658 Briggs Passive House — exterior rendering, northeast view
Now under construction — Ellenville, NY

Built into
the ridge.
Built for life.

A modern passive house–engineered home on 1.25 wooded acres at the foot of the Shawangunk Ridge. Designed with the rigour of high-performance building science. Made to feel like home.

658 Briggs Passive House — south elevation 658 Briggs Passive House — northwest elevation

A different kind of
home for here.

The Hudson Valley draws people seeking something real — a slower pace, open land, seasonal beauty, and a genuine connection to place. But too often, the homes available here either lack the quality that makes that life fully livable, or carry a luxury premium that excludes the people the region actually needs.

"We set out to build something that takes the land seriously — and takes the people who'll live here seriously too."

658 Briggs Highway is the first home from pHdesign and Hive Developers — a collaboration between an architect and a builder who share a belief that high-performance design doesn't have to be a luxury. It can simply be the way good homes are built.

Sitting at the base of the Shawangunk Ridge, on land that has been shaped by glaciers, inhabited for millennia, and tended by the communities who came after — this house is built to belong here, in every sense.

658 Briggs Passive House — west elevation
658 Briggs Passive House — front door detail
The performance

Engineered to a
higher standard.

Built using the same modeling tools required by the Passive House Institute Low Energy Building standard — PHPP energy modeling, Flixo thermal bridge analysis, and WUFI hygrothermal analysis. Not certification-chasing. Engineering-led.

Bio-based
Wood fiber walls and roof
Continuous exterior insulation wraps the home, with wood fiber batts in wall and roof cavities — a vapor-open, bio-based assembly built to stay dry across decades.
Triple-pane
Windows and doors throughout
No cold glass, no drafty edges. Warm frames in winter, no condensation. Selected for thermal comfort, acoustic performance, and the ability to actually open the view.
Whole-house
Energy and moisture recovery
An ERV delivers filtered fresh air to every room, year-round. Healthy humidity in winter. Improved comfort during smoke events. The air inside is genuinely better.
ZIP + Intello
Airtight building envelope
ZIP System sheathing forms the structural air barrier. Intello Plus smart vapor control manages moisture across seasons. The result: no drafts, ever.
Warm floors
Super-insulated slab-on-grade
The foundation assembly keeps floors warm even in deep winter — without radiant heat. Comfort that comes from the building itself, not from running the system harder.
Fully electric
Solar-ready and EV-ready
No combustion appliances. Heat pumps for heating and cooling. Already wired for solar and EV charging. Exceeds New York State's upcoming 2026 energy code.

A home that works
for your body.

Most buildings have indoor air quality that is significantly worse than the air outside. High-performance passive house engineering reverses that — creating conditions where you breathe better, sleep better, and feel the difference every day.

Better air. Quieter rooms. Consistent warmth. No cold windows. The physics of the building do the work.
Living room — interior rendering

A quiet kind of everyday luxury.

Kitchen rendering
Master bedroom rendering
Entry rendering
Kitchen — alternate view
Bathroom rendering

The Shawangunk
Ridge as a neighbor.

Ulster County isn't a compromise. Minnewaska State Park, Sam's Point, Mohonk Preserve, and the Shawangunk climbing corridor are minutes away. Belleayre, Holiday Mountain, and Hunter are within easy reach for winter. Ellenville proper is 8 minutes. New Paltz, Kingston, and Woodstock are all within an hour.

The land itself sits at the base of the ridge, in a mature stand of white pines, with protected ledge views to the north. Site-milled pine cladding — sourced from trees cleared on the property — will clad the exterior. The place shapes the house.

8 min
Ellenville Village
~5 min
Sam's Point / Minnewaska
40 min
New Paltz
50 min
Kingston
55 min
Woodstock
2 hrs
George Washington Bridge
Shawangunk Ridge — rock formation overlooking autumn foliage
Shawangunk Ridge — vista from cliff overlook
Lake Minnewaska from the cliffs
Specifications at a glance

The numbers behind the comfort.

Configuration
3 bed / 2 bath, single-level
Site
1.25 wooded acres
Foundation
Super-insulated slab-on-grade
Wall assembly
Wood fiber continuous + batt
Air barrier
ZIP System sheathing
Vapor control
Intello Plus smart membrane
Glazing
Triple-pane throughout
Ventilation
Whole-house ERV
Heating / cooling
Efficient heat pumps
Energy source
Fully electric, no combustion
Roof
Standing seam metal
Cladding
Site-milled pine, on-property
Energy modeling
PHPP + Flixo + WUFI
Energy code
Exceeds NYS 2026 standard
EV / Solar
Ready for both
Delivery
Summer / Fall 2026
First blower door test result — 0.394 ACH50
Verified performance

First blower door test: 0.394 ACH50.

Less than half the Passive House Institute Low Energy Building Standard target of 1.0 ACH50 — measured before final taping and air-sealing was even complete. The building science isn't theoretical. It's already tested and verified on site.

Architect and builder,
in partnership.

pHdesign brings the architectural and building science discipline — passive house engineering principles, thermal modeling, material selection, and the long view on how a building performs and ages. Hive Developers brings the development side: shaping the project, securing the land and financing, running operations, and bringing it to market.

Because construction is still underway, early buyers may have the opportunity to influence finish selections — and to see the quality of the wall, roof, and slab assemblies before they're closed in.

Project team at the 658 Briggs site — Aaron Yassin, Anthony Harrington, Patrick Dougherty, Hilary Padget, Mark Kanter
Project team From left: Aaron Yassin, Anthony Harrington, Patrick Dougherty, Hilary Padget, Mark Kanter
Architecture
Registered architects and certified passive house designers. Architectural lead, building science, and thermal/moisture modeling for 658 Briggs.
Development
Real estate developer. Project conceptualization, deal structure, financing, origination, operations, and marketing — taking high-performance housing from idea to closing.
Available on request
  • Full specification sheet
  • PHPP energy model
  • Blower door results
  • Finish schedule
  • Site and floor plans

Building science made visible.

ZIP System sheathing for airtightness. Wood fiber insulation for breathability. Intello Plus smart vapor membrane for moisture control. The assemblies that drive performance are visible right now — and will be hidden inside the walls forever once construction wraps.

Construction — northwest view, May 2026
Construction — interior, wood fiber and Intello vapor membrane
Construction photo
Construction photo
Construction photo
Construction photo

The forest floor as foundation.

Mossy ledge, ferns, mushrooms, and the slow shape of glacial stone. The house sits in a mature stand of pines on land that's been doing its work for thousands of years — and will keep doing it long after the walls go up.

Site — forest understory with moss and stone
Site — glacial boulder and ferns
Site — wooded clearing with ferns and pines
Mushroom on the forest floor