Johns Hopkins in Fight With Donor’s Heirs Over Farm Property

A 108-acre parcel in a once-rural patch outside Washington, D.C., is shaping up as the latest battleground in donor-intent wars involving U.S. colleges, The Chronicle of Higher Education writes.

The heirs of Elizabeth Banks are suing the university over the former farmstead in a fast-growing corridor northwest of Washington, which she sold to the Johns Hopkins University in 1988 for $5-million, less than a tenth of its value. The deal includes provisos the family asserts were intended to secure its future use as a satellite Hopkins campus.

The suit, which a Montgomery County, Md., judge greenlighted in March for trial, alleges the school is drawing up plans for a research and development complex that far exceed the intent of Ms. Banks, a vocal opponent of suburban sprawl who died in 2005.

In a statement, Hopkins officials said the institution has not yet finalized plans for the property, known as the Belward campus, but that “nothing in the contract or deed restricts the scale, height, or density of development” it can pursue there.

Jeffrey J. Cain, founder of consulting firm American Philanthropist, said the case is being closely monitored by colleges and donors. “Even the appearance of a violation of donor trust can erode future giving. That can hurt not just Hopkins but other universities,” he said.