THE NEW YORK TIMES, SUNDAY, OCTOBER 25, 2020 MBRE 7In August, soon after giving birth to her sec-
ond child, Ines de Seroux needed a day
away. So when she came across a listing for
a farm in Washington, Conn., in southwest-
ern Litchfield County, she decided to take a
look. The next day, she and her husband left
their two children with the nanny and
headed north from their home in Green-
wich. They returned with an accepted offer
on the property.
Ms. de Seroux, 37, is an art adviser to pri-
vate clients; her husband, 43, is an invest-
ment banker. The couple had spent nearly a
year searching for a larger house in Green-
wich. “We couldn’t find anything we
wanted,” Ms. de Seroux said.
Next month, after renovating, they will
become full-time residents of Washington,
where they paid $1.495 million for their
12.97-acre estate, which includes a 5,000-
square-foot, nine-bedroom farmhouse built
in 1750, a three-bedroom guesthouse and
two barns.
Ms. de Seroux is excited to become part of
the community. “A lot of artists live there,”
she said. “It’s a cultured place.”
Culture permeates Washington. It is evi-
dent in the exhibitions and classes at the
Washington Art Association; in the pres-
ence of the headquarters of the Pilobolus
and Momix dance companies; and in the
town’s two pockets of upscale shops.
Another draw is Washington’s rustic
character. Filled with forests, rolling fields,
old stone walls and bucolic country roads,
the town is bisected by the Shepaug River. A
third of its 38.7 square miles is permanently
protected.
James L. Brinton, Washington’s first se-
lectman, said the population — typically
around 3,800 but more since the start of the
pandemic — is a mix of full-timers and part-
timers, with the majority middle- and up-
per-middle-class white-collar and blue-col-
lar working families, and the rest more af-
fluent second-home owners.
“The people who live here year-round
give of their time and talents, volunteering
for boards and commissions and emer-
gency services,” he said, “while the second-
home owners give financially to support
those efforts. Each group recognizes the im-
portance of what the other offers.”
Gaylinn Fast ran a bed-and-breakfast in
Washington and raised her daughter there
from 1999 to 2009. She moved away and be-
gan working as a chef on a chartered yacht.
In 2017, Ms. Fast, 61, returned, paying
$315,000 for a 1,946-square-foot, three-bed-
room, 1890 converted Swedish church, set
on 0.28 of an acre along the Shepaug.
Now she divides her time between the
yacht and Washington. “I appreciate even
more how special it is here,” she said.
In Litchfield County, Culture in a Bucolic Setting
By SUSAN HODARAOn a warm fall day, patrons sampled the fare at Marty’s Cafe, in Washington Depot, one of the town’s five villages and a pocket of upscale shops.TONY CENICOLA/THE NEW YORK TIMESTHE NEW YORK TIMESLIVING IN WASHINGTON, CONN.What You’ll FindWashington encompasses five villages:
Historic Washington Green near the town’s
southern border with Roxbury; Washing-
ton Depot, one of the town’s quaint shop-
ping hubs; the village of New Preston,
abutting Lake Waramaug; Marble Dale to
the west; and the village of Woodville, near
Litchfield and Morris.
Daniel J. Kenny, the town’s assessor, said
it has 2,012 single-family homes and 62
two-, three- and four-family homes. There
are also condominiums and rental apart-
ments, and some affordable rental apart-
ments and single-family homes.What You’ll PayStacey Matthews, an agent and principal
with the Matthews Group at William Raveis
Real Estate, said properties in town range
from the $300,000s well into the millions.
“Most houses below $500,000 will be on
main roads or need work,” she said.
Since the onset of Covid-19, she said, real
estate has become a seller’s market.
During the 12-month period ending Oct.
9, the median sales price for a single-family
home was $850,000, up from $550,220
during the previous 12 months. The median
for a multifamily house was $346,450; there
were no multifamily sales during the previ-
ous 12 months. The median for a condomin-
ium was $300,000, up from $275,000 during
the previous 12 months.
