San Geronimo Golf Course - County Board of Supervisors Meeting

[Joshua Pettit]

For any Bay Area folks who might be interested, there is a Marin County Board of Supervisors meeting tomorrow, open to the public, in which the fate of San Geronimo Golf Course will be voted on.  The county is planning to purchase the golf course from the current owner and convert it to open space.

I've submitted a letter to the board about the career of A. V. Macan, his prominence as a golf architect in the Pacific Northwest, and the importance of San Geronimo as a publicly accessible recreational asset in the San Francisco Bay Area.

There will be an opportunity for members of the public to speak in support of preserving the golf course.  Each person who wants to can speak for 2 minutes.  Any support will be greatly appreciated.  And while you're there enjoy the civic center complex designed by Frank Lloyd Wright!

Thanks to anyone who can attend.

Please arrive by 2:00pm:

Marin County Civic Center
3501 Civic Center Drive, Room 329
San Rafael, CA 94903

[Joel_Stewart]

Is San Geronimo worth saving?


If I recall, they don't have access to water which makes it very shaky over a long period of time. Furthermore that makes it financially unstable.


Granted there are a limited amount of public courses in Marin.

[CJames]

Joel, as to the specifics of the course economics I cannot say.  But away from that, it is certainly worth saving to me and my 11-year old son, as well as its employees and the local residents who enjoy public golf in a wonderful setting.  Obviously it is not worth saving to the local coho salmon and land  trust lobby, whose views I acknowledge but would respectfully rebut.   

[David_Tepper]

The deed is done. San Geronimo will close - forever - on December 15. A very sad day.

http://www.marinij.com/environment-and-nature/20171114/san-geronimo-golf-course-to-close-as-marin-supervisors-ok-purchase 

[Kyle Casella]

Very saddened to hear of this. I grew up in Marin County and played many recreational and tournament rounds at San Geronimo. Sounds like a very vocal group catalyzed on the general apathy towards golf and great interest in the environmentalism in order to drive the agenda of a small group of individuals. And obviously, there is no way a golf course will ever be built in Marin County again so this is a great loss to the small but passionate community of golfers.

[Kalen Braley]

I still don't understand the open space arguement.  The entire North bay is chock full of open space, way, way more than the rest of the bay area....

[David_Tepper]

Kalen -

You are absolutely right about this. There is no doubt in my mind that more people visited/used this property daily for recreation and enjoyment as a golf course than will ever visit it daily as an "open space."

As far as I am aware, there was no substantive argument made (backed by scientific facts) that the golf course had a material negative impact on the salmon spawning grounds.

A real shame (and possibly a terrible waste of taxpayer money).

DT

[Brett Hochstein]

David and Kalen,


I was going to make a similar comment about open space.  While I love open space, we have plenty of it.  That's especially so over there in Marin.


They also aren't really that utilized by people, considering the population.  When I go for a hike or walk somewhere here in the East Bay, the access lots are never as crowded and full as those of a typical golf course in the region, which are almost always packed and larger. And golf courses make up a tiny fraction of the typical landmass of most open spaces.  Bay Area public golf is disappointing on many levels.

[Joel_Stewart]

Last day to play is December 15th although there's a lawsuit against Marin County to try and save the course.


http://www.marinij.com/article/NO/20171207/NEWS/171209838

[David_Tepper]

Joel -

Thanks for spotting that article and for the link. If I read  the article correctly, it sounds like the course will stay open till December 31.

DT 

[David_Tepper]

Well, now it looks like the course may stay open for some time to come:

http://www.marinij.com/environment-and-nature/20171224/marin-to-seek-interim-golf-course-operator-in-san-geronimo

I played the course on Sunday. It was in decent shape considering the time of year and the circumstances. There are a number of very good holes & greens out there.

[David_Tepper]

Looks like the final closing of the golf course may not happen for a while:

http://www.marinij.com/general-news/20180316/critics-seek-preliminary-injunction-on-san-geronimo-golf-course

[Sandy Smith]

San Geronimo is worth saving.
Looks like they have gotten a bit more time.
http://www.marinij.com/general-news/20180321/san-geronimo-golf-course-to-reopen-with-interim-operator

[Evan_Green]

I am pleased to hear they are able to delay the course closure - its absolutely a course worth saving, particularly given its one of only 2 public courses in Marin. This being said, I in reading the below articles it seems likely that they are only delaying the inevitable. Anyone else have a different opinion?

[Rich Goodale]

As a former Marin resident, I'm hoping that this gets resolved positively for local golfers.  Is Mill Valley the 2nd muni in Marin?  It was my home club in the late 70s and early 80s.


r

[David_Tepper]

The public (daily fee) golf courses in Marin are:

Peacock Gap
Indian Valley
San Geronimo
Mill Valley (9-holes)

[David_Tepper]

Looks like the Marin County Board of Supes have had their wrists slapped for the way they handled the purchase of the golf course property.

http://www.marinij.com/government-and-politics/20180813/marin-ends-bid-to-expedite-san-geronimo-golf-course-litigation

[CJames]

The SG situation remains fluid, and there is an ongoing attempt to gather roughly 10,000 signatures from registered voters in Marin County to petition for a ballot initiative that would allow voters within the county to determine the ultimate disposition of the land.  If there are any such registered Marin County voters on this site, please advise and I will find a way to get your signature on the petition. 

[David_Tepper]

It looks like the course may close again, at least for a while, on December 31. The good news is the petition to keep the property a golf course has received over 12,000 signatures. The saga continues.

https://www.marinij.com/2018/11/13/marin-supervisors-vote-to-terminate-san-geronimo-purchase-plan/

https://www.marinij.com/2018/11/26/marin-voice-golf-courses-future-deserves-a-truly-public-process/