New York City's Penn Station is only a two-hour-and-fifteen-minute Amtrak ride from the Hudson station, a fact that attracts urbanites hungry for a few days in the countryside. A 25-minute drive gets you to idyllic town of Coxsackie. Jacqueline Brown and Amna Ali (of Jaambral Design) made the trek so often, they finally moved there — and opened the dreamy, nature-focused hotel and event venue Gather Greene.
"We were living in New York City with what a lot of people feel — starvation for nature," Brown explains. "Also, for our design practice, we wanted more space, more air, and more opportunities."
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So, they got to work transforming the location they fell in love with: a former dairy farm with stunning views. "When we got the property, it was 100 acres with a little house on it and the shale quarry," Ali says. Wells were drilled for water, and electricity and a septic system were added. A new rock path allows guests to walk into the middle of a pond.
"When we started, we felt this was going to be one of the projects we'd take on," Ali says. Three years later, it's proven to be a work in progress — and the only project they are focusing on, proof this is where they are meant to be.
