Our Story…
We wanted to take this opportunity to tell our story, disseminate facts, and allow you, the community, to read for yourselves the truth about the land that we now own.
We are Zena Development LLC, also known as “Zena Homes.” We are a small residential development firm based in the Hudson Valley. Evan Kleinberg, a member of the firm, resides in Saugerties full-time with his wife and 2-year-old. His family owned, operated, and attended a summer camp in Accord, NY in the ‘60s and ‘70s, known as Camp Shangri-La. Evan grew up frequenting the region. He has always dreamt of living here with his own family, and bringing positive influence on the community that he loves and expects to call home for many years to come.
Last year, Zena Homes met with the Planning Board in Woodstock to informally discuss the concept and feasibility of a cluster residential development, which would include an environmentally responsible golf course and club. Our intent was to garner feedback from the Planning Board and the wider community. In November 2023 we notified the Woodstock Planning Board we will not be proceeding with that application. We did, however, complete the purchase of the land.
We listened to the feedback from the Planning Board and the community, including local leaders, businesses and several land conservancies and considerably reduced the scope, scale and concept of our plan. We offered to partner with the Woodstock Land Conservancy and give them a say as to which consultants we hire to study the land, and to help us design the most forward-thinking, sustainable housing development ever built. That offer was immediately rejected.
Today, we are studying and intending to propose a modest, low-density residential subdivision, strictly on the Ulster, NY portion of the land assemblage.
There is no plan or intention to develop the 500+ acres of the land that sits in Woodstock.
We are being represented and guided by local, trusted, and accomplished consultants and are interviewing some of the top architects, designers, and builders in the region. We cannot wait to share more with the community and we invite the public to attend the upcoming Planning Board meetings to review our proposed residential development plan.
Our intention is, and has always been, to build something we can be proud of and that we believe will benefit the community in which we live. We are determined to make that happen! There will be no homes built on any protected wetlands. Potential environmental considerations will be studied in advance of any construction and will be reviewed and approved by all appropriate regulatory agencies.
We will continue to use this website to update the local community and ask that you check in here often, and use the email below to send in questions or comments. The UPDATE button on the top of this page is a great way to stay current on our plans, so we encourage you to click though and familiarize yourself with what’s new.
We want to work collaboratively with our community and pledge to respond as timely as possible and look forward to a respectful, informative dialogue with all of our neighbors.
We want to thank those of you who have already heard about our change in plans for the land and have reached out to voice your support.
Facts about this development plan
Our Plan does NOT include
- short-term rentals
- villas or townhomes
- a golf course or country club
- an on-site wastewater treatment facility
Our Plan DOES include
- a low-density residential subdivision on 106 acres in the town of Ulster, NY
- high quality environmentally sustainable homes
- on-site recreational amenities for the development’s residents
