New York

Buying Land in Ulster County, New York

Ulster County stretches from the Hudson River across the Catskill Mountains, and holds the Ashokan Reservoir -- one of the largest, oldest components of New York City's Catskill water supply, and a source of real, ongoing NYC land-acquisition activity in the surrounding towns. Here's what a buyer needs to check before purchasing.

You're in the NYC Watershed -- Expect an Extra DEP Layer

Case-by-case / verify locally

Ulster is one of five New York counties (with Delaware, Greene, Schoharie, and Sullivan) under NYC DEP Watershed Rules and Regulations. New or modified septic systems can require DEP review in addition to the county Health Department's standard Appendix 75-A process, especially in the towns immediately around the Ashokan Reservoir.

NYC Has Actively Bought Land in the Ashokan Basin Since 1997

Case-by-case / verify locally

Since 1997, NYC has acquired roughly 10,000 acres (as of a mid-2000s program report, since expanded) within the 155,340-acre Ashokan Reservoir watershed alone, spanning towns in both Ulster and Greene Counties. See our dedicated page on this program for its history and what to check on a specific parcel.

Zoning Is Standard Town-by-Town, No Adirondack Park Here

Generally favorable

Ulster County has no zoning code of its own; each town sets and administers its own. Ulster is not inside the Adirondack Park (that's a different upstate region entirely) -- the APA has no jurisdiction here, though parts of the county fall within the separately structured Catskill Park.

Government: a charter county with a County Executive and 23-district Legislature

Ulster County operates as a charter county under New York State law, with an elected County Executive holding executive authority over day-to-day operations, and a County Legislature composed of 23 single-member districts serving as the legislative body. County seat is Kingston, which briefly served as New York State's first capital in 1777. As in the rest of New York, zoning authority rests with each individual town, not the county.

The Ashokan Reservoir: a defining feature of the county's northwest

The Ashokan Reservoir sits almost entirely within Ulster County, in the towns of Olive and Hurley, and remains one of the largest and oldest components of New York City's Catskill water supply system, built between 1907 and 1915. Its construction displaced roughly 2,000 residents and inundated 12 communities -- more than 500 dwellings, dozens of stores, schools, and churches -- a genuinely significant piece of regional history that still shapes land patterns in the surrounding towns today (Route 28 along the reservoir's north shore is a designated New York State Scenic Byway). The reservoir's broader drainage basin, some 155,340 acres, extends across eleven towns in Ulster, Greene, and Delaware counties, including Denning, Hardenburgh, Hurley, Kingston, Marbletown, Olive, and Shandaken in Ulster County itself.

What that means today: DEP review layered onto county process

Because Ulster falls within the NYC watershed, a new or modified septic system in the towns around the Ashokan basin can require review under NYC DEP's Watershed Rules and Regulations, in addition to the county Health Department's standard permitting under Appendix 75-A. DEP has also continued actively acquiring land and conservation easements in the Ashokan basin specifically since a 1997 program -- roughly 10,000 acres as of a mid-2000s program report, since expanded through additional acquisitions -- meaning a real chance exists that a given parcel near the reservoir already carries a recorded DEP easement, or that DEP is actively seeking to acquire an adjacent one. See our dedicated page on NYC DEP's Ashokan-area land acquisition for what to check before buying nearby. Separately, DEP partners with the Catskill Watershed Corporation (CWC) to fund septic system rehabilitation for qualifying homeowners in the West-of-Hudson watershed towns -- worth asking about if you're evaluating an older system in this area.

Zoning outside the watershed towns

For the rest of the county -- the Hudson River corridor towns, the City of Kingston, and areas outside the immediate Ashokan/watershed towns -- zoning follows the standard New York pattern: each town or city sets and administers its own zoning ordinance, with no county code and no Adirondack Park overlay (Ulster sits outside the Adirondack Park entirely, though parts of the county's Catskill high country fall within the separately structured, differently governed Catskill Park, which does not carry an APA-style private-land regulatory agency). Confirm zoning district and permitted uses directly with the specific town.

What we could and couldn't confirm

Ulster County's FIPS code (36111), charter/County Executive/23-district Legislature structure, and Kingston's history as New York's first capital are drawn from the county's own site and Wikipedia. The Ashokan Reservoir's 1907-1915 construction, ~2,000-resident displacement, and 12-community inundation are drawn from Wikipedia's cited historical sources. The 155,340-acre watershed size, its 11-town/3-county span, and the ~10,000-acre NYC acquisition figure in the Ashokan basin specifically are drawn from Ashokan Watershed Stream Management Program materials and an NYC DEP program report dated to the mid-2000s -- this figure has very likely grown since given the program's continued activity, and should be confirmed against DEP's current reporting rather than treated as up to date.

Verify directly with: NYC DEP's Bureau of Water Supply for current watershed-boundary and land-acquisition status near the Ashokan Reservoir; the specific town for zoning; and Ulster County's Environmental Health Division for septic permitting

Who to Call Before Buying Land in Ulster County

Zoning is set entirely by the specific town, not the county. Direct WebFetch access to ulstercountyny.gov was not attempted in this research pass; confirm current department contacts directly.

Planning & Zoning

Ulster County Department of Planning

Countywide planning coordination -- for the actual zoning ordinance, contact the specific town.

Phone: (845) 340-3340Official website →

Septic / Onsite Wastewater

Ulster County Department of Health, Environmental Health Division

Sewage disposal system (septic) permit applications under Appendix 75-A -- coordinate separately with NYC DEP if the parcel is within the regulated watershed area.

Phone: (845) 340-3010Official website →

Other

NYC DEP Bureau of Water Supply

Whether a specific parcel is inside the regulated NYC watershed boundary or an existing/priority DEP land-acquisition area near the Ashokan Reservoir.

Official website →

Want to know if this specific parcel actually works?

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Topics Specific to Ulster County

NYC DEP's Land Acquisition Around the Ashokan Reservoir →

Sources

Ulster County, New York — Wikipedia (accessed 2026-09)
Ashokan Reservoir — Wikipedia (accessed 2026-09)
Ashokan Reservoir - DEP — NYC Department of Environmental Protection (accessed 2026-09)
Exploring the Watershed — Ashokan Watershed Stream Management Program (accessed 2026-09)
New York City Acquires Conservation Easement In Ashokan Reservoir Watershed — NYC Department of Environmental Protection (accessed 2026-09)
Sewage Disposal System Application — Ulster County, NY (accessed 2026-09)

Last reviewed 2026-09