Bearsville Center in Woodstock, home to the historic Bearsville Theater, is no longer for sale, months after owner Lizzie Vann put it on the market for $7.995 million.
“We have had a re-think about Bearsville and we are taking it off the market for a period while we work out what to do,” she said. “It’s a very complex property that needs a very special new owner and we haven’t identified that person yet.”
Vann announced her decision on Sunday during a public meeting about Project Regeneration, her ongoing redevelopment of the former Woodstock Library and Lasher Funeral Home properties to create housing, public green space, and adaptive reuse of long-vacant buildings. She had planned to sell Bearsville to redirect her focus on Regeneration, which she still plans to complete.
“Bearsville should not be sold in the normal market,” she said. “It is such a special, magical place, with such history and complexity, that finding the next steward is a long game that needs much work. Whilst we did receive over 20 expressions of interest, and some decent offers, I was not happy with any of the potential owners, and so brought the process to a close.”
Vann didn’t elaborate on what a “normal market” is and what an alternative might be. In the meantime, she’s considering whether to build housing on the Bearsville property.
“I think we need to do more with Bearsville,” she said. The listing was pulled from SVN/Deegan-Collins Commercial Realty in Kingston on Friday.
Vann put Bearsville up for sale years after she bought it in 2019 for $2.5 million and spent $6.5 million on upgrades.
The property was originally developed by the late Albert Grossman, the Woodstock impresario and manager of Bob Dylan, as a creative hub combining music, art, and communal space.
Across decades, the Bearsville Theater hosted numerous performances by notable names from the world of music, including Bob Weir of the Grateful Dead, Mike Gordon of Phish, and Donald Fagen of Steely Dan. National concert promoter Peter Shapiro took over theater operations in June 2024, under a long-term lease.
“We’re excited for a long future at the Bearsville Theater and excited to continue our partnership with Lizzie, the right person to own Bearsville Center and preserve the legacy of the property,” Shapiro said. “I hope she owns it for a long time, for as long as we plan on being there, which is a long time.”
Bearsville Center is also home to Utopia Studios Bearsville, which in its original incarnation years ago was Woodstock resident Todd Rundgren’s base of creative operations. It also houses the Bear Cantina and Tibet Pho restaurants, and Tinker Street Tavern. Vann’s pivot on Bearsville comes two months after she sold a building at 59 Tinker St. to tenants Mike DuBois and Kelly Sinclair. The married couple operates their Happylife Productions from the site. The former home of the Tinker Street Cafe and Cafe Espresso provided a second-floor home to Bob Dylan, when he lived in Woodstock.
John W. Barry is a reporter for The Overlook. Reach him at john@theoverlooknews.com.