Based on information provided to and
compiled by SmartMLS Inc., as of Oct. 9,
there were 36 single-family homes on themarket, from a 456-square-foot, one-bed-
room ranch, built in 1954 on 1.6 acres, listed
for $209,900, to an 18,811-square-foot, five-
bedroom contemporary house, built in 2002
on 56 acres, listed for $8.75 million.The VibeDespite the presence of wealth, Washing-
ton remains low-key. “People come here to
chill,” said Ms. Matthews, the real estate
agent. “They don’t want traffic. They don’t
want to have to make dinner reservations
three weeks in advance.”
Residents mingle at the farmers’ market,
art exhibitions and other activities in the
Judy Black Memorial Park and Gardens or
in the aisles of the Hickory Stick Bookshop.
Hikers can explore miles of trails at
Steep Rock Association’s three preserves,
while boaters on Lake Waramaug can
savor the surrounding vistas.The SchoolsWashington is served by Regional School
District 12, which also serves the towns of
Bridgewater and Roxbury.
Children from Washington attend Wash-
ington Primary School for kindergarten
through fifth grade, and sixth through 12th
grade at Shepaug Valley School.
According to data from the Connecticut
Department of Education’s EdSight portal,
90.2 percent of the district’s fourth graders
who took the 2018-19 Smarter Balanced
assessments were proficient in English,
and 90.2 percent were proficient in math;
statewide equivalents were 54.6 percentand 52.5 percent. During the 2018-19 school
year, mean SAT scores at Shepaug were
558 in evidence-based reading and writing,
and 540 in math; statewide averages were
514 and 500.
Washington’s private schools include the
Frederick Gunn School, a high school (for-
merly called the Gunnery and renamed this
year), and Rumsey Hall School, for kinder-
garten through ninth grade.The CommuteThose traveling the 90 miles from Washing-
ton to Manhattan can head to Interstates 84
and 684 for the roughly two-hour drive. Or
they can drive approximately 45 minutes
southwest into New York to catch Metro-
North Railroad’s Harlem line at Brewster
or, six miles south, Purdys, where parking
is easier. Trains to and from Grand Central
Terminal take 70 to 106 minutes, and round-
trip fares are $40 peak, $30 off-peak and
$437 monthly; currently, all trains are
considered off-peak.The HistoryMany of Washington Green’s structures,
with their distinctive gables, turrets and
oversize chimneys, were designed by the
architect Ehrick Kensett Rossiter, who
became enamored of the town as a student
at the Gunnery. He studied architecture at
Cornell University, graduating in 1875. He
practiced in New York City, designing
hundreds of private and public buildings,
including 30 in Washington, 24 of which
remain.115 Lower Church Hill Road
A five-bedroom house with
seven full bathrooms, two half
bathrooms, a pool and a
cabana, built in 1989 on 8.23
acres, listed for $4.25 million.
917-864-494011 Ives Road
An 1850 house with four
bedrooms, five and a half
bathrooms, a barn, pool, wine
cellar and gym on 4.7 acres,
listed for $2.5 million. 917-
864-4940ON THE MARKET160C ROSS HILL RD CHARLESTOWN, RI 02813This house is born out of a creative process
between a New York psychoanalyst & a young &
very talented architect & multivisual artist who
does painting, sculpture, photography & film. These
fantasies now occupy space in reality with great
detail & bring to fruition an absolute work of art.
This home has almost no walls, & no matter where
you position yourself you have a 360 degree of
the beautiful scenery around you. Located on 27
acres of land, adjacent to a golf course on one side,
& 800 acres of nature preserve & 400 State Park
acres nearby. It is the last outpost before nature
starts, yet five minutes to the ocean, & shops &
restaurants in Westerly. This house is an amazing
combination of comfort & serenity.CONTACT AGENT BILL DUMKE
914.806.1042 | [email protected]PRICE UPON REQUEST.
EQUAL HOUSING OPPORTUNITYAn Oasis
.