The Inside Press

Magazines serving the communities of Northern Westchester

Good Neighbors

Kisco Park: A Neighborhood Straddling Chappaqua and Mount Kisco

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Kisco Park is a much sought-after neighborhood encompassing the best of Chappaqua and Mount Kisco. It is a quiet and friendly neighborhood that is close to town and shopping, yet is also quite bucolic and close to nature as well. Kisco Park lies within the Chappaqua school district with a Mount Kisco PO.

Kisco Park is also home to the Bueti family. The family consists of Mary O’Rourke Bueti, Key Account Manager at American Regent, Sam, Director of Sales at Pepsico, Emma, age 18, college freshman, Lily, age 14 and Alex, age 12. The Bueti family has lived in Kisco Park since 2003. Sam grew up in the neighborhood and that was one of the reasons the family decided to move to the area. They enjoy being so close to family. Sam’s siblings also live in Kisco Park and the Bueti children can walk to visit their grandmother’s house.

The Bueti family really enjoy all the things their Kisco Park neighborhood has to offer. One special feature is that there are many dog owners in the area, which definitely helps with meeting new neighbors. As Mary says, “There are lots of dogs. You can get together with neighbors for dog walks. I met some of my best friends in the neighborhood.”

Kisco Park is also a hub of fun and festive community activities. They hold a wonderful Halloween parade each year that both kids and adults enjoy. There is also an annual picnic for families, held at Smith Park. A Town of New Castle park, Smith Park lies within Kisco Park and features a multi-purpose athletic field, playground and half-court basketball area.

Kisco Park has a lot of natural beauty to offer its residents including a brook that runs right behind the neighborhood. The brook separates Kisco Park from Riverwoods and Croton Avenue. As Mary says, “Many houses have a view and access to the brook.” It’s definitely a lovely, relaxing feature – one of many reasons to enjoy living in Kisco Park.

Hardscrabble Lake: A Dream Neighborhood for Families

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The Gilet Family has called the Hardscrabble Lake neighborhood home for more than six years. Anthony Gilet, a radiologist, Nikole Ostrov-Gilet, a gynecologist and children Dylan, age 9 3/4 and Briella, age 6 1/2 enjoy everything Hardscrabble Lake has to offer.

Moving from Manhattan, the family was looking for a town that was convenient to both parents jobs, safe and family oriented, had great schools and was a close-knit community where they could find friends and neighbors for all to “grow up” with. Says Nikole, “When we were looking at houses all across Westchester, it wasn’t until later in our search that we discovered Chappaqua and the second we pulled onto Hardscrabble Lake Drive, I said to Anthony ‘this is my dream neighborhood’ and it hasn’t let us down.”

The kids are able to ride their bikes in the street of their cul de sac and are always able to find other kids playing whenever they venture outside. Everyone in Hardscrabble Lake is always willing to lend a hand. “I love that if I need help getting one of my kids off the bus there is always a willing neighbor. I love that we have neighborhood text chains. I love our neighborhood Facebook page where we can ask for opinions and advice. I love that we have the greatest sledding hill in our front yard and other kids come over to enjoy it too,” says Nikole.

Living in Hardscrabble Lake gives the Gilets a real sense of community. Says Nikole, “This is a neighborhood where kids can just be kids and adults can rely on each other for advice, some eggs in a pinch, child care help, a friend to take a walk with and lifelong bonds. I still to this day get the feeling that I had when I drove in that very first time during our house search, that Hardscrabble Lake is my dream neighborhood.”

Wrights Mill: New Appeal for an Old Section of Town

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The Wrights Mill neighborhood has a storied past dating back to the American Revolution. Thomas Wright, for whom the area is named, owned property and operated a mill in North Castle. Major Andre, who worked as a spy with Benedict Arnold, was captured in Tarrytown and held in a barn at Wright’s mill. A plaque now commemorates the sites of Thomas Wright’s mill wheel and buildings.

Today, Wrights Mill is a neighborhood filled with lovely homes close to downtown Armonk as well as to Wampus Pond Park. Calling this neighborhood home is the Arany family. Dr. Karina Gritsenko, an Associate Professor of Anesthesiology at Montefiore Medical Center and Mr. Magen-David Arany, who works in finance, live here with their four sons Joshua age 14 (going on 26), Isaac age 4.5, Jacques age 2.5 and Yonatan, age 3.5 months. The family moved from New York City two years ago after 16 years of living on the Upper East Side. With a growing family, they knew they needed more space–it was just a question of where.

