Throw away your spreadsheets, fellas — you know, the ones that show what a $1,000 a sq. ft. "should" get you?

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My Wall Street pals are always trying to show me carefully-prepared spreadsheets charting price per square foot calculations and telling me that they use them to calculate their bids on particular properties. Okay, here’s 45 Sound Beach Avenue Ext. , 1, 344 sq.ft. just sold for $1.575 million.

Sheesh.

I have no idea why my very, very good friend "Louigie" Van Leeuwen didn't take out a paid ad on this blog (Cheap! $49 per month), but here's a free one for him anyway

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Lou Van Leeuwen is a terrific guy who owns (owned?) the custom home builder Greenwich Construction as well as serving as the local Generac distributor. A wonderful friend, the most impressive tale I know about him is actually about his parents, and how Lou came to be born in Half Moon Bay Hospital, Jamaica:

The Van Leeuwens were Dutch, and had been for centuries; they’re also Jewish, and that was all that mattered to the Nazis. They fled, Mrs. Van Leeuwen pregnant with Lou, and walked from Holland, across the Pyrenees and into Spain, where they discovered that the only country still accepting Jewish refugees was Jamaica, so that’s where they sailed. Lou eventually made it to the U.S,, enjoyed a very successful career in corporate America, and then went into building a few decades ago. He still retains his affection for Jamaica, and has several times hosted a fundraiser at the Riverside Yacht Club for the Jamaican bobsled team — it amuses me to think of those team members mingling over cocktails with the usual stuffed-shirt yacht club crowd, but from all accounts they get along beautifully, and everyone has a great time.

So how come he’s started a car service? I haven’t asked him yet, but as I said in reply to the Mickster’s comment in an earlier post, I assume he endured a lousy ride from a local limousine service and, always the entrepreneur, figured he could do a better job and make money doing it. *

*Runs in the family. Lou’s son Ben started a business selling premium ice cream from a food cart in Central Park, and has grown it into an empire of free-standing stores and stocked by some of the best food stores in the country — great ice cream.

Back for more

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164 Round Hill Road tried for $17.5 million in 2022 and dropped to $15.5 million before being pulled from the market in 2023. It’s back today at $15.6 million. Other than the $100,000 price bump, it would appear that nothing much has been changed, although the house has been demoted — or promoted, depending on how you interpret these things — from “extraordinary” to merely “stunning”.

2022 listing:

Remarks: Unrivaled in its beauty, design, build and landscape, this unparalleled Mid-Country estate showcases an extensive 4 year restoration and renovation by leading industry visionaries Sam Mitchell and Nordic Builders. Grounds by renowned landscape architect James Doyle and interior newly designed by Mar Silver. This extraordinary eight-bedroom English Manor sits at the end of a long, gated driveway on Round Hill Road with spectacular European-inspired gardens, pool and four bed/four bath guest house on 4.17 private acres. Stunning 17,121 sq. ft. interior features striking architectural elements, vaulted beamed ceilings and luxurious finishes. Whether entertaining on a grand scale or simply enjoying a country weekend at home, this one-of-a-kind property offers something for everyone.

And this time:

Remarks: Unrivaled in its beauty, design, build and landscape, this unparalleled Mid-Country estate showcases an extensive 4 year restoration and renovation by leading industry visionaries Sam Mitchell and Nordic Builders. This stunning eight-bedroom English Manor sits at the end of a long, gated driveway on Round Hill Road with spectacular European-inspired gardens, sparkling pool and three bed/three bath guest house on 4.17 private acres. The interior was designed by Mar Silver and spans over 17,000 square feet featuring 2026 painting and carpeting refresh, striking architectual details, vaulted beamed ceilings and luxurious finishes. Grounds designed by renowned landscape architect James Doyle.

Whether entertaining on a grand scale or simply enjoying a country weekend at home, this one-of-a-kind property offers something for everyone.

Former Biondi mansion sold again

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555 Lake Avenue (Sotheby’s has taken down/never posted interior shots, but this 2022 NYPost article has pictures) started at $39 million and has sold for $27.5 million. 19,000 sq. ft., 8 acres, these sellers paid $25 million for it in 2013 and spent a whole bunch of money transforming it from horrible to truly wretched, so no home run here. Of course, in this price range, it’s all just chump change, so you needn’t lose sleep worrying about their financial health after such a disappointing result.

The goal of communism is always the destruction of the middle class — always has has been, always will be, yet they vote for it, everytime

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(h/t, snotty philistine)

Here’s who Mamdani’s brought into his “braintrust”, and she’s typical of his appointments: New Yorkers are surprised by this?

Cea Weaver, appointed in January 2026 as the Director of the New York City Mayor's Office to Protect Tenants by Mayor Zohran Mamdani, has faced scrutiny over past social media posts and statements regarding property ownership.

Key details regarding Weaver's views and actions include:

  • "White Supremacy" Comment: Resurfaced tweets and comments from Weaver described homeownership as a tool of "white supremacy".

  • Collective Property View: Weaver has stated that society is transitioning to treating property as a "collective good" rather than an "individualized good".

  • Seizing Property: She has previously called for "seizing private property".

  • Resurfaced Remarks: Critics pointed to her comments that white people who own property will have a "different relationship" with it in the future.

Arizona state senator calls for abolishment of Title IX?

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“But to have a man on my team, I would have welcomed it,” On the other team, not so much.

Democrat state lawmaker debates former NCAA volleyball player who forfeited to SJSU team with trans athlete

Arizona state senator Catherine Miranda, a Democrat, has come under scrutiny on social media after an exchange with former NCAA volleyball player and “save women’s sports” activist Kaylie Ray. 

