The county Board of Supervisors on Tuesday once again approved an agreement for the county to purchase San Geronimo Golf Course.
Eager for anything that might derail the process, critics of the plan had focused on the fact that the county failed to fully comply with a state requirement to publish three consecutive notices of intent before approving the purchase.
“We noticed the Nov. 14 hearing extensively. Unfortunately, we missed by days complying with the letter of the law,” County Counsel Brian Washington told supervisors.
Washington said that “out of an abundance of caution and to eliminate any doubt,” he recommended that the county publish a notice of Tuesday’s meeting and conduct another hearing and vote.
The only thing that changed this time around was that Supervisor Judy Arnold withdrew her support. The other four supervisors voted in favor, as they did on Nov. 14.
“From everything I’m hearing, it is clear that we needed more dialogue on this matter,” Arnold said. “It is only with public participation that we can find the right way forward for a community who feel they have not been heard.
“In response to community concerns and questions about this project,” Arnold said, “I am having a difficult time allocating general fund dollars, especially when we have so many unfunded needs in Marin that these funds could be used for.”
The board vote to purchase the 157-acre golf course is a two-step process that involves the Trust for Public Land.
The Trust for Public Land has signed an option-to-purchase agreement to buy the golf course for a maximum of $8.85 million by Dec. 31. The plan is for the county of Marin to in turn purchase the golf course from the trust. That commitment, however, is contingent on the county and the trust succeeding in securing $4.94 million from state and private sources.
Supporters and critics of the purchase on Tuesday once again took turns arguing their cases during the public hearing.
“A lawsuit isn’t something that we wanted to do, but we felt it was important that we get process, that we plan before we purchase it,” said Amelia “Niz” Brown, one of the leaders of San Geronimo Advocates, a group that sued the county on Dec. 5 in an effort to prevent the purchase.
Brown said the more than 50 people who donated to pay for the suit “are upset that you are going to use county funds to destroy a very special recreational asset without planning ahead.”
Peggy Sheneman of Woodacre said, “You are aware that many voters see the golf course deal as a secret deal that ignores community needs and is not a good stewardship of tax dollars.”
Sheneman asked the supervisors to take a number of actions before approving the golf course purchase, including creating a public process for evaluating all options for future use of the property.
The majority of the speakers, however, voiced their full support for the purchase.
“Like a majority of Marin County residents I fully support your purchase of the golf course,” said Eric Morey of Woodacre. “Your persistence in protecting this park from development will be rewarded for years to come by the grateful public who will use it. In the future, people will be talking about what a great deal we got and how lucky we were to take advantage of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”
Nancy Binzen of Woodacre said, “It’s a shame we have to go through this process a second time. Shame on the Marin Independent Journal for allowing false equivalencies to be published unchallenged. Shame on them for being a willing megaphone for untruths and misconceptions amplifying ignorance.”
And Binzen added, “Shame on the small group among us who would willingly make a sham of the law in order to sacrifice the good for the many on the altar of special interests.”
