Transforming Rip Van Dam and The Adelphi, in Saratoga Springs are the focus of a new redevelopement to unify the hotels into one large five-star Resort in Saratoga Springs.
The real estate developers and thoroughbred racehorse owners, Michael Dubb and Larry Roth recently gained the city’s approval to begin their $50 million five-star Resort in Saratoga Springs which involves transforming Rip Van Dam and The Adelphi. They intend to renovate and expand the Rip Van Dam building on Broadway and have it connected to the Adelphi building, with the goal of reviving a piece of the luxury grand hotel era that made Saratoga a playground for the wealthy in the 1870s.
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A team of local builders, architects and support staff have been hired by the developers to start working on the Resort in Saratoga Springs. The general contractor is Bonacio Construction of Saratoga Springs, while the layout was overseen by The LA Group Landscape Architecture & Engineering, who also spearheaded the approval process. Design plans are being handled by Dominick Ranieri Architect of Schenectady.
Located in the center of downtown Saratoga Springs, this 200,000-square-foot development transforming Rip Van Dam and The Adelphi would convert both the Adelphi Hotel and former dilapidated and neglected Rip Van Dam hotel just around the corner, on Broadway into a spacious resort with concierge services, massages, a ballroom and a restaurant serving 20-ounce, dry-aged porterhouse steaks. Pricing for one-bedroom and two-bedroom apartments within the 84 studio will range between $2,000 to $5,000 a month and the existing 32-room hotel will double in size.
Michael Dubb described their vision, stating that Saratoga was a special place and this was a great opportunity to restore these buildings that had fallen into a state of disrepair, back to their splendor. Dubb also said, “One of the goals of the apartments is to cater to a market that might be there, that’s not there now. We want to give Saratoga the crown jewel in the center of town that it deserves.”
Larry Roth also gave more insights on how the idea to build a five-star Resort in Saratoga Springs originated. He mentioned that he called in his close friend, Dubb and asked that he work with him because of Dub’s work experience in building premier homes on Long Island.
Roth said, “He looked at it and had the same vision I did. It’s the best piece of property in Saratoga and we should develop it.”

Original article from Construction Review Online
By Barbara Mangiri

Real estate developers Michael Dubb and Larry Roth won approval Thursday night for their $50 million Adelphi hotel and apartment project in the center of downtown Saratoga Springs.
The 200,000-square-foot development would transform the Adelphi Hotel and neighboring former Rip Van Dam hotel on Broadway into a resort with concierge services, massages, a ballroom and a restaurant serving 20-ounce, dry-aged porterhouse steaks.
The 84 studio, one-bedroom and two-bedroom apartments will rent for $2,000 to $5,000 a month. And the existing 32-room hotel will double in size.
“This will keep us on target for [completion in] late spring 2023,” Dubb said Friday.
Dubb is founder of Beechwood Homes on Long Island and his business partner Roth is the former owner of Marchon Eyewear Inc., one of the world’s largest eye care companies.

Together they want to bring a five-star quality resort to the center of downtown Saratoga Springs by renovating and expanding the Rip Van Dam building on Broadway and connecting it to the Adelphi, which Roth and former business partners rebuilt for $28 million four years ago.
“Saratoga is such a special place. This is an opportunity for Larry and I to make an imprint, to be able to restore something that fell into disrepair to its grandeur,” Dubb said in March when he and Roth first described their vision.
The developers, who also are avid thoroughbred race horse owners, have hired a team of local builders, architects and support staff. Bonacio Construction of Saratoga Springs is the general contractor. The LA Group Landscape Architecture & Engineering oversaw the layout and quarterbacked the approval process. Designs are by Dominick Ranieri Architect of Schenectady.
Renovations to Salt & Char restaurant and the exterior of the Rip Van Dam began several months ago.
The city planning board granted site plan approval for the expansion on Thursday and the design review commission approved the building’s mass and scale last week. There are a few remaining administrative approvals needed and the city must complete its architectural review.
Dubb is not overly concerned about the volatile market for building materials over the past year. Between his experience constructing more than 10,000 homes around Long Island and Bonacio Construction’s background constructing large urban infill condominium, apartment and commercial projects, Dubb said he is optimistic they will find a way to build the project as efficiently as possible.
The developers have a vision of reviving a piece of the luxury grand hotel era that made Saratoga a playground for the wealthy in the 1870s. In those days, the massive Grand Union and United States hotels were the focal point of downtown, forming an area known as Millionaire’s Row where 20 of the world’s richest people would meet each summer to talk business.
“One of the goals of the apartments is to cater to a market that might be there, that’s not there now,” Dubb said in the spring. “We want to give Saratoga the crown jewel in the center of town that it deserves.”

