The Doylestown Inn, a landmark in the Bucks County seat’s historic district since 1902, is up for sale.
The Colonial and Victorian-style building on West State Street is scheduled for sheriff’s sale next month with a debt of $2.93 million. It also is listed for sale with a real estate agency.
The hotel, renovated in 2001, rents out office space on the first two floors, including a pretzel shop. There are 11 luxury guest rooms on the third floor, and a first-floor bar is open to the public on Friday and Saturday nights.
The inn “is significant as a matter of pride with the townspeople,” said Jerry Lepping, executive director of Visit Bucks County, the county’s tourism agency. “It only has 11 rooms, so it’s not a significant economic factor. Then again, it’s the only hotel in Doylestown.”
Michael Welch of Solebury bought the 20-room hotel in 1998 and is credited with resuscitating it. He operates several partnerships under the name of Deauville V. The sheriff’s real estate sale listings for Sept. 9 includes Deauville V for owing the money to Univest National Bank Trust.
“Wow, you’re shocking me,” Nick Molloy, a Doylestown real estate agent, said Friday when told of the inn’s being for sale.
He said the inn had been listed with CB Richard Ellis agent William Wolf in Allentown in March, “but I don’t know if it’s still listed.”
Wolf and Welch could not be reached for comment.
Darrin Hoffman, a board member of the Central Bucks Chamber of Commerce, cautioned that the listing for sheriff’s sale did not mean the inn would be sold or close.
“Often, it’s a wake-up call,” said Hoffman, who also serves on the county Planning Commission. “It’s a sign of the economy.”
“I hope somebody can take over the inn and keep it operating,” said Lepping, of the tourism office. “Doylestown is a walking town, and it’s an emotional thing.”
The white-and-green building was originally built in 1871 and operated as a hat shop and shoe store, according to the inn’s website, www.doylestowninn.com. It was expanded to a third building in 1937.
Its combination of Colonial and Victorian styles was common in the borough in the late 19th century, said George Donovan, a Bedminster architect. The distinctive turret, railing, overhang, cornices and window trim are Victorian features that make the inn “architecturally significant,” he said.
The inn’s standard and premium guest rooms, each with a queen or king bed and private bathroom, go for $155 to $225 a night, depending on the season.
Contact staff writer Bill Reed at 215-801-2964, wreed@philly.com and @breedbucks on Twitter.