This year marks my 25th year of being an active resident and citizen of Chadds Ford. That’s long enough to remember the township’s extensive negotiations with Toll Brothers over the development of the Sunset Hill Girl Scouts Camp. Residents attended meetings, wrote letters, and made their opinions known on every issue imaginable, such as where the ingress and egress would be, what the lot size should be, and retaining some of the 188-acre woodland for open space. Retaining open space and nature trails for the residents of Chadds Ford was a deal breaker in the negotiations and Toll Brothers acquiesced by gifting 58 acres to the township.

Anyone buying property in Chadds Ford, or anywhere else for that matter, has access to view their deed and any encumbrances on their property before deciding to finalize the purchase. Prospective buyers also should take note of any encumbrances or uses of nearby property that could impact them. For example, homeowners near the Brandywine Battlefield are on notice to expect cannon fire and battle reenactments at least once a year. Homeowners near the preserved land with its long-standing trails are also expected to be on notice of its existence.

Arguments concerning increased crime and noise are baseless and laughable. There hasn’t been increased crime or noise because of the trail developed behind the township building so why would it be any different for the Girl Scout trails? The residents of the Toll Brothers’ development should fear crime and noise only because of their homes’ proximity to Routes. 1 and 202 rather than to the nature trails.

The township supervisors and Open Space Committee members should honor the negotiations of their predecessors to maintain this space for use by all Chadds Ford residents. The unfounded arguments of the few should not outweigh the value of this space for all. If you care about open space and maintaining these trails as it was negotiated and intended, come to the Open Space Committee Meeting on March 19 at 7 p.m. in the township building and make your voice heard.

Luci Jankowski McClure
Chadds Ford Township

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