Courtesy Hilltop Construction
By Paul Post
A new service station in Rexford, a Stewart’s Shop in Plattsburgh and dining hall at the Luzerne Music Center.
These are among the many commercial projects on Hilltop Construction Company’s work schedule as it tries to navigate uncertain economic times of rising prices and potential supply chain issues related to the current tariff situation.
“We’re very diversified in what we do and what we can do to help deal with that situation,” co-owner and Vice President Dan Washburn said. “If one sector pulls back the other might not. We get a good mix to help deal with that.”
Commercial work, which accounts for half the company’s revenue stream, is primarily focused on an area from Albany to Lake George, although Hilltop is one of the main firms Stewart’s calls on for remodelling and new store construction projects throughout the region.
It’s nearing completion of a new Stewart’s Shop at the corner of Glen Street and Sherman Avenue in Glens Falls, and is also renovating and expanding a store at the north end of Saratoga Lake, just over the Fish Creek bridge, on Route 9P.
Other upcoming projects include remodeling Anytime Fitness gym in Hudson Falls, and putting a new façade on Glens Falls Tile & Supplies on Dix Avenue.
“Realistically, we can do almost anything,” Washburn said. “We’ve got a lot of things in the pipeline. You put estimates out and the next thing you know you’re going at it. We’re on pace to do the same business we did last year. I don’t see a huge increase, but we can get a phone call tomorrow for a $3 Million job that changes everything. I think that’s true of the construction industry as a whole.”
“The outlook is pretty favorable,” he said. “We’ve got several projects already lined up for 2026.”
Before COVID, the price of building materials was quite stable, but quickly skyrocketed because of supply shortages, prompting some developers to delay or scale back construction plans.
In some cases, contractors got caught in a bind as the end cost of projects became higher than the price customers were quoted, cutting into the builder’s profit margin.
“It started going out of control, there was no way to deal with it, so construction firms began putting clauses in contracts to protect them,” Washburn said. “It’s carried over to the present. Now you’ve got tariffs thrown into the mix.”
“We are getting some phone calls and emails about the uncertainty of pricing with tariffs, which is a delicate topic with customers and the jobs we currently have going on,” Washburn said. “We try to plan ahead, to lock in pricing on the products we need in the immediate future. But there is definitely a lot of uncertainty with that. We haven’t had somebody call and say we aren’t doing a project because of tariffs. But whether they’re having those conversations internally … it’s a definite possibility.”
On another front, many contractors have been challenged with a severe labor shortage in the building trades. Numerous efforts are taking place to educate young people, boys and girls both, about a full range of rewarding and good-paying jobs from plumbers and electricians to high-tech design personnel.
The construction industry is also working with school counselors to help them better understand what it does, and encourage students to consider careers in this field.
Washburn said Hilltop has openings for lead carpenters, superintendents and site work laborers, as the firm began doing this type of work on its own last year.
“Labor is still a problem, but for us it’s getting better,” he said. “We’ve got a pretty solid team that we’ve put together. We’re always advertising, trying to find the next guy. If we had more people we could probably expand, but we’re happy with where we’re at, also.
In addition to commercial projects, Hilltop has a robust residential sector as well.
“We’re doing a ton of work in Brant Lake, Schroon Lake and Lake Luzerne,” Washburn said. “All those markets are booming residentially, mostly from people coming up from the Metro New York area.”
Hilltop employs 36 skilled professionals. “They are the heart and soul that makes this company successful.” said Washburn. Hilltop also does a great deal of subcontracting so 70 or more people might be working on its variety of projects at any given time.
“Being a general contractor with the ability to subcontract out, you can adapt to the workflow,” he said. “The big thing is having a few key employees to help manage and facilitate things. From there it’s reaching out to the sub pool to deal with those ebbs and flows.”