Millions in grants bring Chesco town closer to purchase of Crebilly Farm

Pennsylvania officials announced a $4 million grant this week toward purchase and preservation of the 310-acre Crebilly Farm, one of the biggest remaining unprotected properties in Westtown Township and Chester County. Township residents have fought to save it from development.

The Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) grant comes from a federal fund and will go toward purchase of 208 acres of the farm. It comes on top of a $2 million state grant announced in September.

In total, it will cost $20.6 million to buy the 208 acres outright for use as a public park. An additional $4.3 million will be needed to purchase conservation easements to restrict housing on the remaining 102 acres.

Westtown Township voters approved a referendum in November to raise $7.5 million through a special local tax toward the purchase.

» READ MORE: Voters approve preservation of Crebilly Farm, one of Chesco’s biggest unprotected properties threatened by development

Jon Altshul, the township manager, said another $11 million is needed to complete the complex deal. The township is working with Natural Lands, a large nonprofit land trust, to apply for grants to the county and raise private money.

“We are optimistic that we’ll be able to achieve that goal within the next couple of months,” Altshul said.

Crebilly Farm boasts a long history that led to continued efforts by residents over the years to preserve it.

On Sept. 11, 1777, Continental Army Gen. Adam Stephen saw Hessian troops marching across what is now Crebilly Farm from his lookout atop Sandy Hollow, where the main fight of the Battle of Brandywine took place, according to Natural Lands. Stephen sent soldiers to skirmish with the Hessians in a fruitless effort to stop their advance. The British went on to win the biggest single-day battle of the American Revolution and then to capture Philadelphia.

Now, the land under Crebilly Farm Family Associates is controlled by the Robinson family, scions of a cofounder of Acme Markets. The property is bordered by Routes 202 (Wilmington Pike) and 926 (Street Road), West Pleasant Grove Road, and South New Street.

In recent years, developers, including Toll Brothers, had proposed using the land for housing.

» READ MORE: Chester County town enters $21M deal to buy Revolutionary-era farm and turn it into a park

The township plans to turn the 208 acres it is buying into a nature preserve. Officials have said that they are committed to ensuring it remains open to the public for passive uses such as hiking and dog walking — and that it will not be converted into athletic fields.

The 102 acres that would fall under the Natural Lands’ conservation easement would remain privately owned and not open to the public. But the easement would stipulate that four lots of roughly 25 acres each cannot be subdivided or hold more than one home each.

“We’re thrilled by this belated Christmas gift to the people of Westtown Township and Chester County,” state Sen. Carolyn Comitta said in a news release announcing the grant. “Saving Crebilly Farm is the result of persistence, perseverance, and partnership.”