San Rafael, CA – The Marin County Board of Supervisors plans to address a voter initiative ordinance during its January 29 meeting that would require approval from a majority of countywide voters to change the use of the 157-acre San Geronimo Golf Course property to anything other than golf.
The San Geronimo Golf Course has been closed since December 2018.A group of residents recently submitted signatures in favor of the ballot initiative to the Marin County Elections Department. Staff verified a random sample of signatures to make sure they were from registered voters. The item is on the January 29 Board meeting agenda and scheduled to begin no earlier than 1:30 p.m.
Last year, the County sought to purchase the golf course and preserve it as a park. The motivations were to preserve the area's character, preserve recreation and environmental and other uses, and in long-term consideration of public uses of property subject to the community planning process. The acquisition bid was blocked by a court order. The property’s nonprofit owner closed the course in December 2018.
Registrar of Voters Lynda Roberts has certified that the petition contains enough valid signatures to go to the Board of Supervisors for action on January 29. Per County Counsel Brian Washington, after a discussion the Board could take one of three actions:
- adopt the initiative without alteration or within 10 days after it is presented;
- submit the initiative without alteration to the voters at the next statewide election in March 2020; or
- order a report to be delivered by February 26, 2019 requesting information about a variety of things such as the fiscal impact, effect on the County’s general and specific plans, and effect on the use of land. After the report is presented, the Board would then either adopt the initiative within 10 days or order an election at the next statewide election for voters’ consideration.
Another Board option is to call for a special election sooner, but that would come with an additional expense to the County of approximately $8 to $10 per registered voter. With over 160,000 registered Marin voters, an earlier special election would cost between $1.3 million and $1.6 million.
Board meetings are webcast on www.marincounty.org and aired live on Channel 27 for Comcast and AT&T U-Verse television subscribers. Meetings take place in the Board chamber of the Marin County Civic Center, Suite 330, 3501 Civic Center Drive, San Rafael.
All public meetings and events sponsored or conducted by the County of Marin are held at accessible sites. If you are a person with a disability and require information or materials in alternative formats – or if you require accommodation to participate in a county program, service or activity – please contact department staff at (415) 473-7331 or (415) 473-4381 (voice/TTY) or e-mail disabilityaccess@marincounty.org.