Original article from Albany Business Review
By DONNA ABBOTT-VLAHOS

SARATOGA SPRINGS – Two thoroughbred racehorse owners are joining in a $50 million proposed project to link the city’s two historic hotels – the Rip Van Dam and The Adelphi – into one large luxury lodge.

Michael Dubb, founder of Beechwood Homes, said he is partnering with The Adelphi Hotel owner Larry Roth in the proposal to restore and expand the neglected and dilapidated 1840 Rip Van Dam Hotel into a 30-room spacious inn with concierge service, a gym and spa -- all of which will be linked to The Adelphi next door on Broadway.

“It’s in the heart of town,” Dubb said. “We are preserving and restoring the original façade and restoring the interior that is in disrepair. It really will be nice to bring back the Rip Van Dam building and the area of Broadway to its original grandeur.”

The Rip Van Dam will open with 15 rooms, larger than those in the 32-room Adelphi, by November. The old Italianate-style hotel, by then incorporated in to The Adelphi, will expand in the project's second phase -- an addition in the rear that will include the remainder of the rooms and and a complex of 90 luxury apartments with onsite parking for 100. Apartment dwellers, he said, will be able to share in the hotel amenities including an expanded ballroom and conservatory in The Adelphi -- and the distinctive menus at their restaurants Salt & Char and Morrissey's Lounge & Bistro.

Dubb and Roth also promised the Rip Van Dam will reflect the interior design and décor of The Adelphi – making for a seamless experience for guests. The Adelphi was fully renovated about four years ago.

“It will be beautiful,” Dubb said.

In recent years, plans to restore the Rip Van Dam have failed. The opulent hotel that once stood alongside other elegant 19th century resorts like the United States and the Grand Union hotels was purchased by Bruce Levinsky in the 1990s. He had an $11 million plan to renovate it into an upscale Ramada Plaza Suite.

When that didn’t happen, brothers James and Thomas D'Iorio, took over the site with a $45 million renovation plan for the brick building. But in their hands, the property fell into foreclosure. That was 2019 and that's when Roth stepped in to buy it.

Roth said he always wanted to buy the Rip Van Dam, because he thought he might want to add more rooms. He was also fearful that another hotel would move in.

"We are a boutique, exclusive, luxurious hotel," Roth said of The Adelphi. "My fear was it wouldn't be the same quality or same type hotel. When the property became available through foreclosure, I decided to buy it. I probably overpaid for it. But when you want something badly and you have a vision of what you could do, you sometimes have to pay a little more than you want."

He said he then brought in Dubb because he's a close friend and because of his work, building premier homes on Long Island.

"I asked him to develop the property with me," Roth said. "He looked at it and had the same vision I did. It's the best piece of property in Saratoga and we should develop it."

But when asked if a luxury hotel could survive a shaky, post-pandemic economy, Roth said it could and The Adelphi is proof. Though 2020 was tough, he said The Adelphi now has a 90 percent occupancy rate. He said the restaurant, Morrissey's, is also doing well. Because of that, he is expanding Morrissey's into the space once occupied by the hotel's other, now shuttered, Blue Hen restaurant.

Salt & Char, the Rip Van Dam's restaurant, is also getting an upgrade. It is currently closed and will be reopened in June.

Dubb said restorations, which have already begun, won't interrupt Adelphi guests as the work done by Bonacio Construction will be on the exterior and interior of the Rip Van Dam.

The expanded hotel and apartments, however, still need city approvals. If approved, Roth said the adjoining building is estimated to be open in the spring of 2023.

"It's going to be spectacular," Roth said. "It will be a great destination for the northeast -- three hours from Boston, three hours from Montreal, three hours from New York City and probably the same from Buffalo. We are very, very excited about the project."

Two racehorse owners want to transform one of the most prominent corners in downtown Saratoga Springs into a resort with concierge services, massages, a ballroom and a restaurant serving 20-ounce, dry-aged porterhouse steaks.

Beechwood Homes founder Michael Dubb is partnering with Larry Roth, former owner of one of the world’s largest eye care companies, on a plan to construct 90 apartments and 65 or more hotel rooms, creating a complex unlike anything else in the city.

They want to reimagine the northwest corner of Broadway and Washington Street by renovating the former Rip Van Dam Hotel, connecting the property to Roth’s Adelphi Hotel and constructing an adjoining five-story, 150,000-square-foot addition.

The proposed $50 million project seeks to revive a piece of the luxury grand hotel era that made Saratoga a playground for the wealthy in the 1870s. In those days, the massive Grand Union and United States hotels were the focal point of downtown, forming an area known as Millionaire’s Row where 20 of the world’s richest people would meet each summer to talk business.

