You don't need dozens of control boxes and miles of thermostat or sensor cable to provide appropriate zoning.
Nothing beats hydronic heating when it comes to zoning versatility. You can zone with circulators, electric zone valves (two-way and three-way), valve actuators on manifolds, or a wide variety of nonelectric thermostatic valves.
Although it's common to use a single method of zone control in basic hydronic systems, nothing says you can't think outside of the basics when the right situation comes along. We recently had just such an opportunity in retrofitting an old church building with hydronic heating. It was an ideal project in which to combine the best of electric and nonelectric zone control.