New lease: Apartment complex opens in Doylestown, honoring revered architect

On a clear day, the rooftop view from the Martin at Doylestown apartment complex stretches on for miles, highlighting the picturesque Bucks County countryside.

Terraces are among the many amenities that the new complex on North Main Street offers to those who lease its 59 units.

Apartments rare in Doylestown

New apartment complexes are rare to find in Bucks County and especially in Central Bucks where single-family housing communities have sprouted like wildflowers over the past several decades. Now, however, people take a second look at apartment living. It's the ease of not having all that grass to mow or snow to remove. And not having to pay a mortgage with high interest rates as well as real estate taxes or homeowner association fees can be benefits too.

New apartment communities are being built or in the planning stages in Falls, Lower Makefield, Middletown and Newtown. But Doylestown may be a special case.

"Doylestown hasn't seen a multi-family dwelling in a generation," said Jason Duckworth, president of Arcadia Land Co.

He thinks the old courthouse town now has a young, semi-urban atmosphere that makes it perfect for apartment living.

Old town Doylestown has new vibe

"It's a really vibrant community," he said. "But the town hadn't created apartments to meet the demand that had been growing considering how vibrant and attractive the lifestyle was."

Duckworth knows of what he speaks. He graduated from Princeton University summa cum laude in urban studies and earned a master's degree in geography from Oxford University in England before taking over the helm of the construction firm his late father, Joseph Duckworth, started.

"How do we create something that feels like Doylestown, the best part of Doylestown?"

The response he heard from people in town was to research the work of Oscar Martin, an architect who designed buildings in the borough as well as many Bucks County bridges when he served as county engineer.

"Maybe there's a way we can pay respect, homage to Oscar Martin in the design of this building," he thought.

Ben Altman of Altman Management Co., an Arcadia partner, credited Duckworth with having the vision to take a building site that had once been a car dealership and turn it into a vibrant apartment building named after Martin, whose photograph hangs in the building's lobby.

"Our venture included two other significant participants: MBA Equities led by Max Berger and the HOW group, led by Gary Jonas," Duckworth said. "My company, Arcadia Land Company, was the lead partner, but it was truly a team effort all around."

The apartments include one-bedroom and two-bedroom units, with some having dens as well. Other amenities include the rooftop terrace with a grill for barbecues, a lounge area that can bring tenants together and be rented for parties, a dog park since many families now have pets and a fitness center. A mailroom and secure parking area under the complex make for convenient living. And downtown Doylestown is a few walkable blocks away. Rental prices start at $2,400 a month.

Duckworth said the concept is to bring the best features of urban living, such as the secure, underground parking garage, to the suburban borough in a design that pays respect to the borough's architectural heritage.

The community opened in August and the developers hope to have it fully rented by early 2024.

More homes in the works

Arcadia developed a community of 60 homes initially called Arcadia Green but now known as Mayfield in Newtown Township and Arcadia and Rockwell Custom of Media plan to build a townhome community of 3,300-square-foot homes called Clear Springs Court in Doylestown with elevators in the buildings. Prices will start around $1 million.

And the firm is planning another apartment complex designed for affordability with seniors and veterans in mind. It will be built on the old Tilley property on North Broad Street.

"It is proposed as an integrated affordable / mixed-income pocket neighborhood with 60 one-bedroom apartments for seniors which will be income and age-qualified 62-plus as well as 13-15 market-rate townhomes.  I am building this with my partners at Pennrose Properties," Duckworth said.

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This article originally appeared on Bucks County Courier Times: Arcadia opens new apartment complex Martin at Doylestown