A historic Westchester County residence known as “Little Mount Vernon” has returned to the market after a meticulous restoration by Coach CEO Todd Kahn and longtime retail executive Francine Della Badia.
Just north of New York City, where grand Hudson Valley estates blend American history with modern suburban life, a nearly three-acre property with an unusually distinguished pedigree has come to market for $4.195 million.
Located at 120 Scarborough Road in Briarcliff Manor, the Southern Colonial-style residence was built around 1900 by Walter Law, the founder of Briarcliff Manor, for his daughter, Edith Law Brockelman. Inspired by George Washington’s Mount Vernon in Virginia, the house has long been associated with the name “Little Mount Vernon.” Local historical records still identify the property with that connection today.
The estate is now owned by Todd Kahn, chief executive officer and brand president of Coach, and Francine Della Badia, a former Coach executive who has held senior positions across the fashion and retail industries. The couple acquired the property in January 2022 for $2.02 million and subsequently undertook an extensive renovation.
A Briarcliff Manor Estate With a Remarkable Past
The story of 120 Scarborough Road begins with Walter Law, one of the central figures in Briarcliff Manor’s early development. Law commissioned the house for his daughter on Scarborough Road, across from the family’s principal residence, which is now known as the Manor House.
The village’s historical society records the property as “Little Mount Vernon,” reflecting its architectural inspiration. A historic lantern installed at Edith Law Brockelman’s property remains associated with the site, offering another physical link to the estate’s early history.
The house was constructed around 1900 and has survived more than a century of changing ownership and architectural fashions. Public property records show a 2008 sale at $2.95 million, followed by the 2022 transaction to Kahn and Della Badia for $2.02 million. Before that 2022 sale, the property had been marketed at considerably higher asking prices, including $2.895 million in February 2021.
That history gives the current $4.195 million offering an important point of context: the house is not simply being resold after a cosmetic refresh. Its present owners undertook a substantial restoration intended to preserve its period character while bringing its infrastructure and living spaces into the 21st century.
A Six-Month Restoration That Preserved the Original Character
When Della Badia first walked through the house in 2022, she saw a property that required significant work. Rather than treating its age as an obstacle, she viewed it as an opportunity.
“I have a vision,” she told Kahn after seeing the property, according to Mansion Global.
The renovation was completed in roughly six months, an unusually compressed timeline for a historic residence of this scale.
Much of the work focused on retaining the architectural details that give the house its identity. Original millwork, hardwood floors, functional fireplaces, heavy metal pocket doors, hand-wrought stair railings and spindles were preserved, restored or replicated.
The renovation also introduced a completely new kitchen and updated bathrooms, while the upper level was reorganized to create a more functional primary suite. A number of windows required replacement, but Della Badia had the surrounding trim and millwork replicated to match the original details rather than replacing them with generic modern finishes.
“For all the windows I did replace, I had all the trim replicated—I had all the millwork copied exactly as it was,” Della Badia said.
The result is a house where the renovation is intended to recede behind the architecture rather than overwhelm it.
Inside 120 Scarborough Road
The white Colonial-style residence is characterized by its deep, columned front porch, steep roofline, dormer windows and broad, white-trimmed windows. Earlier marketing materials describe four fireplaces, extensive wood paneling, paneled pocket doors, handcrafted molding and a grand staircase among the property’s surviving architectural features.
The property’s published measurements vary somewhat depending on the source. Current listing materials market the residence at approximately 6,000 square feet, while public records identify 5,374 square feet of finished space; Mansion Global has described the home at 5,702 square feet. Public records also identify seven bedrooms and 4.5 bathrooms, while the current listing presents six bedrooms and six bathrooms.
Rather than feeling like a museum piece, the house has been arranged around contemporary daily life. The kitchen connects with gathering areas, while the restored formal rooms retain the scale and detailing expected of a turn-of-the-century estate.
