Funk's Farm Market, which has evolved from an open-air stand to a store and garden center, is destined for more change.

The Millersville business will close this summer, then reopen in a new, smaller format at some future date, said market owner Fred Funk.

The new store would be part of the proposed development of the adjoining family farm into a "revolutionary" retirement community.

The farm was formerly owned by Funk's father, the late Amos Funk, considered the father of the local farm preservation movement.

That tie to the elder Funk has made the development proposal controversial.

In a statement sent to this newspaper Tuesday, the younger Funk explained his decision to close the South Duke Street market and defended his decision to help develop the farm.

The younger Funk started the market on the family farm as a one-person operation in 1963, after graduating from high school.

Since then, he said, he's "worked many 60-90 hour weeks. I'm tired and wish to retire."

The timetable for the debut of the new store, as well as its name, size, leadership and other specifics, remains to be determined.

However, developer John Hogan said the new market "is going to manifest itself as a new entity" that's "incorporated" into the development of the farm.

The development project is called The Village at Funk's Farm.

Hogan and Funk's intentions to build a cutting-edge retirement community on the 66-acre property next to the market surfaced in 2007.

At that time, Funk said the market would continue to operate.

"For the public, there will be no change," he said then.

Funk's Farm Market will reopen for its last season March 31, following its annual winter hiatus, but it will close July 31 instead of its usual fall shutdown.

The market has seen many changes over the years. It was enclosed in 1972, one of 14 major additions as it grew into a local landmark.

When open, it operates with 130 employees, according to the market's Web site. They work in a 12,500-square-foot store and in about five acres of greenhouses.

The proposed retirement community would cost $10 million to $15 million to develop, Hogan estimated.

Construction could start in two or three years if approvals are secured.

The venture would consist of a 75-unit assisted living center, 156 cottages and 252 multifamily units for independent living. Residents would be age 55 and older.

The Manor Township tract is zoned rural agricultural.

Township zoning allows development of assisted-care centers and retirement communities on rural-agricultural parcels if township zoners grant a special exception.

Hogan and Funk are seeking that from the township zoners, who are expected to announce their decision at their 7 p.m. April 7 meeting.

If the partners win the exception, their plans next would have to go through the township's land-development process for approval.

Hogan noted that the 10-acre market property is zoned commercial, so a new store there would not require a special exception.

Funk, in his statement, defended the proposed development against allegations from several neighbors, who said at a township zoning session that the project would destroy Amos Funk's legacy.

Funk said that while he's been depicted as "walking over my father's grave," his father was an advocate of "smart growth" in general and developing that farm in particular.

Funk pointed to a 2007 newspaper interview in which his father favored developing the farm because of its proximity to water and sewer lines and to numerous homes.

The elder Funk expressed the same opinion in a letter to Manor Township, the son said.

"If Dad felt the best future use of our farm was farming," wrote Funk, "he would have preserved it many years ago," just as his father preserved the family's 89-acre farm in Martic Township.

The son also cited the elder Funk's support in 1970 of the Crossgates development, across the street from the market, as evidence of Amos Funk's "smart growth" sentiment.

Far from disrespecting his father's philosophy by developing the family farm, Funk suggested he's honoring it.

Not only did the elder Funk favor developing the farm, the son added that "Dad always taught us, 'If you are going to do something, do it well.' "

"That is why I decided to be a partner in developing this state-of-the-art rest-and-retirement village and start a legacy of my own," Funk wrote.

Hogan, meanwhile, took issue with the description of the project as a "retirement community."

The developer said it would be "a nursing, rest and retirement community" that offers a spectrum of care, capable of meeting the changing needs of residents.

Hogan said the project would allow "graceful aging in place," providing support to let people live in their homes as long as possible.

At the same time, as people move to the development, that will free up houses elsewhere in the county for young families, preserving farmland, maintained Hogan.

"It's the smartest possible land use," he said.

tmekeel@lnpnews.com