The New York Observer
In 2005, Russian billionaire Valery Kogan and his wife, Olga, purchased a home in Greenwich, Conn. for $18.5 million. Mr. Kogan proposed a plan to tear down the mansion and build a 54,000-square-foot house that would have 26 bathrooms. The plan was denied in May, and last week Mr. Kogan submitted a scaled-down version of his original layout, according to Cityfile.
But perhaps the town elders shouldn't be so quick to discourage Mr. Kogan. This morning, The Hartford Courant published a piece about how the perils of Wall Street will hurt Greenwich--which, it turns out, makes up for much of the state's income tax revenue.
From the article:
"As the good times rolled in recent years, the state budget became increasingly dependent on Greenwich. Despite having only about 60,000 people, the town contributed nearly $600 million in state income taxes in 2006 — more than three times the income taxes paid by the combined populations of Hartford, Bridgeport, New Haven and Waterbury. With only 1.8 percent of tax filers, Greenwich provides nearly 13 percent of all state income tax, helping to pay for schools in West Hartford and road repairs in Rockville, not to mention every other cost related to running the state."
As wealthy bankers like Lehman CEO Richard Fuld Jr., a resident of Greenwich, find themselves in dire (well, relatively) financial straits, their neighborhood may begin to be supported by foreign money. And while Russian billionaires and their plans for "vulgar" mansions with gold bidets, marble statues, and animal rugs (think Mar-a-Lago on crystal meth) might typically be kept out of places like Greenwich, we wonder if recent economic events might make the residents reconsider. Our guess is that this time around the board will approve--though we don't expect to see Mr. and Mrs. Kogan at the Round Hill Club anytime soon.
Greenwich Is Reconsidering the Kogan's Revised proposal
Please see this background information:
Russian mogul Valery Kogan and his wife Olga when they purchased a mansion in Greenwich for $18.5 million and then applied for permission to raze the house to build their 27,000-square-foot "dream home." In May Greenwich's planning commission denied the Kogans a permit following complaints from residents, who voiced concern that the mammoth manse would—gasp!—dwarf their own mansions and be a "vulgar" addition to the neighborhood. But Valery and Olga haven't given up on the dream.
They resubmitted plans for a scaled-down version of the home just last week. And what exactly does "scaled-back" mean in rich Russian-speak? The new plan features 25 percent less square footage and just 15 bathrooms, down from the 26 they initially proposed. Alas, the revised application does not indicate if some of the other amenities they said they planned to install—like Turkish and Finnish bathing facilities and a "dog grooming room"—made the final cut.
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04/17/08 - The Russians Are Comming !!!! The Russians Are Comming !!!! The Russians Are Comming !!!!
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