The renovation also extended to the property itself. The nearly three-acre grounds include gardens, wooded areas, a vegetable garden, a paved terrace and a fire-pit area. The land backs onto a preserve, reinforcing the sense of privacy that distinguishes many of Briarcliff Manor’s larger estate properties.
For Della Badia, however, the most memorable space may be the simplest.
“It doesn’t feel too precious,” she said of the house. “It just feels peaceful and serene.”
The front porch has served as a particularly personal part of the property. It was used for casual evenings, work and entertaining, including the couple’s daughter’s engagement celebration.
A 1938 Discovery Hidden in the Walls
One of the more charming details of the restoration emerged not from architectural plans but from inside the house itself.
During the renovation in June 2022, workers discovered a $1 admission ticket to the West Point Horse Show from 1938 inside the walls of a powder room. The discovery occurred 84 years to the day after the event printed on the ticket.
Della Badia kept the ticket and eventually framed it for display inside the home.
“I took that as a good omen,” she said.
It is precisely the sort of detail that gives an old property a sense of continuity. The restoration may have modernized the kitchen, bathrooms and mechanical systems, but the house retains physical traces of the generations who occupied it before.
What the Listing Agent Says About the Historic Estate
The property is represented by Tina Adams of Corcoran Legends Realty, whose current listing emphasizes the combination of architectural provenance, privacy and modern livability.
“I believe this property appeals to a buyer with a love of history and provenance,” Adams said in comments reported by Realtor.com, noting Walter Law’s importance to Briarcliff Manor and Westchester County.
That positioning is particularly relevant for a house that sits outside the traditional Manhattan luxury market while remaining within commuting distance of the city.
For californialuxuryhouses, the appeal of 120 Scarborough Road lies in that tension between history and practicality. The estate has the architectural story of a historic country house, but its location provides access to the broader New York metropolitan area without sacrificing the quieter character of the Hudson Valley.
Briarcliff Manor Offers a Hudson Valley Lifestyle Within Reach of Manhattan
Briarcliff Manor sits roughly 30 miles north of Manhattan and is connected to the region by Routes 9, 9A and 100, as well as the Taconic State Parkway. The village is also served by the Metro-North Hudson Line at Scarborough station, providing rail access toward New York City and destinations farther north in the Hudson Valley.
That transportation network has long been part of the community’s appeal to commuters seeking a residential setting outside Manhattan.
The village itself offers a compact downtown with restaurants, cafés, specialty retailers and everyday services. Municipal planning documents describe Pleasantville Road and North State Road as the principal retail areas, with local businesses ranging from restaurants and cafés to specialty shops and professional services.
The surrounding landscape adds another dimension. Briarcliff Manor lies along the Hudson River, with parks and open spaces forming a meaningful part of the village’s character. Scarborough Park, beside the train station, offers Hudson River scenery, walking paths and landscaped public space, while nearby trails and Rockefeller State Park provide opportunities for hiking and outdoor recreation.
For residents of 120 Scarborough Road, that combination means the lifestyle extends well beyond the property’s boundaries: historic architecture at home, village restaurants and shops nearby, Hudson River landscapes within easy reach and rail access to Manhattan.
A New Chapter for “Little Mount Vernon”
The listing of 120 Scarborough Road represents another chapter in the long history of a house that has already passed through more than a century of American life.
Walter Law built it for his daughter at the beginning of the 20th century. More than a century later, Kahn and Della Badia purchased the property and undertook a restoration that sought to protect its historic character while making it practical for contemporary living.
Now priced at $4.195 million, the estate is being offered to a buyer who will inherit not merely a large residence, but a property with an unusually traceable connection to the origins of Briarcliff Manor itself.
As Adams put it, the home’s attraction is closely tied to its “history and provenance.”
And perhaps that is ultimately what distinguishes this particular Briarcliff Manor property: its luxury is not primarily about scale or spectacle. It is the accumulated character of more than 120 years, carefully preserved and given another chance to become someone’s home.