Belvedere adds $125,000 to effort to buy Martha property for open space
Updated: May 26
Belvedere has officially added $125,000 toward the effort to save 110 acres of southern Tiburon ridge property as open space.
The City Council voted 4-0 on April 8, with member Jim Lynch absent, to help the San Francisco-based Trust for Public Land narrow its fundraising gap on the $42.1 million purchase price of the parcel, owned by the Martha Co.
“I think this is a once-in-a-lifetime chance to save a wonderful piece of property,” Vice Mayor Jane Cooper said.
“We wish we had more money to give,” Councilmember Sally Wilkinson added.
That leaves the trust about $600,000 short in its fundraising effort, though senior project manager Erica Williams of Tiburon said it’s working to finalize documentation on a pending $1.5 million grant from the state that would put the nonprofit over the top.
She said the trust intends to pull all the funding together by April 19 in the first step toward proving it has enough money to complete the purchase.
In a three-way deal, the trust is buying the property and flipping it to Marin County at a discount, part of a 50-year effort to prevent development by the Martha Co., which has the right to build homes on at least 43 lots.
The county’s share and ultimate purchase price is about $29.2 million, primarily coming from a 30-year, $335-per-parcel tax on Belvedere and southern Tiburon residents and a distribution of Measure A sales taxes that support parks and open-space maintenance. The trust and grassroots group Tiburon Open Space are responsible for fundraising the remaining price gap through private philanthropy and government grants.
The trust first needs to demonstrate funding to the Marin Board of Supervisors, which will decide at its May 7 meeting whether to authorize the sale of $23 million in bonds toward its contribution to the purchase price, a sale authorized by voters as the Measure M parcel tax in November 2022. The trust and county would then be able to demonstrate to the Martha Co. before the June 14 deadline that they have the full amount.
The Belvedere council agreed the purchase was worth funding — even if it would set the city back financially. Administrative Services Director Helga Cotter said the pledge would mean Belvedere could make only a partial payment on its $185,000 deferral for fire services with the Tiburon Fire Protection District, which will need to be paid off over the next few years.
“Committing this future funding to the trust means the city will lose flexibility in the future in the use of these resources,” staff wrote in their report to the council.
Long-time residents Ken Johnson, a former mayor, and George Landau advocated for the grant.
“I’m here to basically tell you that we are this close to getting this world-renowned site,” Landau said, gesturing with this thumb and index finger while also holding a “Yes on Measure M” sign.
Belvedere’s pledge adds to an initial $1 million from Tiburon, approved in November 2022, and the town’s second $1 million pledge approved on April 3. However, any additional funding would reduce Tiburon’s pledge, including the pending state grant and a $100,000 target by the Belvedere Community Foundation, which is offering $50,000 in matching grants through May 15.
Williams said the trust can continue to fundraise up until the June purchase deadline, which is followed by a 60- to 90-day escrow period that will give them time to gather the funding and close the transaction.
As of April 10, the trust has raised $3.17 million in gifts and pledges from private individuals and organizations, including a $10,000 grant from the Tiburon Peninsula Foundation, $50,000 from the Marin Community Foundation and $1.5 million from the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, a Palo Alto nonprofit for environmental conservation, scientific research, higher education and preserving the character of the Bay Area.
Reach Naomi Friedland at 415-944-4627.