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.