Photo by Jocelyn Knight
Martha has agreed to an appraisal!
Yes, the owners of the Martha Property have agreed to obtaining an appraisal to help determine the property’s actual value. We couldn’t be more delighted with this exciting development. Jerry Riessen, the leader of Tiburon Open Space:
This is great news. Really great news. We have all been working hard to help make this appraisal happen, a necessary step in arriving at a fair purchase price. We now enter a delicate phase. The appraisal will be as complex as the long journey to get us to this point. It is precisely what is needed to continue towards the goal of purchasing Martha and allowing her to be open forever.
Specifically, the Martha Property owners have agreed to commence an appraisal, working with The Trust for Public Lands, an organization trusted by both the property owners and Tiburon Open Space.
Now what?
The temptation to offer a toast, while real, is premature. A breakthrough? In many ways, yes. A victory? No. Not yet. There is still much work to be completed. The parties will have to identify and agree on the appraisers, the process, the timeline. And then agree on the appraised value to effect an actual purchase.
Although there has not been any interest expressed thus far to purchase the property on the open market, it will remain for sale during an appraisal.
There will be a significant cost to completing this process. We’ll need all kinds of help with that. We are, of course, very grateful to those of you who have made contributions to keep this process alive thus far. "Thank you” cannot possibly convey how we feel about your help.
As you read this, we would ask you to consider the fact that this breakthrough moment is the culmination of years and years of work, endless hours, many buckets of frustration and, at times, grave worry about outcome. But here, today, that work has paid off in the form of an agreement to proceed; an agreement to appraise. We take a deep breath, find some comfort in the magnitude of this agreed next step, then resolve to push ahead with renewed energy: a forever open Martha feels like she is within our grasp.
Stay tuned. Help us if you can.
Tiburon Open Space
415-435-9934