The conflicts that can arise between an Airbnb and the communities where they reside is being played out at a 100-year-old Chadds Ford home, which has received 35 citations totaling $17,000 in fines by Chadds Ford Township, writes Frank Kummer for The Philadelphia Inquirer.

 The former du Pont home is now owned by Smithbridge Partners LP, controlled by a local couple, which has been renting it out as an Airbnb. 

That violates a local residential zoning ordinance, township officials say.

The home on 44 acres was getting rave reviews on Airbnb.

A neighbor complained in April 2023 that the Smithbridge Road property was hosting multiple families through Airbnb that led to “loud parties, drinking, shouting, music and the like.”

The case is awaiting trial in Magisterial District Court. The owners have recently pulled the property listing from Airbnb.

Paul Padien, an attorney representing the owners, said he plans to seek a zoning variance allowing the rentals. The property has a history of being rented even before the current owners purchased it.  

“We’re not here to fight,” Padien said. “We’re here to find a way for our use to coexist legally in the township.”

Read more about this situation and about a 2019 state Supreme Court’s decision regarding Airbnbs in The Philadelphia Inquirer.