“One of the goals of the apartments is to cater to a market that might be there, that’s not there now,” said Dubb. “We want to give Saratoga the crown jewel in the center of town that it deserves.”

Faith’s House to provide childcare and early childhood education programs for the children of backstretch families

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY – The Belmont Child Care Association, Inc. (BCCA) today announced that its new childcare center serving families and children of the backstretch community at Saratoga Race Course is scheduled to open in summer 2021.

The 4,300-square-foot childcare center will be located on the Oklahoma side of the Saratoga backstretch. Funded by Michael and Lee Dubb, the facility will be named Faith’s House in honor of Faith Dubb, mother of BCCA founder and board chairman Michael Dubb.

Faith’s House will provide child care and early education programs for infants, toddlers and preschool-aged children. The center will be open seven days a week from 5 a.m. to 5 p.m. to accommodate the schedules of backstretch workers and horsemen.

“All working parents deserve to know that their children are being cared for in a safe, healthy and enriching environment during the workday,” said Dubb, who is a prominent thoroughbred owner in addition to his work with the BCCA. “We are thrilled to extend this important program to the hardworking families of the Saratoga backstretch community, who provide a vital service to the racing community.”

The Saratoga facility will complement BCCA’s sister childcare center Anna House, which serves families of the Belmont Park backstretch. More than 1,000 students have participated in Anna House’s programs since its opening in 2003.

“Faith’s House fulfills a dream that the BCCA has been working on for over ten years. We are so excited to bring a winning formula in child care to Saratoga,” said Libby Imperio, BCCA President.

The anticipated summer 2021 opening coincides with the annual summer meet at Saratoga Race Course, which brings approximately 950 backstretch workers and their families to the Spa. The opening of the new center is contingent upon licensing approval from New York State and the New York State Office of Children and Family Services.

“The backstretch community is the foundation of the racing industry,” said New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) President and CEO Dave O’Rourke. “All of us at NYRA extend our sincere gratitude to Michael and Lee, and the entire BCCA staff for their continued dedication and commitment to increasing access to affordable and reliable childcare for families on the backstretch. I would also like to thank our facilities team for their work on this project. NYRA is proud to host this new center of childhood education.”

Faith’s House will be operated by Bright Horizons, an organization known for excellence in the child care industry which manages early childhood education programs at more than 1,000 child care centers.

More information about Faith’s House, including details on registration and enrollment, will be announced in the coming months. Individuals interested in further details may contact BCCA Executive Director Joanne K. Adams by phone at (516) 488-2103 or via email at jadams@belmontchildcare.org.

The Belmont Child Care Association works to provide a safe, supportive, and academically inspiring environment for the children of parents working in the thoroughbred racing backstretch area located at New York’s historic Belmont Park, Aqueduct Racetrack and Saratoga Race Course. For more information, visit BelmontChildCare.org.

[Distributed by NYRA on behalf of the Belmont Child Care Association]

As the Runhappy Travers Stakes contenders get ready to race for glory this weekend, prominent horse owner Michael Dubb and the Belmont Child Care Association (BCCA) is “Racing for the Children”. Their week-long virtual party kicked off Monday at noon, and will run through Sunday, Aug. 9, with all the proceeds going toward their mission of helping backstretch workers and their children.

News10 ABC Sports Director Liana Bonavita spoke with Dubb about the new Saratoga Child Care Center that will open its doors next summer.

Mike Dubb and his Beechwood Organization spent 35 years building 7,500 downstate homes.

For the first time in his career, Dubb is starting to build homes in Saratoga Springs, less than three miles from Saratoga Race Course, the thoroughbred race track he has been visiting since he was 17 years old.

Dubb and Beechwood last week outlined details of the 53 homes they are building at the Oak Ridge development between the track and Saratoga Lake. Homes will range in size between 2,200 square feet and more than 6,000 square feet. They will be priced in the $850,000 to $2 million-plus range.

Now, Dubb is looking at other properties around the city for future projects.

He is convinced the Covid-19 pandemic will only increase the number of downstate New York and New Jersey residents who are interested in moving to or building a second home in Saratoga.

"I know people prior to Covid who were saying, 'I want a better life or I want a town and something not so dense as New York City and the surrounding suburbs,'" Dubb said. "Home has taken on a new importance with people because of Covid."

The founder of Beechwood Organization secured the remaining 53 lots at Oak Ridge from Jeffrey Snyder and Oak Ridge Development in April after looking at the 135-plus acre site on a whim in October.

"I really wasn't looking to develop in Saratoga," Dubb said.