As Karina puts it, she came to Westchester kicking and screaming. She and Magen-David even had a friendly competition for who could find a new home first, with Karina looking at apartments and Magen-David at houses. He eventually found one in Wrights Mill that was perfect and the family has loved living there ever since. The family truly enjoys meeting new people wherever they go and even realized soon after moving in that two of Karina’s colleagues at Montefiore are also Wrights Mill neighbors.

The Arany family love the social aspect of the neighborhood and are always happy to help out their community. Magen-David is a volunteer firefighter in town and Karina is involved with the PJ Library. As she says, “Give the busiest person something to do and they’ll do more.” Wrights Mill is a very family-oriented neighborhood with people always willing to lend a helping hand. For example, during a recent blackout, neighbors offered showers and hot meals to those who lost power.

Some of the family’s favorite outdoor spaces in town are Lombardi Park and the Montessori playground, as well as their own backyard. As Karina says, “We always look for adventures and everything in Westchester is routinely 15 minutes away.” Definitely a perk of living in a place with so much to offer.

Random Farms: Amenities Galore and A Close-Knit Community

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The Random Farms community is a wonderful place for families to call home. With its quiet streets and park-like feel, it is an ideal neighborhood. Random Farms was originally subdivided from the former Millwood Road estate of Lady Gabriel, a benefactor of Chappaqua schools, Northern Westchester Hospital and various other organizations. It has its own homeowners association and many amenities, including a pool, tennis and basketball courts and a clubhouse. One family that calls it home since 2015 is the Agarwala family.

The family of four consists of Sandip, who works in finance, Monica, who works in product management for Mastercard, Kiran, age 9 and Kayla, age 7. Monica grew up in Chappaqua while Sandip hails from Dutchess County. Monica always thought of Chappaqua as a great place to raise a family and when it was time to settle, the Agarwalas chose Chappaqua for its proximity to family, great schools and its strong sense of community.

“There are so many things we love about Random Farms,” says Monica. “We have a pool, tennis courts and a basketball court, which we use throughout the summer. The North County Trail is also within walking distance of us and we love going for walks, and bike rides there, practically year-round.”

Speaking with Monica, you get a sense of what makes the Random Farms neighborhood so close-knit. “When we moved here, we immediately met a half dozen families with kids about the same age as our children. We were able to make friends easily and our children met many of their classmates before they started school. Since the houses are close together, we often make impromptu playdates and the kids spend snow days sledding in our yards.”

Random Farms boasts activities year-round including an annual block party at the end of summer and Halloween festivities in which many homes are transformed into haunted houses. Families also gather together for pizza before trick-or-treating begins. As Monica says, “For families with young kids, there is so much to do and you can always count on bumping into your friends and neighbors.”

Loving the Lake on Hidden Hollow

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Recent transplants to the New Castle area, the Kline family has lived in the Hidden Hollow section of Millwood since January 2019. Kevin, a VP of Digital Marketing at Mastercard and Janice, a Manager of Campaign Operations at salesforce.com live with their children Emerson, 5 and Fiona, 2.5 as well as with their Tibetan Terrier, Madison.

The Klines both hail from other areas–Kevin from Iowa and Janice from New Jersey. While living and working in Manhattan, they knew they needed more space for their growing family. After stints in Nyack and Thornwood, the family searched all over Northern Westchester and fell in love with their Hidden Hollow home. “We love the quiet street, the access to the lake, the proximity to DeCiccos and other stores and convenience to the Taconic,” says Janice.

There is a real sense of community in Hidden Hollow. As Janice says, “The neighbors are all wonderful and friendly, there are lots of little kids, and also high school kids who babysit.” The neighbors come together during the year for fun traditions such as the end-of-summer BBQ at the lake and an annual Halloween parade. Families gather before the parade for pizza and snacks and then go trick-or-treating together.

The lake at Hidden Hollow is a real gathering spot for the community. “The lake is so pretty and in the summer, is such a fun place to hang out,” says Janice. Many families go there to meet up and swim. There is also a lifeguard on duty six days a week from Memorial Day through Labor Day weekend and there are also boats, kayaks, a volleyball net and fresh sand, which is brought in every year.

In October 2018, a tornado hit the area, damaging part of the lake and causing trees to fall. Although the Klines moved in after the tornado hit, they participated along with the rest of the community in the clean-up efforts of the lake in Spring 2019. Neighbors uniting and helping one another is what truly makes Hidden Hollow a special place to live.