Our Plan for Lynnewood Hall
Project Scope:
The estate encompasses 34 acres and three buildings: Lynnewood Hall (100,000 sqft), Lynnewood Lodge (16,000 sqft), and the Gatehouse (5,000 sqft). The Lodge and the Hall measure 116,000 square feet combined and will effortlessly accommodate education, recreation, and other possible usages.
Current and Ongoing Work:
The Lynnewood Hall Preservation Foundation’s (LHPF) work on site has been underway for the past year, with the full knowledge and permission of the current owner.
Our primary objective is to maintain the site, secure it from trespassers (by adding the security system now in place), and minimize ongoing damage from time and the elements as best we can.
Projected Start-Up Costs:
LHPF seeks $10-$15 million for immediate cash on hand to purchase the property, fund urgent preservation and stabilization needs, and ensure the buildings are weather and watertight to protect them in their current non-occupied state. This projection includes funds for operating budgets necessary following the acquisition.
Initial fundraising and projected budget numbers for the phases below are estimates of what is needed. LHPF recognizes the likelihood of these budgets evolving due to many factors beyond our control.
Phase One—Property Acquisition, Stabilization and Operational Capital Budget:
$10-15,000,000
Our first goal is to raise funds for the acquisition and stabilization of Lynnewood Hall, along with additional funds for an operating budget necessary to sustain the property following purchase.
When we have successfully raised this money, our mission of preservation can begin. These funds will provide for three critical objectives—acquisition, preservation, and preparation for the future—with detailed studies of Lynnewood Hall to assess the current condition and the best direction forward.
Phase Two—Open Space, Formal Gardens, and Operating Cost Budget:
$5,000,000
Our next goal is to raise funds to return the Lynnewood Hall formal gardens and open space back to the people of Cheltenham and the surrounding communities.
Township residents desire additional green space for the enjoyment of all and for the environmental benefits that open, undeveloped land provides. The home is situated on 34 acres, and the estate included what once was the finest French gardens in Pennsylvania and possibly the entire United States. These gardens will be restored with a focus on sustainability, incorporating many open areas that visitors can use for many actives, such as open-air art workshops, picnicking, or enjoying a Sunday stroll as in a bygone era.
Phase Three:
Once the public can access and enjoy the grounds and exterior spaces of Lynnewood Hall once again, the Lynnewood Project can focus on the home’s interior spaces. Our planning and engagement efforts will identify uses that will benefit and expand community amenities, such as art galleries, educational opportunities, dining, and event space.
Ongoing Costs:
LHPF recognizes the cost for operations, security, staffing, technology, and outreach, while flexible at present, will be ongoing and need to scale over time.
Fundraising Plan:
LHPF must secure the initial capital needed to purchase Lynnewood Hall through multifaceted fundraising efforts. We desire to give all people at any donation level an opportunity to come together as collaborative stakeholders to preserve Lynnewood Hall.
LHPF will begin with a crowdfunding initiative on our website and utilize strategic partnerships to reach a broad audience of interest and support. We will develop and implement a sustained funding plan for the fulfillment of actions & objectives identified.
Multiple revenue sources, financial management, and operational efficiencies are crucial to meeting these objectives. Our intended outcome is to take action that produces sufficient long-term funding and to strive toward economic viability through sustainable internal revenue models.
Partnerships with strong national, state, and local preservation organizations form vital links among the private, public, and non-profit sectors. Partnerships with mutually aligned educational institutions offering historic preservation, restoration, trades, and applied arts programs will open additional funding sources. Identifying partners with common goals that can support the preservation, restoration, and interactive educational facility is fundamental to the long-term economic success of LHPF’s mission.
LHPF’s initial costs of restoration and upkeep will be expensive, but partnering with education programs for restoration work will promote a more economically viable and systematically practical approach to large expense, early phase projects. Offering innovative and interactive programming will provide the best capital returns; therefore, LHPF must provide a programming initiative that will engage donors when determining gift amounts