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BROADBAND COMMUNITIES
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www.broadbandcommunities.com
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JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2016
Renters by Choice:
Madison Providence,
Collegeville, Pa.
In this issue, BroadBand Communities showcases Madison
Providence, a new, upscale apartment community in the
Philadelphia suburbs. Residents of Madison Providence
are renters by choice – they could easily aford to be
homeowners – and renters with choice, who can choose
between two outstanding broadband amenities. Thanks
to Dean Holmes of Madison Apartment Group, Todd
Stevenson of Telnet Consulting and Michael Slovin of
XFINITY Communities for gathering the information for
this profle.
By Masha Zager / Broadband Communities
M
adison Apartment Group, headquartered
in Philadelphia, owns and operates 14,000
apartment units in 13 eastern and midwestern
states. Tough its core business is acquiring and rehabbing
existing communities, it develops new communities as
well. Experience with this large portfolio has given the
company "a good perspective on what people want,"
says Dean Holmes, its chief operating ofcer – and one
thing Madison renters want is broadband. "Te quality
of Internet and cable is viewed as an extension of the
amenities that we provide," Holmes explains.
In its newest property under development, Madison
Providence, broadband is especially important.
Located in Collegeville, about 25 miles northwest of
Philadelphia, the new community is close to several
Fortune 500 ofces, and the developer hoped to attract
employees of those companies as well as Philadelphia
commuters. Te target renter is a high-income former
homeowner who is downsizing and choosing to
rent rather than buy. "Tese residents are renters by
choice – they're not expecting to calibrate down their
PROPERTY OF THE MONTH
expectations for where they live, for the
quality of fnishes, for the amenities, for
anything," says Holmes.
He continues, "In this rental
market and this property, [residents']
expectation is that they'll have access
to high-quality broadband. It's a
nonstarter if it's not there – it makes
the diference between people renting
at the property or not. So we market
the technology. We make known that
it's available; we're proactive in making
it part of the routine sales process.
We show people the ftness center, the
clubhouse, the package management
system, the dog wash station and the
broadband amenities."
At Madison Providence, the
developer actually installed not one but
two high-quality networks: a Comcast
