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| Connecticut's wealthy Gold Coast: where life is good, if you can afford it | Connecticut's wealthy Gold Coast: where life is good, if you can afford it |
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| Jack Condlin, the cheerfully verbose president of Stamford's chamber of commerce, was not shocked when it was revealed this week that his city lies at the heart of the richest stretch of land in America. | Jack Condlin, the cheerfully verbose president of Stamford's chamber of commerce, was not shocked when it was revealed this week that his city lies at the heart of the richest stretch of land in America. |
| "Surprised? Not at all," he said, when asked about a US Census Bureau survey that showed that almost a fifth of households in this swath of coastline in south-west Connecticut are officially "high income" earners. No wonder it has been dubbed "the Gold Coast". | "Surprised? Not at all," he said, when asked about a US Census Bureau survey that showed that almost a fifth of households in this swath of coastline in south-west Connecticut are officially "high income" earners. No wonder it has been dubbed "the Gold Coast". |
| But Condlin, sitting in a conference room at the chamber's offices in downtown Stamford, insisted the region did not wear immense wealth on its sleeve. "It does not feel wealthy. It does not feel like the streets are paved with gold and everyone's riding around with Rolls Royce," he said, before adding, with a laugh: "But there are a few." | But Condlin, sitting in a conference room at the chamber's offices in downtown Stamford, insisted the region did not wear immense wealth on its sleeve. "It does not feel wealthy. It does not feel like the streets are paved with gold and everyone's riding around with Rolls Royce," he said, before adding, with a laugh: "But there are a few." |
| On first glance that is true. Stamford looks like any other mid-sized city in the United States with a cluster of glassy office towers. Nearby cities, like Bridgeport, actually look poor, with downtowns hit hard by abandonment and the recession. But the census figures do not lie. A staggering 17.9% of households in the region – dubbed Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk by the census – earn enough to put them in the top 5% of Americans – the densest concentration of wealth in the entire country. | On first glance that is true. Stamford looks like any other mid-sized city in the United States with a cluster of glassy office towers. Nearby cities, like Bridgeport, actually look poor, with downtowns hit hard by abandonment and the recession. But the census figures do not lie. A staggering 17.9% of households in the region – dubbed Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk by the census – earn enough to put them in the top 5% of Americans – the densest concentration of wealth in the entire country. |
| The area is actually roughly equivalent to Fairfield County, which also includes immensely rich towns like Greenwich, New Canaan and Darien – famed for playing host to legions of hedge-fund executives, titans of Wall Street and a sprinkling of old Wasp money that has been kept in the same exclusive New England families for generations. Despite pockets of poverty, Fairfield County is simply as rich as it gets in America. It is an area studded by gigantic mansions and high-end boutiques. Indeed, when President Obama relented recently on tax increases for households earning $250,000, upping the limit instead to $400,000, Daily Beast columnist Daniel Gross waggishly dubbed it "the Fairfield County miracle". | The area is actually roughly equivalent to Fairfield County, which also includes immensely rich towns like Greenwich, New Canaan and Darien – famed for playing host to legions of hedge-fund executives, titans of Wall Street and a sprinkling of old Wasp money that has been kept in the same exclusive New England families for generations. Despite pockets of poverty, Fairfield County is simply as rich as it gets in America. It is an area studded by gigantic mansions and high-end boutiques. Indeed, when President Obama relented recently on tax increases for households earning $250,000, upping the limit instead to $400,000, Daily Beast columnist Daniel Gross waggishly dubbed it "the Fairfield County miracle". |
| Of course, even in the wealthiest part of America, just how rich you are becomes strangely relative. Take Garry Feldman. The youthful-looking 45-year-old founded his own business in his student dorm and has watched it grow into US Computer Connection – a firm now big enough that Feldman just bought the whole building in which it is based. He is, by his own admission, well off. But in Stamford and its surrounds, that is not always enough. "I never realised how much wealth there is until I moved to Stamford," he said. "I always kid around that I might be in the top 1%, but I feel that I am in the bottom third of the people I know and hang out with." | Of course, even in the wealthiest part of America, just how rich you are becomes strangely relative. Take Garry Feldman. The youthful-looking 45-year-old founded his own business in his student dorm and has watched it grow into US Computer Connection – a firm now big enough that Feldman just bought the whole building in which it is based. He is, by his own admission, well off. But in Stamford and its surrounds, that is not always enough. "I never realised how much wealth there is until I moved to Stamford," he said. "I always kid around that I might be in the top 1%, but I feel that I am in the bottom third of the people I know and hang out with." |
| There are numerous reasons for Stamford and the rest of the Gold Coast's success and wealth, even as the rest of America has struggled to recover from the grip of the Great Recession. The proximity to New York, which is under an hour away, has seen a huge flow of businesses and individuals head to the region. Some pursue a quieter, more suburban life. Others are attracted by cheaper rents or tax incentives. In Stamford, the names of giant banks like UBS and Royal Bank of Scotland sit atop downtown skyscrapers. Real estate mogul Donald Trump has got in on the action, too, constructing a Trump Parc residential tower that juts out of the skyline. "It looks like Trump is giving the finger. And he probably is," said one local executive, describing the brash, luxury building whose look says: what economic crisis? | There are numerous reasons for Stamford and the rest of the Gold Coast's success and wealth, even as the rest of America has struggled to recover from the grip of the Great Recession. The proximity to New York, which is under an hour away, has seen a huge flow of businesses and individuals head to the region. Some pursue a quieter, more suburban life. Others are attracted by cheaper rents or tax incentives. In Stamford, the names of giant banks like UBS and Royal Bank of Scotland sit atop downtown skyscrapers. Real estate mogul Donald Trump has got in on the action, too, constructing a Trump Parc residential tower that juts out of the skyline. "It looks like Trump is giving the finger. And he probably is," said one local executive, describing the brash, luxury building whose look says: what economic crisis? |
