New plan for prime real estate – philanthropist Dodo Hamilton’s property & grounds in Wayne

 

When Campbell’s Soup heiress Dorrance “Dodo” Hamilton died in 2017, the fate of her expansive Strafford estate was anyone’s guess.

Would her elegant home, outbuildings, greenhouses and specimen plantings go to her heirs?

Or would they become a nature preserve?

A suburban offshoot of the PA Horticultural Society?

A small school, perhaps?

One thing was certain: the land – more than eight acres in a prized spot behind Wayne’s Eagle Village Shops – was valuable.

The billionaire philanthropist, always an astute businesswoman, disposed of her estate the old-fashioned way: she gave it family. Hamilton trustees were free to auction off salvageable parts (which they’ve done), raze what’s left (including the mansion), and sell the land for development.

Easier said than done.

The first developer was also a Hamilton trustee, Dodo’s grandson Sam Hamilton. His real estate company proposed townhomes – 41 then 38 units – sparking more than four years of litigation.

Stuck in legal limbo, Sam and the Hamilton trustees have turned the page. Late last year, they agreed to sell to developer Greg Lingo of Wayne-based Rockwell Custom.

Lingo’s proposed “Strafford Walk” wisely ditches those controversial townhomes.

Lingo tells SAVVY his plan gives neighbors much of what they wanted:

• A less-dense plan that swaps townhomes for 29 single-family homes.
• Homes of varying sizes, shapes and facades that would be less cookie-cutter than townhomes and better blend into the established neighborhood.
• Sidewalks through and around the property.
• Beefed up traffic-control measures and landscape and fence buffers.
• A promise to install stormwater management and buffers before the first foundation is poured.

The 29 homesites are compact – most lots are well under a quarter-acre.

Homes measure 2,400 to 4,000 sq. ft. and include two-car garages and front porches. Prices will start in the neighborhood of $2 million.

Presumably, Strafford Walk will appeal to the same well-heeled, empty-nester buyer as St. Honoré across the street, where homes have been selling for well over $2M.

Faced with steep costs for financing, labor and materials, some local homebuilders are putting projects on ice. But not Lingo, who tells us he’s raring to go.

“The demand is so high here. Our neo-traditional designs are going to be really well received. We’re calling on old architecture to build new homes. These will be new but they’ll look old.”

Radnor Township officials have drafted a settlement agreement with Hamilton trustees that outlines Lingo’s single-family home plan.

You may recall that Haverford Properties proposed two townhome plans – the first in 2020 for 41 units, the second in 2023 for 38 units.

Neither landed well.

(Worth noting:Haverford Properties has since dissolved. Now known as Haverford Retail Partners, Sam Hamilton’s company focuses exclusively on acquiring and operating shopping centers, including Eagle Village Shops.)

Strafford neighbors turned out in force at township meetings to oppose the townhome plans. Among their fears: worsening stormwater problems in a neighborhood already beset with them, increased traffic on already congested roads, density and aesthetic concerns.

While townhomes are allowed in the area zoned R-4, both Haverford Properties’ plans needed density waivers.

Radnor denied them – for both townhome proposals.

The developer then took Radnor to court, in the first instance, appealing all the way to the Pa. Supreme Court. Haverford Properties lost every appeal and petition to date. (An appeal of the 2023 plan is still pending.)

The proposed settlement would end the legal wrangling.

“Both parties wish to avoid additional time and expense of protracted litigation,” Radnor Commissioner Jack Larkin tells SAVVY. Because he’s an attorney whose ward includes the Hamilton tract, Larkin helped broker the deal.

Last week, Lingo’s presented his plans at two town halls. Neighbors raised questions but generally seemed receptive. Lingo assured folks he would continue to tweak his blueprints in response to public feedback.

Radnor commissioners could vote on the Hamilton settlement at this week’s board meeting. The project would then go through Radnor’s multi-phase land-development process. Final approvals could take a year or two.

Strafford Walk is just one of Rockwell Custom’s current projects. Lingo is poised to break ground on Oak Hill at St. David’s, an ambitious senior care facility on land purchased from Valley Forge Military Academy & College. He’s also building luxury single-family, townhome and condo communities locally and at the Jersey Shore.