AVI STEINHARDT/Courier-Post Merchantville Mayor Patrick Brennan has a laugh with Philadelphia Fruit Market owner Bob Hanna, outside his Centre Street shop.

Merchantville may just be the best kept secret in Camden County.

Surrounded by Cherry Hill and Pennsauken, its cool, tree-lined streets, affordable housing, emerging business district, intimate school system and rich history, the borough with a small-town feel has a bright future and much to offer its young and old.

"I think our community is perched to take advantage of its uniqueness and location," said its mayor, Patrick Brennan.

"We are located right near all the major highways yet we don't have any highways that go through it," said Brennan.

"We're a community, a real place of neighbors and it's something that people are looking for," he said.

The wide, tree-shaded streets protect the old historic Victorian-style homes that lend character to the community.

The affordability and variety of its homes - from bungalows and townhomes to handyman specials and large Victorians - is attracting both professionals and young families.

And not to leave out its senior citizens, the borough of six-tenths of a square mile is in the process of building its first age-restricted housing complex scheduled to open by the end of this year.

The unique downtown business district, along Centre Street, has been anchored for many years by the charming Aunt Charlotte's candy store, a family-owned business that offers homemade chocolates. The Philadelphia Fruit Market, where fresh meats and vegetables adorn the cases, attracts residents from surrounding communities.

"We have a downtown where people can congregate, see their neighbors, go talk to the butchers," said Brennan.

And since 1995, when the borough formed Main Street Merchantville, an organization of volunteers whose purpose is to enhance the downtown, new businesses such as cafes offering specialty coffees and light fare, a yoga studio, gift shops and a hometown bakery, have joined other staples along Centre Street and Park Avenue.

The elementary school, with small classes and solid test scores, give families with small children a reason for moving into the community with 3,800 citizens.

Incorporated on May 18, 1874, one of the biggest attractions to Merchantville is the Cattell Tract, a registered historic district, home to 15 historic houses, according to the community Web site, merchantvillenj.com/MerchantvilleNJ/WebSite.nsf.

Visitors can pick up a map at the borough hall to take a walking tour of the homes that were built between 1869 and 1920.

Start with the historic train station at the railroad tracks at North Centre Street and East Chestnut Avenue. The station is now used as an office building but was the center of transportation when it was built in 1881.

Make sure to visit The Scudder House at 15 E. Walnut Ave., circa 1899, the tallest home, where, according the Web site, one can see the skyline of Philadelphia from its top windows.

And check out the home of Samuel H. Rous, a vice president of Camden's Victor Victrola Company, called The "Nethusa," built in 1913, at 23 E. Cedar Avenue.

The Web site says the home had "bells to call the servants, a log elevator, four fireplaces and a built-in vacuum cleaner."

Brennan, a 20-year resident, said right now the biggest problem is parking downtown and the borough government has begun planning improvements.

"In the future, you'll see more businesses," said Brennan, and, "very quickly the reopening of a restaurant."

"It's really a special place."