Pound Ridge Adds Cosmopolitan to Rural

The privacy and seclusion of Pound Ridge has long attracted buyers looking for a retreat.

The town covering 23 square miles in the northeastern part of Westchester County is flush with tall trees, rock outcroppings, rolling hills and streams. There are no stop lights, few sidewalks and an abundance of wildlife, including deer, foxes, coyotes and swans.

“There are a lot of people that look for something like this and they feel they have to go further away than an hour to capture the essence of country life,” said Mary Anne Condon, a longtime resident and agent with Houlihan Lawrence. “It’s rural, yet it has a level of cosmopolitan.”

Pound Ridge, with a population of roughly 5,000, is bordered by New Canaan and Stamford in Connecticut, and Bedford and Lewisboro in New York. It’s also roughly 45 miles north of Manhattan, which is attractive to buyers looking to move from New York City.

“It’s been known as a place for second homes, especially for people in the city who want to get away from it all,” said Weichert agent Sally Griffiths. It’s also a place that attracts families and singles, according to other real-estate agents.

Richard Gere and Tom Brokaw have homes in Pound Ridge. Past residents have included Hume Cronyn and Jessica Tandy, Christopher Reeve and Eartha Kitt. Benny Goodman, who was also a longtime resident, even composed a melody named after the town.

Rayon Richards for The Wall Street JournalShops along Westchester Avenue in Pound Ridge.

“There’s a lot of well-known people who live here,” said Ms. Condon. “Nobody makes a fuss over them. It’s ideal for people like that who want privacy.”

Named for a tribal pound or enclosure for game that was on one of the area’s many ridges, Pound Ridge was settled in the 1640s and incorporated in 1788, according to the town’s website. It was originally home to the Siwanoy and Kitchawong Indians.

In the 1930s, inventor and businessman Hiram Halle came to the town from New York City and began renovating and reconstructing homes, which attracted actors, artists, musicians and writers to the area.

The dwelling stock includes a mix of dramatic contemporary houses, historic homes, Colonials and some ranch houses. The bulk of the houses are situated on two- and three-acre plots. More than one-third of the land in Pound Ridge is set aside as open space, according to town officials.

The median sales price for a house, based on sold proprieties since the start of the year, is $795,000, according to the real-estate website Trulia.com. That compares with $866,500 in Bedford and $569,750 in Lewisboro. The median square footage of a home in Pound Ridge, based on listed properties, is 3,561 square feet, and the average price per square foot is $277.

“The price level has decreased, along with the rest of Westchester and Fairfield County,” said Ginnel Real Estate agent Michael Neeley, who sells property in Bedford and Pound Ridge. “It’s no worse than anywhere else.”

According to the town’s assessor, there are 1,927 single-family homes. That’s compared to 1,878 in 2001 and 1,921 in 2008. There are no multi-family homes.

“In the early part of the new millennium, there were a number of huge houses that were built,” said Ms. Condon. “We haven’t been seeing, since the housing crisis, a lot of new construction.”

Linda Kaye, who has shared a weekend home with her husband Bill in Pound Ridge for nearly 40 years, said the town hasn’t changed much.

“You still see so much natural beauty,” said Ms. Kaye, whose contemporary home is currently on the market. It’s situated on more than 13 acres of woodlands and has a deer family living on the property.

“It’s avoided the syndrome of over-development and over-sophistication,” she said.

Rayon Richards for The Wall Street JournalPart of the Ward Pound Ridge Reservation.

Schools: The Pound Ridge Elementary School serves students in kindergarten through fifth grade. Students in middle school and high school attend either Fox Lane in the Bedford Central School District or John Jay in the Katonah-Lewisboro School District.

In 2010, after four years of instruction, 92% of the public high-school students at Fox Lane received a proficient score on the English exam, and 92% of students received a proficient score on the math test. For high-school students who graduated in 2009 after four years of instruction, the results were 93% for English and 92% for math. For students at John Jay, 96% received a proficient score on the English exam, and 98% of students received a proficient score on the math test. In 2009, that number was 96% for English and 99% for math.

There are also private and parochial schools such as Pound Ridge Montessori and Pound Ridge Community Church Play School.

Transportation: Pound Ridge is served by the Metro-North Harlem Line at the Mount Kisco or Bedford Hills stations, and the New Haven Line at New Canaan or Stamford stations. The morning commute to Grand Central Terminal takes about an hour.

Shopping: Scotts Corners is the hub for shopping and dining options. The quaint shopping area offers a place to pick up groceries, flowers, household items and plenty of antiques. The bulk of shops are located along Westchester Avenue.

Dining: Dining options in Scotts Corners include DiNardo’s Ristorante Italiano, which has homemade pasta; North Star Restaurant, which serves contemporary American cuisine; and Blind Charlie’s Café, which offers breakfast and lunch. Chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten will be opening a restaurant in Pound Ridge soon.

Parks: The Pound Ridge Town Park is a 47-acre park with ball courts, playgrounds, swimming pools and walking trails. The Ward Pound Ridge Reservation is a 4,315-acre park where visitors can hike, fish and cross-country ski. The town is also home to several nature preserves and the Pound Ridge Golf Club, which was designed by Pete Dye.