As part of our look back at 2024, we are flipping back through the pages of Behind The Hedges magazines, in addition to all of our content online. We kept busy this past year, producing 14 issues for Dan’s Papers, in addition to 12 editions of Behind The Hedges Powered By The Long Island Press, a publication owned by our parent company, Schneps Media, plus continuing our coverage of South Florida with Behind The Hedges Palm Beach. Also in 2024, we added Behind The Hedges inside the new Dan’s New York City, a monthly publication that will continue in the New Year.
Once the magazine gets in our readers’ hands, it’s hard to gauge their favorite, but thanks to feedback and readership online, we do have a bit of an idea. Here are some of our most popular magazine articles from 2023 (in no particular order and excluding our cover stories), plus a few of our favorites. Be sure to let us know what you like seeing best in the magazines as we plan our issues for 2025!
This story in our July Fourth issue of Hedges in Dan’s Papers was a definite favorite, breaking the top 20 most-read stories online, as well as being a popular read on the page. A story about how accomplished Broadway actor and dancer Robert Hartwell purchased a centuries-old house in the Berkshires, it appeared just as his television docuseries about the house, Breaking New Ground, premiered on HBO Max. This was no ordinary renovation story, but one that tackles America’s ugly racial past (and sometimes present) while also creating something extraordinary and reflective of Hartwell’s essence — a light and energy that has shined on Broadway in shows like Memphis: The Musical, Cinderella and Hello, Dolly! He shined just as bright when he was a child in the 1990s putting on shows for friends while spending summers in East Hampton with his father, the well-known local basketball coach, William Hartwell. If you haven’t seen it, the holidays is a perfect time to do some binge-watching!
“Who doesn’t want to say they live in a place called Lazy Point?” asks Jennifer Brew, one of about 50 homeowners in the serene East End enclave framed by Gardiner’s Bay and Napeague Harbor. We tend to agree, and we think you would too if you read our Memorial Day issue in Dan’s, where writer Marc Horowitz outlined how homeowners spend chilled-out beach days and inky nights under spectacular starscapes; of power-hiking the Paumanok Path with their curious dogs in tow; of drafting on the ever-present wind in their kiteboards and kayaks. You’ll get a taste of what real estate goes for in this under-the-radar part of Amagansett.
When Michael Jordan buys real estate, everyone takes notice. As part of our Palm Beach coverage, Hedges covered the Hall of Famer’s $16.5 million purchase in the town of Jupiter back in our April edition. Jordan bought a resort-style, 9,100-square-foot home within The Bears Club, a 400-acre gated community with a Jack Nicklaus–designed golf course, about a mile from the ocean beach. For more, click the link above.
The late Henry Koehler, considered one of the top sporting artists in the world, painted many of his signature equestrian paintings, in his studio inside this historic Southampton Village home that looks like it came out of a storybook painting itself. We profiled the home, then up for sale, as part of our Memorial Day weekend issue. Though his estate sold the property in 2021, the house has remained one of the village charmers, cited at 80 North Main Street, just one-third of a mile to the heart of the village business district.
Christmas isn’t the only popular holiday. Making the Easter table festive and bright gets lots of attention too. Delve into this colorful spread. We can hardly wait to try some of these ideas for Easter 2025.
As the Belmont Stakes approached this past June, we traveled up to Saratoga Springs where the race moved temporarily due to a major construction project underway at the Belmont Park. The competition on the track hasn’t been the only focus in the booming UpState city, luxury real estate in the city’s famed Broadway Historic District has drawn attention too — and there’s a connection to Long Island to boot. New condominiums are in high demand at The Residences at the Adelphi, a $75 million luxury condominium development adjoining the high-end hotel by the same name. The development was led by co-owners Michael Dubb, founder and CEO of The Beechwood Organization, based in Jericho, Long Island, and one of the top residential builders in the state, and businessman Larry Roth. Both men are long-standing members of the thoroughbred racing and Saratoga Springs communities, who sought out to transform the property, while keeping its historic character. We took a look at the various projects Beechwood was finishing up.
When architect Andre Kikoski’s firm was commissioned to reimagine a 10,000-square-foot beachfront home in Southampton, he faced some daunting challenges. A full 330 feet of direct ocean frontage and unobstructed views of the ponds and fields that ring the home make for an idyllic setting. But not only did the original 1990s-era house have some structural integrity issues, the 3.3-acre lot also sits on a narrow dune between the Atlantic Ocean and Jule Pond, part of a chain of freshwater ponds that together comprise a fragile ecosystem framing the property. As part of their overarching vision, Kikoski and his team, which included Ashley Warren, a senior designer at Palm Beach-based McCann Design Group, were determined to maintain and enhance the serene, quintessentially East End vibe of the property while at the same time dealing with a host of environmental concerns.
David and Jeanie Stiles, it could be said, specialize in construction for upwardly mobile customers. But in their case, it’s people who like creating not tall buildings but structures high up — in trees. The couple, based in Manhattan and East Hampton, have carved out an unusual niche, building tree houses or variations which they sometimes call “Hobbit houses” on the ground for middle-class and high-end customers. They built a treehouse on and for The Today Show and have built for the well-known and wealthy, as well as more typical customers, typically charging $15,000 and up. We profiled them as part of our Master Craftsman column in September.
Nestled on the scenic North Fork, the Penny Homestead in Laurel, an area that staggers the lines between Riverhead and Southold Towns, stands as a testament to 19th-century craftsmanship and modern renovation. Built in 1879, this 3,175-square-foot home boasts intricate window details, a spindled front porch and original maple and walnut parquet floors. For all its historic charm, it was the subject of a spread in our July Fourth issue.
On the pages of Behind The Hedges Powered by the Long Island Press in January of 2024, we traveled to the Village of Old Field on the North Shore where a 10-acre estate sits on a peninsula and boasts breathtaking views of the Long Island Sound. Situated on Crane Neck Point, the massive Mediterranean-style home offers approximately 20,000 square feet of livable space and the gated property includes a half-mile of private beach with a grandfathered cabana. Take a step inside this incredible estate.
Flip through the digital pages of our magazines here: Behind The Hedges in Dan’s Papers and Behind The Hedges Powered by the Long Island Press.
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