paintbrushes. Yet early on, he was seized by the idea of renovating a historic house for himself. Last year, he got the chance when he and his wife, Azadeh, bought a 1908 row house in Ridgewood, Queens, for $592,000, and turned it into their comfortable fantasy of a simple upstate farmhouse.

A ‘Farmhouse’ Near the L Train

Sounds like they have Stockholm Syndrome.

15 comments:

Anonymous said...

"Kermit"....
you gotta be kidding me!

Wait until the locals beat him up
for his trust fund money!

So Ridgewood
is going East Side yuppie, huh?

I'd better put down a case of
Chateau Margeaux otherwise my new neighbors won't talk to me!

Anonymous said...

The Iranian girl is cute, much better looking and probably more talented than Nazli.

Anonymous said...

I think it's pretty cool that this guy designed the place himself and did a lot of the woodwork.

Anonymous said...

The baby yawning is hilarious.

Anonymous said...

Not convinced he's a trust funder. The upper E background would indicate this, but if he designed that space himself he's got a gift and could certainly support himself.

Anonymous said...

This neighborhood is a gem. I hope the machine can keep its fingers off it and not destroy it like the Immigrant! Vibrant! Diverse! crap they feed us for the rest of the boro.

Anonymous said...

Ridgewood, which is rapidly being populated by Polish émigrés priced out of Greenpoint, along with many Latinos and Asians, has the look of brownstone Brooklyn.
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Goan, no, the boilerplate is there...NY Times like everyone else in Manhattan is doing their share of ethnic cleansing from the Rock.

Anonymous said...

a neighbor might invite you for a Filipino meal one night,


look out for the roofing nail they throw in as a "meat tenderizer."

Anonymous said...

hell, look out for the mystery meat - give the block a cat census before you go over.

Anonymous said...

Paul Stier but be turning in his grave. I beleive that one of the smaller Stiers around Norman Street.

The larger ones have 3 window's in the curve with sandstone stoops.
His neighbors must want to choke this guy. A farmhose porch & collums doesnt. belong on a rowhouse.
The woodwork clealy indicates a Stier front door (less the gold leaf address number)

This yuppie did this to the front !!! Its still like painting a pig on a Bentley no matter how well done IMO.

Queens Crapper said...

No, the entire block is open porches with columns. It's also an historic district because of it.

Anonymous said...

I laugh at you people who are so intimidated by outsiders. It is an inferiority complex and I am truly embarassed to have grown up and live in the same area as you ignorants.

Anonymous said...

Stier Row houses with Porches, ..interesting.
I grew up in Ridgewood (Seneca and Norman)

Must be one of those near Dekalb just over the Bushwick border just above Knickerbocker. In the 70's and 80's you needed and armed guard to go down there.
Im going to take a trip to Ridgewood this week and have an old walk. It was great place in the 70's.
It was lined with big old London Plane Trees.
The old Germans would sweep and hose down the sidewalks.
They would go after kids for tossing gum wapper and give them a talking to about littering.

This guy Paul Kerzner formed a civilian patrol with CB radios in the mid 70's.
The place went to hell when the old Germans died and there kids sold to anybody. Single Familys became 2 and 3 familys rentals for "Tweedy's"

Crack, and IV drugs appeared and forgedabout it. You couldnd have a radio in your car

Anonymous said...

I laugh at you people who are so intimidated by outsiders. It is an inferiority complex and I am truly embarassed to have grown up and live in the same area as you ignorants.

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The people of Queens are the most generous open hearted in the world. I don't know of anyone else who would put up with one half of the bullshit that is rammed down our throats.

In other words, you have no idea what you are talking about.

Anonymous said...

So our "trust funder" has a penchant for "getting on down" and showing off the colorful dirt he's accumulated under his fingernails as proof of his new hobby...hard work!

So what?
That makes him a member of
"the working class club".....eh?

How droll!