Alexandria Mayor William D. Euille and Vice Mayor, Del Pepper, along with consultants, friends and associates of Marquis Homes, celebrated the ground breaking of The Duke on Tuesday, May 13th.
Located along the 1300 block of Duke Street in the Historic District, The Duke is a new neighborhood of townhomes and flats in Old Town’s Historic District.
Beau Van Metre, Chairman of Marquis Homes, a member of the Van Metre Family of Companies, opened the ceremony by recalling Van Metre’s deep roots in Old Town. Beau grew up on Prince Street, where his father, Al Van Metre, founded the company 53 years ago.
Mayor Euille thanked Marquis Homes for its continued support of Alexandria initiatives and declared The Duke to be an exciting addition to “the ‘new’ Old Town.” Vice Mayor Pepper also expressed her enthusiasm for the overall project and specifically for the architecture of the buildings.
“We’ve worked really closely with Old Town’s Board of Architectural Review to ensure our architecture is a natural extension of the Historic District,” said Laurie Shultz, Director of Sales and Marketing for Marquis Homes.
The Duke is designed around a landscaped courtyard with paved walkways connecting the Townhomes and Flats.
The townhomes, many of which overlook homes that were built in the mid 1800’s, set the tone for The Duke with authentic, period-style detailing and brick on all sides.
The flats also complement the Historic District’s architectural aesthetic. Large by today’s standards for a new condo, The flats range in size from 1,311 square feet to 1,571 square feet.
One of The Duke’s features is a private-access underground garage boasting two parking spaces included with every home.
“This is a walking town,” said Shultz. “We want to make it easy for our homeowners to get home, park their cars without having to worry about finding a spot, and then head out and enjoy all that Old Town has to offer.”
Within easy walking distance of The Duke is an array of restaurants, shops, public parks and attractions.
“You’ve got the Potomac River to the east, Metro to the west, and virtually every kind of restaurant, bakery and boutique you could ever want along the King Street corridor,” said Shultz.
The Duke’s Sales Center is scheduled to open later this month. The exact date and time will be posted at TheDukeOldTown.com. For an invitation to the Sales Center Grand Opening, or for more information about The Duke, please register at TheDukeOldTown.com or contact Laurie Shultz at 703-837-0364