The pastoral setting off Meadowbrook and Dyer Switch roads and the ability to construct four-, five- and six-bedroom homes with large porches, high-end finishes and garages tucked behind the houses caught his attention. Dubb sees the Oak Ridge by Beechwood project as a way to recreate what he describes as the "old Saratoga" architecture that exists along North Broadway and Union Avenue.

He expects the 53 homes will sell over the next three to four years, and he is not worried that the coronavirus pandemic and economic slowdown will jeopardize the project.

"Covid and the economic effects cannot take away the beauty and desirability of Saratoga," Dubb said. "We may lose some restaurants and hotels. A few individuals may struggle. Long term, Saratoga is too strong ... One or two economic rough years does not a town make."

Dubb, 64, started visiting Saratoga Springs as a teenager and became heavily involved in thoroughbred racing over the years. He is a seven-time leading owner at Saratoga Race Course and serves on the board of the New York Racing Association, the nonprofit that manages the track.

Dubb and Beechwood also are currently building a daycare center in Saratoga Springs that will be donated for use by children of the backstretch workers at Saratoga Race Course. They constructed and donated a similar facility at the Belmont Park thoroughbred track nearly 20 years ago.

Dubb, who has owned a home in Saratoga Springs for 10 years, remains bullish in the track and Saratoga Springs despite the fact that the pandemic is preventing Saratoga Race Course to operate without fans for the first time this year.

Last week marked the first opening day in 30 years that Dubb has not attended the races.

"The main thing is that the show must go on," he said. "We need the economy to keep going and we need to keep all of the people working."

Seven-time Saratoga leading owner Michael Dubb is the founder of The Beechwood Organization, Long Island's largest homebuilder which he operates with his son Steven. Dubb prides himself on attention to detail and building houses that feel like homes. Dubb, much like how he manages his highly successful racing stable, is on-site and hands-on in his design-build business.

These days you will find Dubb on the job in Saratoga Springs, a city for which he has had a growing affection. Dubb first visited Saratoga as racing fan. His passion for Thoroughbred racing began at Belmont Park when his was a teenager. As a young adult, he made his first drive to Saratoga Springs and he knew right away that this city would have a special place in his life.

"I had been a fan of horse racing starting with the races at Belmont Park from about the time I was 15 or 16 years old," said Dubb. "I had never heard of Saratoga. A friend said "Come up", so I went up in my van and I had never seen anything like it, and the feeling I got from Saratoga decades ago has never left me."

Recently, Dubb was approached to look at a unique and partially incomplete development called Oak Ridge. The development comprises over 150 acres, but as part of the master plan, the homes are to be clustered overall to only about 50 acres. The remaining one hundred acres of natural land has been preserved as open space, including trails that connect to walking trails throughout Saratoga. Dubb purchased the property and has now set upon finishing the project.

Long Island home builder and leading thoroughbred racehorse owner Michael Dubb plans to construct 53 upscale homes near Saratoga Race Course.

Dubb and Beechwood Organization of Jericho on Tuesday released details of a plan to build $850,000 to $2 million-plus homes in the Oak Ridge Development off Meadowbrook and Dyer Switch roads, 2.6 miles east of the Saratoga Springs thoroughbred track.

Beechwood purchased five lots for $600,000 from builder Jeffrey Snyder and Oak Ridge Development and secured an option on 48 others this spring.

Dubb, whose company has built more than 7,500 homes in Brooklyn, the Bronx, Queens and Long Island since 1985, runs Beechwood with his son, Steven. Now, they are planning a second phase of the Oak Ridge community where Snyder and his brother built and sold more than 50 homes.

Beechwood plans to construct three styles of homes including four- and five-bedroom carriage homes on one-third acre lots that would range in size from 2,200 square feet to 3,200 square feet.

Two larger styles would be built on lots up to one acre with high ceilings, up to six bedrooms and between 3,000 and 6,000-plus square feet of space. The project, known as Oak Ridge by Beechwood, will have model homes open by spring of 2021.

The Saratoga Springs project marks a transition of sorts for Dubb who has kept his business focused primarily downstate while spending part of his summers upstate due to his interest in racing.

Dubb, 64, began visiting Saratoga Springs when he was 17. Over the years, he became heavily involved with horse racing. He is a seven time leading thoroughbred owner at Saratoga Race Course, winning his most recent title in 2018. Dubb also serves on the board of the New York Racing Association, the nonprofit that manages the track.

Dubb was not immediately available Tuesday to discuss why he is interested in building homes in the Saratoga area. He is among a growing number of downstate business executives and developers who see opportunity in investing around Albany, Saratoga and Lake George.