2022 – A small Connecticut town is said to buy a 150-acre, $100 million private island complete with its own private beach and stables. Look.

The small town of Darien, Connecticut has struck a deal to buy Great Island, a local island located 50 miles outside of New York City, for $100 million.

The Wall Street Journal reported March 24 that officials from Darien, Connecticut, signed a deal as the “first step” in the purchase of Great Island, located about 50 miles outside of New York City, for more than $100 million.

The publication added that Monica McNally, the city’s first specialist, said in an email that several more levels of approval from other city officials are required.

According to the website, McNally addressed the potential deal at the Darien Board of Selectmen meeting in April, saying, “There will never be a chance for the city to control the fate of this property or add an asset that will benefit us all.” Like this.

“I think 200 years from now, when people look at this drug, they will be positive about this deal,” she added.

The $100 million price tag is discounted significantly from the 2016 stock market price of $175 million.

Great Island was listed on Realtor.com at a discounted asking price of $100 million for the first time on February 2nd. In 2016, Al Jazeera was listed for $175 million, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The 2016 listing marked the first time the island had been offered for sale since it was bought by baking-powder entrepreneur William Ziegler in 1902. According to Jennifer Leahy, the estate agent who introduced the island, it was listed by descendants of Ziegler and William Steinkraus – a knight He married the Ziegler family.

The date of the island’s listing on Realtor.com shows that the asking price fell to $120 million in 2018 and was pulled off the market in 2019.

Leahy told Insiders that the new low price is because the island’s ownership lines have changed and it is now solely owned by the Steinkraus family. The small plots of land that once belonged to the Great Island have now been reserved and what remains is owned by a single family.

The 60-acre island is located about 50 miles from Manhattan by car and is only accessible via a bridge.

Leahy told insiders that the island has a one-mile coastline and a view of the Sheffield Island Lighthouse in nearby Norwalk, Connecticut.

She added that Great Island is the largest contiguous island on offer on the East Coast, with most of the other islands being developed into multi-home waterfront communities.

Leahy told Insider that the island feels special, but you can reach groceries within minutes.

“This is not an island where you have to take a ferry back to the mainland. It is very close to everything,” she told Insider, adding that Great Island has an inviting sense of seclusion but offers amenities just 10 minutes away.

The island’s listing states that it has quite a few properties, describing its 13,000-square-foot mansion, built in 1905, as “the centerpiece of the property.”

The villa, one of the island’s homes, is listed as having 10 bedrooms, eight bathrooms and two toilets.

“It has a very Mediterranean feel, like an Italian villa,” said Leahy. “It needs a complete renovation but the bones of the house are amazing and the view from the house is unbeatable.”

The list also includes a 19th-century colonial farmhouse that has been renovated and expanded.

The farmhouse also has its own wine cellar and swimming pool, Leahy said.

“There are beautiful animals around and it calms me down. Her sense of magic,” she said of her visits to the island.

“It’s a dream. Birds call, geese call, horses call.”

There are many other homes on Great Island, including a three-bedroom stone house, a beach bungalow, and a pink guest house.

In addition to these estates, most of which were built for the Steinkraus family in the early 1900s, Leahy said, the island has a polo field and marina with deep pier and an impressive equestrian facility that attracts enthusiastic horse riders. .

The island’s equestrian facility was designed by Rafael Guastavino, a famous Spanish civil engineer.

“You walk in and you say, ‘Oh my God, it looks like Grand Central. “It’s amazing,” Leahy said of the equestrian facility.

She said there is an indoor riding yard and an outdoor yard where the next buyer can go showjumping.

Leahy said having stables and exercise rooms is a priority for William Steinkraus – a four-time Olympic equestrian.

“The equestrian facility is world famous because William Steinkraus was the most amazing gold medalist in the equestrian world,” Leahy told Insider.

According to a New York Times report on the obituary of Steinkraus, who died on November 29, 2017, he set a world record in showjumping at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City. He also won silver medals in Rome 1960 and Munich 1972. His bronze medal was awarded in Helsinki in 1952.

The equestrian facility houses stables for several horses and many riding equipment.

According to the property listing, the 18 stables are granite with vaulted ceilings.

Leahy told Insider that it’s hard to find a property with a facility like this with its own bridle tracks. This, she said, along with the high level of privacy, makes Great Island attractive to potential buyers.

According to Leahy, the island has its own private beach with a bungalow with a fireplace.

The island’s private beach is private because “if you go down to the beach houses, there’s this magical white sand beach with a cove,” Leahy said.

The beach is a unique aspect of Darien’s private islands, with nearby Hay Island offering mostly green outdoor spaces, as featured in a previous Realtor.com listing.

According to Leahy, the “amazing” island had previously attracted a great deal of interest from “billionaires, famous athletes and hedge fund owners, both local and international”.

When asked what type of individual buyer would be a good fit for the property, Leahy said that a private individual who enjoys equestrianism or needs a lot of space will feel comfortable on the Big Island.

“People want comfort for themselves, they want privacy, and they want security,” she said.

It concluded that Great Island would be in good hands if the next buyer had the financial means to maintain the island. Aside from the island’s privacy and security, Leahy said the island’s allure lies in its closeness to nature.