Yesterday we posted about Joe Farrell, the largest builder in the Hamptons, who is often vilified for building architecturally undistinguished houses and chopping up farmland. Guest 27 wrote, "Isn't it all about fantasy? This is how people want to live; they want their houses to be vacation homes, relaxing in their sameness not architectural statements. That's what I want. What I will say is, he runs an A+ business. His staff is incredibly responsive, smart and nice. They are really professional and easy to work with. Plus he is known for paying his bills on time so all his vendors and subs bend over backwards for him. Signed... Happy Farrell Custom Build Customer."
Guest 32 weighed in: "NO ONE is arguing that he isn't providing a product that people want. People are arguing against that very product, and what it means for the Hamptons. The product is banal and tasteless and yet also ostentatious; this speaks to a greater change in the Hamptons that many people resist." Yet another commenter replied to Guest 27: "You fantasize about sameness? How sad. The problem here is the imitation by New Hamptons of Old Hamptons. These houses should be coated in gold lame and in the shape of dollar signs, since that's the statement they're intended to make. It used to be that those rich enough to spend millions or tens of millions on second homes wanted them to be special, since they'd be in the family for generations and they wanted to contribute beneficially to the community. That sense of longevity and stewardship is dead, which is sad. Now it's about getting a piece of the pie, and holding on until you go broke in a few years."
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