| Indeed, while much of America still struggles, the Gold Coast's reliance on the finance industry looks to have paid dividends. "Stamford is a city that is always growing. During the worst economic crisis the growth slows down. It does not stop," said Condlin. | Indeed, while much of America still struggles, the Gold Coast's reliance on the finance industry looks to have paid dividends. "Stamford is a city that is always growing. During the worst economic crisis the growth slows down. It does not stop," said Condlin. |
| Stamford has recently announced that one of the world's largest hedge funds, Bridgwater Associates, with $130bn in assets, is setting up in Stamford in a new headquarters being built in the city's formerly down-at-heel South End neighborhood. The new development, which has demolished part of a cherished local boatyard, will now be a corporate home to 1,000 people from the crème de la crème of the hedge-fund world. | Stamford has recently announced that one of the world's largest hedge funds, Bridgwater Associates, with $130bn in assets, is setting up in Stamford in a new headquarters being built in the city's formerly down-at-heel South End neighborhood. The new development, which has demolished part of a cherished local boatyard, will now be a corporate home to 1,000 people from the crème de la crème of the hedge-fund world. |
| For Matthew Samelson, a management consultant for those who toil in the capital markets, the attractions of the Gold Coast for firms like Bridgewater are simple: modern finance can now be done anywhere, but it is nice to be near New York. He runs his highly successful business from his home office or a coffee shop, having fled the cramped environs of Manhattan. "The guys who started up hedge-funds figured: 'Hey, we can do what we do but have a 10-minute drive'," he said. | For Matthew Samelson, a management consultant for those who toil in the capital markets, the attractions of the Gold Coast for firms like Bridgewater are simple: modern finance can now be done anywhere, but it is nice to be near New York. He runs his highly successful business from his home office or a coffee shop, having fled the cramped environs of Manhattan. "The guys who started up hedge-funds figured: 'Hey, we can do what we do but have a 10-minute drive'," he said. |
| But Samelson does believe that deep down the wealthiest dwellers on the Gold Coast are sharing a little of America's broader pain. Behind the high walls of the big houses, there are some decimated bank accounts. Sale signs have sprouted on winding country lanes. That flash car driving down the street of swanky Greenwich just might be the subject of a repossession order. "People have lost their houses or their savings, and are out of work. If you scratch beneath the surface you see a lot of for sale signs. There are of stories about people in places like New Canaan who disappear overnight: just give their keys back to the bank," he said. | But Samelson does believe that deep down the wealthiest dwellers on the Gold Coast are sharing a little of America's broader pain. Behind the high walls of the big houses, there are some decimated bank accounts. Sale signs have sprouted on winding country lanes. That flash car driving down the street of swanky Greenwich just might be the subject of a repossession order. "People have lost their houses or their savings, and are out of work. If you scratch beneath the surface you see a lot of for sale signs. There are of stories about people in places like New Canaan who disappear overnight: just give their keys back to the bank," he said. |
| But you have to look closely. In most cases, around these parts, all that glistens still actually is gold. Someone who knows that is Susie Costaregni, whose gossip, celebrity and society column, The Dish, runs in several local newspapers along the Gold Coast. The Greenwich native, whose elderly parents still live in the town as it transformed from quiet city to haunt of the fabulous and the fabulously wealthy, attends galas, benefits and parties and reports on their goings-on. Recently she went to a "chocolate and wine tasting" party in a Stamford hotel aimed at raising money for homeless people. | But you have to look closely. In most cases, around these parts, all that glistens still actually is gold. Someone who knows that is Susie Costaregni, whose gossip, celebrity and society column, The Dish, runs in several local newspapers along the Gold Coast. The Greenwich native, whose elderly parents still live in the town as it transformed from quiet city to haunt of the fabulous and the fabulously wealthy, attends galas, benefits and parties and reports on their goings-on. Recently she went to a "chocolate and wine tasting" party in a Stamford hotel aimed at raising money for homeless people. |
| However, while the subjects of Costaregni's columns certainly can afford to shop in the dozens of high-end stores now popping up on Gold Coast streets, a lot of people cannot. Including her. "I remember what Greenwich was like. I see the middle class fading away. The stores only cater for the wealthy. That is the depressing part of it," she said. | However, while the subjects of Costaregni's columns certainly can afford to shop in the dozens of high-end stores now popping up on Gold Coast streets, a lot of people cannot. Including her. "I remember what Greenwich was like. I see the middle class fading away. The stores only cater for the wealthy. That is the depressing part of it," she said. |
| Costaregni admitted she could only afford to live in the area due to her family being longstanding local residents and having grown up there. Were she to try to move into Greenwich now, she could likely not pay the property prices on the salary of a mere writer, rather than a top finance executive. "Life is good," she said. "If you can afford it." | Costaregni admitted she could only afford to live in the area due to her family being longstanding local residents and having grown up there. Were she to try to move into Greenwich now, she could likely not pay the property prices on the salary of a mere writer, rather than a top finance executive. "Life is good," she said. "If you can afford it." |
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