From Abandoned Ruin to Equestrian Dream
By Clementina Verge
Once upon a time, A home on South Road in Millbrook, New York, stood in disrepair. Today—sprawled in prime horse country—Roseview Farm’s fairytale ending is on full display, anchored by a stately house, stables, and formal gardens framed by impressive boxwoods.
In the 1990s, when Judy Sloan inherited the home, it was “a 1960s builder’s special” vacant for 15 years, shot at by poachers, and invaded by bees. David Sloan, her husband, still remembers the honey and wax that had melted through walls.
But beyond warped plywood and debilitated windows, the Sloans gazed at the Catskill Mountains and envisioned the future. With guidance from Michael Sloan of Millbrook-based Sloan Architects, P.C., the decrepit house evolved into an 1840s neoclassical Palladian villa. Attention then turned to the barren landscape, transforming the former working gravel quarry into a nearly 40-acre aesthetic masterpiece that attests to a love of horses, design, and commitment to salvaging history.
“When David and I first lived here, I was looking at every other property in town, not realizing what this could be,” Judy recalls. “Now I can’t imagine anything else—thanks to David, it has exceeded my wildest expectations.”
Inspired by travel and work overseas, they sought structured gardens that purposefully welcome and guide from one point to the next, David explains. Equally important was a horse-friendly landscape accommodating the couple’s equestrian passions: she is a dressage rider and he a polo player. The pivotal component became boxwoods.
“Boxwoods and hornbeam hedges are used specifically to add formality,” notes Edwin (Ed) Pequignot, owner of Kent-based Garden Cowboy LLC gardening services, who helps maintain Roseview’s estimated 500 boxwoods. “They also add an established beauty and presence.”
In spring and fall, each evergreen is meticulously maintained, explains Pequignot, through pruning, shaping, and pleaching—a method of training trees by interlacing flexible young shoots to create density and supporting framework. The technique keeps plants beautiful, but more importantly, healthy.
David acknowledges Pequignot’s diligence for “taking the property to a new level.” “His creativity, collaborative spirit, commitment, and extensive knowledge of the local fauna has allowed us to articulate our vision in a way that has exceeded our wildest expectations,” he notes.
It took years to achieve such an optimal outcome and hedges exceeding 20 feet. The resulting dense foliage yields instant architecture—solid walls that provide privacy while complementing the home’s exterior and creating meaningful living spaces.
Beginning with statuesque hedges marking the property entrance and lining the gravel driveway, boxwoods distinguish Roseview’s verdant outdoor spaces and direct steps and eyes through unique features: antique garden benches and sculptures, tranquil fountains, a fern walk, a hornbeam-lined allée whose drama is amplified by artful lighting when darkness falls, and sentinel-like shrubs that anchor a stone overlook providing serene lake and mountain views.
The grand destination is the exquisite barn where David’s artistic vision and ability to repurpose (he also transforms forgotten industrial and military trailers into field bars for “artful tailgating”) shine. Rescued vintage windows, doors, hardware, and bespoke furniture have created stables steeped in tradition but suited for modern equestrians.
Boxwoods once more take center stage, framing an elegant, multipurpose fountain: a striking water feature acting as the focal point for the barn courtyard and arena, and a 1,500-gallon back-up cistern for horses.
Ultimately, Roseview is a working barn, David emphasizes, and home for up to 12 horses and six donkeys—two full-sized and four minis—at any time. While the Sloans desired and achieved a distinct and lavish landscape, it must simultaneously befit their riding lifestyles, dedication to animals, and love for entertaining family and friends.
“Everything is integrated and works together to be inviting,” David remarks. “Whether it’s the many garden rooms, the bar trailers, the barn, the courtyard and even the paddocks, my hope is that Roseview offers an experience for horse, human, and hound that is memorable for all who are here.”
