After years of stops and starts, the Hershey West End project in Derry Township finally has dirt moving on housing. Milton Hershey School, acting as steward of MHS Trust Real Estate, held a groundbreaking ceremony Nov. 6 for Founders Grove, the next residential phase of the development between Waltonville Road and Bullfrog Valley Road (via Hershey West End).
Founders Grove is Phase J of the larger plan. The release distributed on PR Newswire describes 138 for-sale homes on about 12 acres as an initial phase. The project's sales site says the neighborhood will offer for-sale townhomes and flats with one to four bedrooms and one to four bathrooms, and lists the homes as coming in fall 2027. Pricing hasn't been published; the sales site is taking names for a VIP interest list ahead of pre-construction sales.
That 138-home first phase is part of something bigger on the same lot. When the township approved the plan last December, MHS said Lot J would hold about 250 for-sale homes and townhouses. The PR Newswire version also says the homes will follow Colonial and Victorian styles that echo Hershey's 1930s building era.
Hankin Group, a family-owned real estate company based in Exton, Pa., is the West End property developer, according to MHS. Neither MHS nor Hankin has named a homebuilder or general contractor.
The project's backers are leaning hard on the housing angle. The Founders Grove site calls it Derry Township's first new residential development in 30 years, and MHS said last year that Hershey West End would be the most significant addition to the area's housing inventory in more than three decades. Those are the developer's own claims.
Getting here took a while. MHS took over leadership of the project in May 2025 after earlier approvals in 2018 and 2022 never turned into construction. The Derry Township Board of Supervisors granted a new conditional use approval in December 2025. Beyond housing, the master plan includes elevated retail space, a Hershey Inn & Suites hotel owned and run by Hershey Entertainment & Resorts, and parks and walking trails. At the time, MHS President Peter G. Gurt said, "We look forward to starting construction as soon as possible." MHS had said building could start as early as summer 2026, so the groundbreaking came a few months later than that target.
Why it matters for Contractors
In a township where new housing has been scarce, by the developer's account, 138 homes, with more planned on the same lot, is a meaningful pipeline for central Pennsylvania trades. Townhomes and flats built to a Colonial and Victorian look will likely mean brick, trim and millwork detail on top of the usual framing, roofing, siding, HVAC, plumbing and electrical. The builder and GC haven't been announced, so the first move for a small shop is to watch for that announcement and get on the bid list early. Hankin Group, as the West End developer, is a logical first call. With homes slated for 2027, the busiest stretch for most trades will likely be next year, which gives subs time to line up crews and pricing.