Eminent Domain On Valley Forge Military Academy Land Moves Forward In Radnor Township

RADNOR TOWNSHIP, PA — Radnor Township moved forward with their plan to acquire land from the Valley Forge Military Academy Foundation via eminent domain at a Monday meeting.

The Radnor Township Board of Commissioners at their meeting took another step to secure a tract of land from the foundation. Officials say the land acquisition would facilitate the potential construction of a recreation center, trails, community garden, or other public parks and recreation facilities.

In a unanimous vote, the commissioners approved the official introduction of an ordinance furthering their goal of obtaining the land. According to Radnor Township Solicitor John Rice, the ordinance authorizes him and the administration to pursue acquisition of the land. Officials are looking to acquire a tract of roughly 17.2 acres of land.

Now, the township will advertise the ordinance publicly before voting on its adoption.

Valley Forge Military Academy Foundation Board President John English told Patch in January that Eastern University is purchasing a 33.3-acre portion of the property for more than $850,000 per acre. Ward 1 Commissioner Jack Larkin estimated that land sold for about $500,000 an acre.

"Regarding the sale of the upper fields to Eastern, we were very careful," English said. "We could have sold to developers for houses and stuff, but we worked with Eastern to keep it contiguous in its usage from us to them."

English last month said his board had not heard directly from the township regarding its goal to acquire the land and that the board had not discussed selling the property, despite township officials claiming it was for sale.

"We're not coming and taking something they don't want to sell," Larkin said in January. "It's just a question really of price is what I understand."

Ward 5 Commissioner and Board President Moira Mulroney also claimed the land was "for sale with interest in development," saying were a developer to acquire it, the resulting project would not be an extensive benefit for the community, and that the area would become increasingly crowded.

At Monday's meeting, VFMAF attorney Philip Rosenzweig echoed to the board English's statement to Patch.

"I need to start by correcting a material misimpression you all seem to be operating under that this land is for sale," he said. "That is not a correct statement. Just because there had been an offer from Rockwell Development for the land does not mean it was for sale." He said Rockwell offered $20 million for the land.

That offer was not pursued, he said, due to the Valley Forge Military Academy's planned closing.

Rosenzweig called the land sought by the township "mission critical" for Valley Forge Military College, which prepares officers for the United States Army with federal backing. The land in question includes the college's mess hall, four dormitories, health center, gym, training facilities, laundry and tailoring services, English said.

"It's hard to host a college where you can't feed or house the students," he said. "The Army kind of likes to have their officers in good shape; it's a little difficult to do that without [fitness] facilities."

"Please understand that if you're talking about 17 acres in Radnor Township that is now roughly half of the remaining Radnor Township campus, you're not just talking about a per acre valuation that may well approach $1 million an acre," he said. "You're talking about the replacement of a mess hall for 100 college cadets, you're talking about other facilities that would most assuredly go into the value of the land. It is a tremendously bigger bite than you might otherwise believe."

Taking the land would "devastate" the college's operations, he said, calling it vital.

Larkin said Monday the township and Valley Forge officials are planning to meet on Feb. 20 to discuss the acquisition. English said the upcoming meeting was scheduled after Valley Forge Military College President Colonel Stuart B. Helgeson reached out to Larkin asking to meet. It's unclear who from the township will participate in the meeting.

English said he hopes the township commissioners attend the meeting.

"They have no clue about our programs that we are offering," he said.

Larkin requested the commissioners delay their vote to adopt the ordinance on Feb. 23 to allow the township to meet with Valley Forge officials to "genuinely have a back-and-forth conversation" after the meeting rather than moving forward with the property's condemnation later this month.

Mulroney agreed after Rice affirmed delaying the adoption would not interfere with the process.

The adoption vote will be pushed to the March 9 commissioners meeting.

"I want to respectfully suggest that you may want to wait more than just this introduction and 30 days as this process plays out because it is much more complicated than you might believe at this moment in time," Rosenzweig said, noting the federal government has an interest in ensuring the college can produce cadets ready for service.

English said he still has not heard from any Radnor Township representatives directly.

"I feel like we're being picked on," he said. "I mean, good lord. Now I really know how Greenland feels."

English wonders why the township has not looked at other nearby institutions, such as Villanova, Eastern, or Cabrini university property, for land acquisition opportunities, and also if the Valley Forge Military College is something the township wants in its boundaries.

"As of right now, I don't feel like we're being supported," English said. "They sense, smell and see blood in the water at Valley Forge."

Mulroney said the term "eminent domain" sits heavy with some, and those words feel daunting.

"It's just a step in a negotiation," she said. "But this is for our community. This is to save open space. This will go a long way to kind of maintain that area."

Representatives from the proposed Valley Forge Public Service Academy Charter School sought to speak at the meeting, but were unable to due to not being Radnor Township residents, per rules under the sunshine law, Rice said.

Officials with the proposed charter school pulled their application from consideration with the Radnor Township School District upon learning of the township's goal of acquiring the land. The Radnor Township School Board discussed the proposed charter school in mid-December before the application was pulled.

Two residents expressed some concerns regarding the township's intent to acquire the property, with one claiming Larkin's constituents have not received communications regarding the land acquisition.

Another said he heard some comments that "really alarmed" him, and others that did not.

"If the property is going to continue to be used as is, I don't think that's a big deal," he said. "But what's on everyone's mind is what happens next. I sense that there's going to be a very big overflow audience for [the Feb. 23 meeting] if it's properly communicated."

Watch the discussion on the ordinance below:

Patch has reached out to Radnor Township officials for more information on the Feb. 20 meeting and will update the story when additional details are made available.