By Carol Ann Conover
What started 30 years ago as a builder-driven effort to showcase new residential construction in Saratoga County has grown into one of the region’s most enduring fall traditions — and a window into how the craft of home building itself has changed.
The 2026 Saratoga Showcase of Homes, produced by the Saratoga Builders Association, runs Oct. 3-4 and Oct. 10-11, with 13 homes from 12 builders open for self-guided tours from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. each day. Tickets are $25 and are available online, at any showcase home during tour hours and at area locations including all Adirondack Trust branches, Arrow Bank on South Broadway in Saratoga Springs, Curtis Lumber in Ballston Spa and Queensbury, Roohan Realty on Broadway in Saratoga Springs, Rebuilding Together ReShop in Ballston Spa and the Habitat for Humanity ReStore in Fort Edward.
Barry Potoker, executive director of the Saratoga Builders Association and co-chair of the Showcase, said the event draws 3,500 to 4,000 visitors across its two weekends — homebuyers, renovation planners and curious residents alike. “People just love being able to interact with all the builders,” he said. “It’s sort of a community event.”
The Showcase has also become a sustained charitable enterprise. Over its first 29 years, the event has generated $1.8 million for Habitat for Humanity of Northern Saratoga, Warren and Washington Counties and Rebuilding Together Saratoga County. The 2025 event alone raised $66,000. The Saratoga Builders Association, itself a nonprofit, distributes nearly all proceeds to the two organizations after covering event costs.
John Witt of Witt Construction in Saratoga Springs helped launch the Showcase when he was president of the Builders Association more than three decades ago. “It feels good,” Witt said. “We’re going to be pushing a couple million bucks in a couple of years.”
The 30th anniversary edition adds a workforce development component, with BOCES students building an Adirondack-style greenhouse on display at the event and students constructing planters on the opening Saturday at the Trojanski Custom Builders home site — part of a broader Saratoga Builders Association effort to introduce younger generations to the trades.
Beyond the charitable mission, the Showcase has come to reflect shifts in what builders are doing — and what buyers are beginning to expect — in new residential construction. Two of this year’s featured homes illustrate how far the standard of practice has moved on energy efficiency, building systems and materials.
Dave Trojanski of Trojanski Custom Builders, based in Saratoga, is presenting a home in the Grand Highlands development off Eastline Road. The house integrates what Trojanski describes as a comprehensive approach to efficiency — starting with the building envelope. Spray foam insulation brings the walls to R-24 and the ceilings to R-50, with the garage and lower level insulated to the same standard. Eighteen separate HVAC zones allow room-by-room temperature control, and the air conditioning system operates at 20 SEER — well above the code minimum of 14.
“The higher you go, the better it is,” Trojanski said of the SEER rating, which measures the seasonal energy efficiency of a cooling unit. The home’s heating system combines high-efficiency radiant boilers for primary heat with electric heat pumps as backup. Two heat recovery ventilators continuously cycle fresh air through the tightly sealed structure — a feature Trojanski called essential in high-performance homes. “The house brings its own air,” he said.
The structural framing itself is another differentiator. Trojanski uses engineered lumber throughout — LSLs and TJIs for floor systems and timber strand for exterior walls, an engineered product manufactured domestically by Weyerhaeuser. “It’s forever straight,” he said. “You don’t get any bowing or flexing in the wall systems.” For buyers weighing the upfront cost of these specifications, Trojanski said education is central to his pitch. “We educate them on why we do it,” he said. “The longevity of the home performance — that’s a big part of it.”
John Witt Construction is presenting a home in Phyllian’s Bluff, a conservation subdivision near Saratoga Lake that surrounds Old Tavern Farm, a working vineyard. The home’s setting — wooded views on the first lot in, adjacent to a property that produces wine from Washington state, California and local grapes — is distinctive, but it is the building systems that Witt emphasized.
Like Trojanski, Witt relies on spray foam insulation as the foundation of his efficiency strategy, bringing roof assemblies to R-60 — above what New York state code requires. “It’s like a foam blanket around the house,” he said. The heating and cooling system pairs a high-efficiency gas furnace with electric heat pumps. The heat pumps handle most of the load until outdoor temperatures drop below 20 degrees Fahrenheit, at which point the gas furnace takes over. “Economically wise, that’s where it makes sense,” Witt said.
Witt, who built a net-zero home for himself several years ago and heated the entire season using heat pumps powered by solar, said he remains cautious about all-electric systems for clients given the cost of electricity in the region. “I experimented with a house just electric heat pump for a client and their bills were just terribly expensive,” he said. The hybrid approach in this year’s Showcase home reflects that calculation.
Both builders noted that as homes are sealed more tightly for energy performance, mechanical ventilation becomes non-negotiable. HRV systems — heat recovery ventilators — bring in continuous fresh air without sacrificing the thermal efficiency of the building envelope. “It’s like living in a house with a window slid open,” Witt said. “Because the house is so tight.”
For Potoker, the 30-year arc of the Showcase captures the industry’s evolution as clearly as any trade publication. Energy codes have tightened, engineered materials have replaced dimensional lumber in structural applications and smart controls have moved into the mainstream. “These homes do reflect that,” Witt said of where residential construction is headed.
Full event details, builder listings and ticket purchasing information are available at saratogashowcaseofhomes.com.