After an almost two year delay during the pandemic, developer Cornerstone Tracy plans to break ground this year for its 600-plus luxury apartment complex at Oxford Valley Mall, the latest in several new housing projects now coming to Lower Bucks.
"When there is an opportunity in a wonderful place, you want to take that opportunity and develop a project that makes sense for the community," said Donald Tracy, co-owner of Cornerstone Tracy, based in Villanova.
The development will be built in two phases, with the first building to include 391 apartments in a four-story building, featuring a swimming pool, gym and other amenities. It is expected to open for rentals in late 2023 or early 2024, Tracy said.
The second four-story building is expected to have 223 units.
Tracy said Simon, the company which owns the mall, is selling Cornerstone Tracy about 20 acres at the mall site for the development and will demolish the former Boscov's store at the western end of the mall to make room for it. The apartment buildings will be built next to the mall but not directly connected to it.
"Combining resort-style amenities, boutique hotel services and trendsetting architectural design, the company's properties have become market leaders in the Class-A apartment segment," Cornerstone Tracy's website states. Now it is "pursuing a more diverse ownership and investment strategy within a broadened geographic market place."
More:Can Neshaminy Mall and Oxford Valley Mall survive the coronavirus?
Details on the individual units at Oxford Valley, including numbers of bedrooms, are still being worked out, Tracy said last week. The apartment complex also has not been named as yet and the pricing for leases won't be decided until the complex is closer to opening.
The development will provide a shuttle bus to the Langhorne train station, as nearby residents were concerned that the apartments would add more traffic to already highly traveled Woodbourne Road, which runs alongside the mall property.
"The Oxford Valley Mall Apartment project received land development approval in August of 2020. We met with Cornerstone Tracy recently and expect the full permit package to be submitted this month," said Middletown Township Manager Stephanie Teoli Kuhls last week.
Tracy said the pandemic created supply-chain issues for builders but they and their general contractors have been able to keep on working. "We've learned a lot. There are challenges but we work through them."
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Development picks up in Bucks County
Cornerstone Tracy, founded in 2016, also plans to build another 235-unit apartment complex in Doylestown at the former site of The Intelligencer on North Broad Street.
The firm was formed by David Della Porta, who formed an apartment development company called Cornerstone Communities in the 1990s, and Tracy, a former vice president with the real estate investment firm LCOR Inc.
The mall and Doylestown projects are among several in the works as Bucks County rebounds from the pandemic and design, approvals and construction move forward.
Several other new, upscale housing developments are also planned by other builders in Lower Bucks including the 60-home Arcadia Green and a 45-home Toll Brothers community, both planned for Newtown Township, and a 168 age-restricted community planned for the Stone Meadow Farm in Middletown, as well as another Toll community in the early planning stages for Langhorne Borough.
More:Bucks County, developer consider $2M preservation deal at Middletown's last remaining farm
More:Toll Brothers settlement paves way for million-dollar homes, open space in Newtown Township
Oxford Valley Mall adds new shops
And while residential development amps back up, retail business is continuing to find its footing after a pandemic slowdown.
As one portion of the Oxford Valley Mall is slated for redevelopment with housing, the existing shopping center is still actively marketing and bringing in shops to fill vacant storefronts, officials said.
Recent additions at the mall include a high-end, limited edition sneaker store called Philly Essentials; Pink Crush, a women's apparel and accessory boutique; Indulse Aroma & Skin Therapy; and new additions to its food court, including Gouda's Kitchen, "where everyday is Fryday." It features a wide variety of fries, including cheesesteak fries, crab fries, and barbecue jerk fries.
"We have a pretty active leasing pipeline, especially considering the current climate," said Christopher Dudley, mall marketing and business development director. "We're going optimistic about it. We're definitely focused on bringing the right mix of tenants in and making the mall and enjoyable place to shop."
The mall also expects several other stores and restaurants to open in the next two months, including:
- Go! Calendar, Games & Toys,the largest operator of seasonal, mall-based pop-up stores in the world. Products include calendars, games, toys, puzzles, and gifts;
- The Slime Lounge, a community based lounge where kids of all ages can come and become "slime experts." It encourages a tactile sensory experience for children, which gets kids tuned into their sense of touch. Classes and birthday parties are offered;
- Furaha Natural Care & Wellness, a spa offering facials, back treatments and body steams with a selection of lotions, soaps, body butters, crystals, and special teas;
- Felicia’s Spot, specializing in breakfast and lunch; and
- Sumiyaki Japan, quick service offering teriyaki, sushi, and poke.
As she prepared to enter the mall one recent afternoon, customer Patti Aita, of the Levittown section of Falls, said she'd "absolutely" welcome changes coming to the mall. "I think more stores, more variety would be best," she said.
Can redevelop revitalize Oxford Valley Mall?
The Simon-owned mall quickly became a popular attraction when it first opened in 1973 with its two expansive floors of indoor shopping anchored by four department stores. Its location in Middletown, just off Interstate 95, now Interstate 295, has attracted shoppers from Bucks County as well as the Philadelphia and Trenton areas.
600 apartments proposed for Oxford Valley Mall
Like other malls, it's seen harder times in recent years. Well before the pandemic began in 2020, shopping habits changed with the explosion of online shopping sites like Amazon, with their quick, convenient delivery services.
The closure of the former Boscov's store, the western anchor store, because of the close proximity of Boscov's popular Neshaminy Mall store, as well as the closure of the Sears store, the northern anchor, affected the mall's traffic and image.
But both J.C. Penney and Macy's have maintained their stores at Oxford Valley, having weathered the economic recession of 2008 and the changes in the way people shop now as the pandemic continues to affect everyday life. J.C. Penney confirmed it is keeping its Oxford Valley store open. "We look forward to continuing to serve our loyal Bucks County customers," a Penney spokesperson said.
On April 9, Macy's Backstage will openas a store-within-store inside Macy's Oxford Valley. The new Macy's Backstage location will offer 14,300 square feet of off-price, on-trend apparelfor women, men, and children, plus a wide range of toys, housewares, beauty products, designer handbags, activewear, gifts and more.It is one of 36 Backstage stores within Macy's stores to open this spring, said spokeswoman Liz Kores.
"For entertainment, people always like to come to the mall," Gwen Karpf, Oxford Valley Mall manager, said. "We're just excited there's new stores coming."
And the mall management team hinted there could be something new coming to the former Sears location as well but it was too soon to elaborate.
When the high-end apartments at the mall were first proposed Simon officials said the redevelopment would be “a catalyst and a shot in the arm” to reinvigorate the mall “campus,” so that other types of businesses like health clubs and restaurants would move there.
Similar housing projects at old malls around the country have yielded new tenants in and around the shopping centers, retail experts have said. Simon officials have said their apartments would be marketed to young professionals, empty nesters and older adults versus families with young children.
How we got here:Middletown planners recommend housing at Oxford Valley Mall
Going shopping at a mall still attracts many customers, Dudley said. "People like to look, feel, touch and try on," he said.
New shop Philly Essentials, with its selection of limited edition, hard-to-find, one-of-a-kind sneakers, has been doing a brisk business since it opened at Oxford Valley in November. "Our business has been doing great since we opened," said Aracelis Rivera, store manager. "We get kids who watch our TikTok (site)."
