James Aguiar and Mark Haldeman did what most people do when they consider buying a second home in the Hudson Valley: They talked about it. A lot.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe would be those weekend guests, all the time, who talked about moving and getting a place and finding a place, and we never did,\u201d explains Aguiar, the fashion director for high-end magazine publishing brand Modern Luxury. \u201cAnd then, one day we decided to get a little bit more serious about it.\u201d<\/p>\n
That was over eight years ago. All it took was falling in love with \u201cthe camper,\u201d as Aguiar refers to the couple\u2019s mid century modern ranch house in Uptown Kingston, to seal a deal that was already half in the making. Having spied it years before on a tour of the neighborhood, Aguiar and Haldeman, who\u2019s the New York City regional retailing manager for clothier Paul Smith, became intrigued with the 1958 house, which resembles the coolest camping trailer ever (hence the nickname). When \u201cthe camper\u201d finally appeared on the market in 2006, they scooped it up.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe drove down the street,\u201d Aguiar recalls of the first sighting, \u201cand we both looked at each other and started laughing. Intuitively, we knew that this was going to be our house.\u201d So, like most people do, they indulged in some lofty fantasies. \u201cMowing the lawn was going to be our thing,\u201d says Aguiar. \u201cI was mowing the lawn one day, and somebody came by and said they have a service. I said, \u2018Nope nope nope, we\u2019re going to do it.\u2019 He said, \u2018That\u2019s what they all say,\u2019 and drove off. Two years later, we stopped mowing.\u201d<\/p>\n
Purchasing the house, which was designed by William Van Benschoten, was not just the start of homeownership for Aguiar and Haldeman. It also marked the beginning of their love affair with Kingston, an affection that\u2019s kept pace with the city\u2019s resurgence. \u201cAt the time we moved up here, this area was quite a bit different,\u201d says Haldeman. \u201cIt wasn\u2019t nearly as popular as it is now.\u201d<\/p>\n
But the couple is enjoying the metamorphosis. \u201cIt\u2019s not that you want an area to change so the people change,\u201d Aguiar says. \u201cYou want it to remain what drew you to it in the first place. It\u2019s that, only better.\u201d
\nBoth Aguiar and Haldemanwork in the fast-paced, creativity taxing fashion industry, which makes their Kingston home practically medicinal in purpose. \u201cIn our industry,\u201d Aguiar says, \u201cwe deal with a lot of aesthetic choices, creative decisions, and lots of people. For us to come up here and relax, recharge, and put a lot of that aside, it\u2019s very important. [Then] we go back [to the city] with more energy and enthusiasm.\u201d<\/p>\n
Renewed energy, however, doesn\u2019t mean that they don\u2019t feel bummed out when they head back to Manhattan. \u201cI manage a lot of people, and it\u2019s my refuge, getting up here, and not having to deal with people if I don\u2019t want to,\u201d says Haldeman. \u201cIt\u2019s mixed feelings going back to the city, for sure.\u201d<\/p>\n
While they consider themselves weekenders, Aguiar and Haldeman, who also have an apartment in Park Slope, aren\u2019t averse to making Kingston their permanent headquarters someday. \u201cThere are no nos,\u201d says Aguiar.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
James Aguiar and Mark Haldeman did what most people do when they consider buying a second home in the Hudson Valley: They talked about it. A lot. \u201cWe would be those weekend guests, all the time, who talked about moving and getting a place and finding a place, and we never did,\u201d explains Aguiar, the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":50479,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1150,1476,1057,785,102,1056],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n