Ray showed up to the Arizona Senate Education committee hearing on Wednesday to lobby for a bill that would protect women’s sports from biological males. She spoke from the perspective of a former Utah State captain who led a team forfeit against San Jose State in 2024, in protest of a trans athlete on San Jose State University (SJSU). 

After Ray shared her testimony, Miranda opened her response by commenting on Ray’s appearance. 

“I have my sports hat on now. It’s all about a sports mentality, growing up in sports, being a tomboy. I mean, you look pretty healthy. I’ve played against girls that look like you. You look very much in shape and strong,” Miranda said.

The state senator then argued against Ray’s position and the bill by claiming she had competed against men herself in sports, and would compete against men in sports and ended her lecture with the question, “How competitive do you think you really are?”

At no point in Miranda’s response did she ever use the word “transgender” or even “male” or “female.” She simply referred to male opponents as “men.”

“It’s a sports mentality when you’re growing up and how much competition that you’ll take on. So it’s not just a silver bullet for one community of sports players, it’s the individual person on how competitive you wanna be. So you grew up one way. I grew up a different way. I would have taken on a man in a heartbeat. I’ve played in, I was the only girl sometimes in sports. But to have a man on my team, I would have welcomed it,” Miranda said.

“But this is just my opinion … and that’s why this bill is bad, because you’re just putting a whole community of women’s sports in one category. When women like me, we have a different opinion. So, how competitive do you think you really are?” 

>>>>

Ray argued back to Miranda at the hearing that the proposed bill would include three gender categories, male, female and co-ed. 

“If you want to compete against your man, absolutely, let’s do that in the co-ed section,” Ray said. 

“The clarity and distinction is really important. Because when men are allowed access into women’s sports and spaces, it isn’t women’s sports and spaces anymore.”

It takes a liberal mind not to see that obvious truth.


AI Overview

Title IX, passed in 1972, is a federal civil rights law prohibiting sex-based discrimination in education, including sports. It mandates equal opportunities, athletic scholarships, and resources for female athletes in federally funded schools. Since its enactment, it has dramatically increased female sports participation and established that athletic benefits—ranging from equipment to scheduling—must be equitable.

Women's Sports Foundation +5

Key Aspects of Title IX in Women's Sports:

  • Equal Opportunity: Institutions must provide, on average, the same number of opportunities for females to play as males, relative to their enrollment.

  • Scholarships: Financial aid for athletics must be proportional to the percentage of male and female participants.

  • Treatment & Benefits: Schools must provide equal treatment, including equipment, locker rooms, practice facilities, coaching, and travel.

  • Impact: Before 1972, fewer than 16% of college athletes were women; today that number is over 44%. It has been instrumental in enabling higher education through sports.

I had forgotten this clip until Snotty Philistine resurrected it; it's far too funny to leave buried in the comments

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Math R hard at the NYT and NBC, but this does explain their unwavering support for their bosses’ social program agenda

Paid Family Leave having disastrous effect of business? Who would have thunk it?

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If Only There'd Been Some Sort of Warning

If only someone had tried to warn the State of Minnesota about its paid family leave bill. 

Someone like, say, every competent economist and budget analyst in the state, and every single elected official in the party that represents half of the state's population (and way over half of the state's small business owners), and every pundit that doesn't shout "how high, sir?" when the DFL (Minnesotan for "Democratic Party") says "Jump", I mean.  

Two years ago, during the "trifecta", when the DFL held the "Trifecta" (control of the House, Senate, and the Governor's office), among the raft of big-money social spending and (let's be honest) graft and fraud fodder they jammed down was a "paid family leave" law.   It provides most Minnesota workers - full or part-time - 55% to 90% of their income up to a cap of a little over $1,400 a week, for 12 weeks of state-paid leave (up to 20 weeks for extra conditions) for a long menu of things; personal or family medical issues, maternity, bonding with a baby or adopted child, domestic violence or other safety issues, military deployment, and more. 

It's financed by a .88% tax split between the employer and employee, which is the least of the costs.  The law also requires reinstatement, and for the employer to see to covering the employee's job while they're out.  It doesn't specify how many people can care for the same family member - literally dozens of people could get leave to "care for" a single person.   And - in case you're not convinced yet - the law requires any collection actions for false claims be dropped after three years.  Which basically makes fraud legal and impossible to prosecute.   

And the list of people above - including David and I?  We did try to warn people.   I've personally seen small businesses pack up and leave the state.   

And now, even the state's infamously tame media is noticing there just might be a problem

A couple of weeks ago, Program Director Greg Norfleet and Department of Employment and Economic Development Deputy Commissioner Evan Rowe testified before the Minnesota House Workforce, Labor, and Economic Development Finance and Policy Committee and reported that: “As of Feb. 15, nearly 48,000 applications had been submitted, with decisions made on about 31,000. More than 20,000 have been approved.” That works out at an approval rate of 435 each day (20,000 / 46). This is 24% above the rate of 352 approvals dailt forecast by DEED when the scheme launched (128,338 / 365).

Not to be outdone, Vacationland has enacted the almost identical bill, except that benefits are as high as 100% of the employee’s salary and are tax-free Even the self-employed can demand the same payout, courtesy of the taxpayer.

Maine Enacts New Paid Family and Medical Leave Act

The same warnings, and the same protests were raised by business owners in Maine as in Minnesota but in Maine, like the Land of Butter, the Democrats hold all three branches of legislature, so on May 1st, the carnage will begin.