Sold: Troutbeck

AMENIA — Troutbeck, the inn and former estate  on Leedsville Road, has been sold after several years on the market. 

It was bought in June year by Troutbeck Holdings Ltd. from Jim Flaherty and Bob Skibsted of Amenia.

Anthony Champalimaud, a general partner with Troutbeck Holdings, gave an interview to The Millerton News last week about plans for the historic property.

Champalimaud’s partner in the property is Douglas Horne, owner of D.R. Horne & Company, where Champalimaud also works. The Virginia-based company describes itself on its website as “a real estate consulting firm that provides strategic land planning, asset management and development services, with particular expertise in projects of natural, cultural or historical significance.”

There are also other investors in Troutbeck Holdings, Champalimaud said.

Troutbeck caught their attention because of its historical significance.

“What we know is that we have a very important site here, a property that has been in place where people have convened to discuss important ideas,” said Champalimaud.

The 43-acre estate was owned in the early 1900s by poet-naturalist Myron Benton and then by Joel Spingarn, who was at one time the president of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

“The people who lived here made contributions to society that didn’t necessarily make them famous, but that we have all reaped the benefits of,” Champalimaud said. “This property is very important to this community and to this part of the world for that reason — some very special things happened here.”

Most recently, Troutbeck has been a conference center and hotel.

“Setting aside the great story of this property and its beautiful setting,” it also has the benefit of having been converted to a luxury hospitality destination, Champalimaud said.

Troutbeck was transformed from a private estate into a country  inn and conference center by Flaherty and Skibsted. They ran it as an executive retreat for nearly 30 years before listing it for sale five years ago.

“It is fundamentally a very good hospitality asset for the area,” Champalimaud said. “The features that make it work in that respect are its proximity to the train and New York City — six minutes away from the Wassaic train station and a  two-hour drive from New York.”

The property has a large ballroom, tennis courts, indoor and outdoor swimming pools, a restaurant and more. There are 42 guest rooms now; that number may be slightly reduced after renovations.

A new vision

“Troutbeck has not been in operation at all for the past five years,” said Flaherty. “It’s time for a new point of view, a new vision.

“We are confident thatTroutbeck Holdings, who have significantly more extensive experience in the hospitality industry than my partner and I had, will restore and remodel ‘The Beck’ to a new and even more elegant property than it was many years ago.” 

Although Flaherty would not confirm the sale price for the property, he said the new owners “struck a good bargain.” 

There is no sale price information available online and an official at Amenia Town Hall said that Dutchess County won’t make that information available until about February 2017.

While extensive renovations are likely, “At least, unlike us, they don’t have to start at ground zero,” Flaherty said.  “Troutbeck didn’t exist as an inn before we bought it” adding that he and his partner “opened our doors on Oct. 1, 1979.”

Boost to the economy 

Town officials said they have high hopes that the new Troutbeck and the Silo Ridge development will add some vigor to the local economy.

“As I understand it, Troutbeck has provided significant employment for the town,” said Champalimaud. “There were moments when there were up to 60 people working here — housekeepers, management staff, waiters.

“And the very nature of a hospitality property is to attract people to the area. This is a destination that doesn’t exist elsewhere in Dutchess County,  there isn’t anything comparable to it,” he added. “If we can attract visitors here from New York and New England, it will have a positive impact.”

Restoration of the site has already begun. Champalimaud said the original architecture will remain intact wherever possible.

Although a projected opening date is not in sight yet, Champalimaud said they look forward to opening “as soon as possible.”