Two years after his 25-year marriage ended, Ed Bergstraesser, director of external affairs for AT&T, decided to buy a house suited for his new life as an eligible bachelor with an empty nest. It's a sweet little perch, utterly devoid of clutter, and enlivened by interesting collections.
"F. Scott Fitzgerald was wrong. There are second acts in American lives," says the Chicago native, the father of two daughters. The elder attends University of Michigan Law and the younger daughter is at Oberlin College in Ohio.
After looking at about half a dozen properties around Rhinebeck, he settled on a two-bedroom, two-bath updated ranch-style on Rhinecliff Road. While not perfect, it was in move-in condition, and the work it needed could be accomplished without too much disruption and mess.
Chicago Style
"I loved the open layout of this place—built in 1952, it was substantially updated in the 1970s—and was particularly attracted to its perch on a hill. But the previous owner had [placed] a 10-foot decorative metal leaf in front—it was very distracting, so that was first thing to go," says Bergstraesser.
"I'm from Oak Park, a section of Chicago that is heavily influenced by Frank Lloyd Wright, and that's the spare, pared-down style to which I'm most attracted," says the lobbyist. "I maintain membership in the Cliff Dwellers Club in Chicago, which was started by architect Louis Sullivan more than a century ago. Back in his heyday, Wright would attend club meetings."
"Most of my furniture is dark wood, prairie style, Mission, with some mid-century modern. I commissioned the dining room table and chairs—they were made by a craftsman in Chicago. I'm probably not your typical Bulls fan. I like to shop for my house, and I'm also kind of a clotheshorse," admits Bergstraesser, cheerfully showing me his new navy suede driving moccasins from the Kenneth Cole outlet at Woodbury Commons. Case in point: His upstairs guest bedroom is basically a walk-in closet.
One of the only things he doesn't like about his home is the laundry room—the ceiling is too low for his 6'3" stature. He kept bumping his head and finally padded the door jam.
Previously Owned by Rhinebeck Royalty
Bergstraesser "got a pretty good deal" on the 1,300-square-foot house, which also has a two-car garage and an 800-square-foot basement featuring a bar. He closed in June 2012, and has since invested about $25,000 in various improvements. Hapeman Contracting of Red Hook painted the entire interior a creamy vanilla, rebuilt a bowed beam in the garage, updated the electrical system, and replaced the downstairs windows.
The kitchen, which features custom cabinets, brushed stainless-steel appliances, a propane burner/convection oven unit, and granite countertops, had been recently updated by the previous owners, the Kirwoods. Mari Kirwood has an interior design studio on Route 9.
"The late Robert Kirwood owned Foster's Coach House, a local bar—his daughter Phoebe runs it now—and that's why the basement looks like a tavern. It's what he liked," says Bergstraesser. "Ironically, the first house I bought in Rhinebeck, the one I lived in with my former wife, belonged to Phoebe."
Bergstraesser, who covers the eastern half of the state in a government-relations capacity, works out of his home when he's not on the road. Bergstraesser studied political science at Carleton College in Northfield, Minnesota, a private liberal arts institution not unlike Bard College.
He's known for his cookouts—the steaks, like his collection of unusual houseplants, come from Adams Fairacre Farms.
"The Shelter, a new tapas and underground wine bar, is my current favorite nearby restaurant," says Bergstraesser. "I also like the Beekman Arms and Gigi Trattoria for skizza, their flatbread version of pizza."
A Childhood in Parsonages
"Both my father and my grandfather were congregational ministers, so I grew up living in parsonages affiliated with the various churches at which my father preached. Home ownership was a new experience for me in my 30s," says Bergstraesser.
Bergstraesser loves to read in his favorite somewhat threadbare blue club chair. "You have to put in that I just finished Code of the Worst, by my brother, Paul Bergstraesser, who is an English professor at the University of Wyoming," he says.
Listening to music is a favorite pastime. He's seen The Who in concert 15 times. He has two Sirius XM installations, one on his back porch attached to Bang + Olufsen speakers, and another in his Lexus. "I'm kind of a closet hippie. I like the music I grew up with—you know, Warren Zevon, stuff like that. No hip-hop."
His next-door neighbor is a very famous singer-songwriter. "I can't tell you who it is, but how I found out is, I was in my backyard and I heard the muffled reverberations of the guitar and drums from the studio in his backyard. I couldn't complain, because it sounded so damn good," he says.
"Last year I invited him to my annual pre-Sinterklaas reception in December," says Bergstraesser. "I was glad he came; he seemed to have a good time. It's all just part of living in Rhinebeck."
A Collector and a Pyromaniac
Bergstraesser confides that while he enjoys all four seasons in the Hudson Valley, in the winter he lets loose his pyromaniac bent. "On a snowy day, I'm likely to have a fire going in the fireplace, another two in the raised firepits I keep out on the deck. And I collect pipes, particularly churchwarden pipes from the early 1800s."
A churchwarden pipe is a tobacco pipe with a bowl and a long stem that produces a cooler smoke and also permits an unimpeded view of one's book. They are frequently decorated with Asian motifs. Allegedly, human churchwardens used to put their pipes' long stem out of the church window so they could smoke in church. "A tangible link to my life as a preacher's kid," he says.
Bergstraesser also collects Toby mugs, ceramic steins in the form of a head, often depicting a jolly fellow with a beard. "They evoke my German heritage, but are strictly for show. I prefer wine, which I try to buy from Olde Mill Wine and Spirits."
He enjoys thinking about possible new home improvements, too. "I'm debating exactly where to put a wood-fired hot tub. And one of these days I'm going to put a sauna heating element in the downstairs bath, which is paneled in cedar already and almost airtight."
Recently Bergstraesser purchased an 1920 Lyon Healy ukulele from a friend who refurbishes older models. The Lyon and Healy Co. was based in Chicago and made high-quality instruments. "I'm going to Hawaii in March for a wedding, and I might have to stalk the famous uke player Jake Shimabukuro for a lesson," he says. Honolulu-based Shimabukuro, 37, is a ukulele virtuoso known for his fast and complex finger work.
"I initially moved to the Hudson Valley to save my marriage. That didn't work out. But buying this house really did. I'm here for the foreseeable future, and I'm confident this house will prove a good to great investment, but of course its chief value is that it's so right for me in the present moment. Rhinebeck's a great place to live in all ways, and so convenient to the city, too."
