Civic Association takes action

Posted by ChaddsFordLive on April 21, 2010

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It was nice to see the Civic Association of Chadds Ford get
involved with preserving the operation of the Brandywine Battlefield Park.

As reported, the Civic Association kicked off a four-part
fund-raising effort for the site on Saturday, April 17 with a $50 per person
luncheon at the Outback Steakhouse in Glen Eagle Square. With the restaurant
donating the food and service, the association raised $3,000 that day.

That figure may pale in comparison to the total $300,000 the
site needs to operate on a fulltime basis but, according to an officer of the
Friends of the Brandywine Battlefield, it still helps.

Rich Bowers, a past president of the friends group and the
current treasurer said the park needs about another $100,000 on top of what
money has come in so far.

Some of the $200,000 already came from the Commonwealth of
Pennsylvania that opted out of running the site, but money also came in from
Delaware County and several Delaware County townships.

Those local and regional funds came through the efforts of
Chadds Ford Township Supervisor George Thorpe who’s been asking for money from
two counties and all the neighboring townships.

With the Civic Association’s fund-raising program, Mr.
Thorpe now has some additional help in raising the needed money.

However, a question remains. Who should operate the park?

The state pulled out last summer and it’s unlikely it will
return as a player. Read that, “It won’t.”

There’s also some chatter buzzing about that the National
Park Service will take it over and run the site in conjunction with Valley
Forge. But, there’s nothing official with that, yet.

When the state pulled out, it was thought that Chadds Ford
Township would take over, but the township does not have the resources to
operate the facility.

And whether it’s the state, federal or township government
that runs the site, the money to operate will be coming from tax dollars.

Ideally, a deep-pocketed philanthropic trust dedicated to
the preservation of historic sites would be the best choice. Such an entity
would be able to operate the Chadds Ford park, keeping it open to the public
for historical education and interpretation without placing an extra burden on
taxpayers. Such would be fitting to commemorate a battle in a war that was fought,
at least partly, as a reaction to taxation.

That, however, seems unlikely. Perhaps the best that can
happen is that there will be some sort of private/public partnership that will
keep the park operating. Those who believe in volunteerism—in action or
finances— and want to maintain the park should consider helping the efforts of
the Civic Association and take part in any of the remaining three events.

Those events include a golf outing, a canoe trip down the
Brandywine and a Wilmington Blue Rocks game.

Interested parties can go to http://the.chaddsfordcivicassn.org
and click on the link "4 the Love of The Battlefield” for more information, or write to cfcivic.pres@yahoo.com.