The application review for a new resort on the old Nevele property began on August 5, 2021, when Somerset Partners brought in its initial plan for bringing the long-quiet former Nevele property back to life. And now, just 16 months later, the Wawarsing Town Board officially approved the new plan, which was significantly altered during the earlier phase of review.

The town board took lead agency from the beginning, thinking that this application was so important to the town of Wawarsing, and the village of Ellenville, that the elected representatives of the town should review it, and approve, before it was handed over to the planning board for a final check.

That last check is what happens next, but the crucial element — the approval and the Negative Declaration under the SEQRA rules — has now taken place.

What lies ahead immediately is the completed purchase of the property, which until now has still been in the hands of the iStar bank. Now Somerset Partners will assume ownership of the property. And then the work begins. First comes the removal of asbestos from all the ruined buildings. Then the buildings themselves will be torn down and removed as well. Of the total property about 528 acres are to be turned into a planned resort development.

In their place will come a new resort hotel, described by the number of “keys” in hotel-speak. There will be a total of 138 keys, of which 68 will be for the main resort building, 60 more for the “condominium hotel,” and a final 10 for the luxury cottages. To service this will be another building for 100 units of multifamily workforce housing. Built alongside the hotel and facilities will be 46 luxury villas, of a modern, high design. There will be a farm garden, an event space, a farm-to-table restaurant, a spa, and all will be interconnected with trails and infrastructure.

The approval came after public meetings and some significant changes to the original proposed plan from August 2021. Appearing via Zoom, Land use attorney for the applicant, Michael Moriello, thanked the board on behalf of his client, and said that the Negative Declaration was a “very solid document” that had received good input from the necessary parties, including from town attorney Bill Collier and planning board attorney Mary Lou Christiana.

As described from the earliest iteration of the plan, the resort will be a luxury hotel complex with a large residential component. If all goes well, the property will become a powerful economic driver for Ulster County, Sullivan County and even the Middletown area in Orange County.

Wawarsing Town Supervisor Terry Houck said, “This is a very impressive project.” He saw it as changing the image of the southern part of the county and bringing a new luster to Wawarsing.