What's Next for Devon Waterloo Gardens Site

Waterloo Gardens owner Bobby LeBoutillier says the three biggest rumors circulating about who is buying the now-closed Waterloo Gardens site in Devon are: Terrain, A Ford dealership, or a nursing home.

"I hope I find their checks," LeBoutillier said in an interview TE Patch. So far he says there are no offers on the table for the aproximately six-and-a-half acre site which his grandparents opened in Devon 70 years ago in 1942.

According to a report on business-bankruptcies.com, Waterloo Gardens filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy protection in June.

The landmark Waterloo Gardens property is prime real Main Line commercial real estate on Lancaster Ave, one block west of the Devon Horse Show grounds. In this economy it reamins to be seen if even that might be a tough sell. The entire area is dotted with empty commercial buildings, including the sprawling former Anro Direct Marketing facility.

LeBoutillier says he's heard the same rumors about a buyer that some readers have asked Patch track to down, including one that Terrain, an 'eco-friendly' nursery/garden center company which recently bought Styers nursery in Glenn Mills, was buying the property.

A new car dealership would have the space, but a lot of competition. Euro Motorcars Mercedes and Maseratti of the Main Line are across the street from the Waterloo Gardens property. Other more moderately priced car dealers are within a two mile drive.

What would you like to see move in to the property that housed Waterloo Gardens for 70 years? Tell us in the comments section at the bottom of the article.

Waterloo's third-generation family owner would certainly appear open to offers for the property.

LeBoutillier told Patch the company is still trying to sell its former store location in Warminster, PA which has been sitting empty for several years now. LeBoutillier says he is forced to close the Devon store for the same reason.

The collapse of the home construction business in 2008 has meant a steep decline in his business. He says the company is forced to consolodate operations to the single, much larger, store in Exton. He explained that the one flagship store is still not big enough or profitable enough to support operating losses from Warminster, Devon or a smaller outdoor furniture store the company closed in Wilmington, DE.