Initial election results are in, and it appears that Marin voters have rejected Measure D, the initiative that would have required the county to get voter approval before changing golf as the primary use of the former San Geronimo golf course. 

Elsewhere on the ballot, Supervisor Dennis Rodoni was re-elected, and Measure C, a tax for fire prevention, is too close to call—but supporters are encouraged by early returns.

The Measure D result is a blow to golf advocates, who argued that Marin County officials overreached when they orchestrated the Trust for Public Land’s purchase of the property. The initiative was divisive, with both sides accusing the other of dishonesty.

With the measure in their rearview mirror, the trust is now free to move forward with its plans to turn the property into a park.

“The vote on Measure D is a win for the people of Marin, and we look forward to continuing to work with the community on a vision for the property that ensures habitat restoration, fire safety, trail connections and a community gathering space,” said Guillermo Rodriguez, the trust’s director in California.

The trust will release a document that outlines its vision and goals for the property later this year.

Supervisor Dennis Rodoni was re-elected by a wide margin over Lagunitas resident Alex Easton-Brown. He will begin his second four-year term as the representative for District 4 in January.

“I’m thrilled to have an opportunity to get another term,” he said. “We’ve got plenty of work to do.”

His top agenda items this year are to get a full count in the United States census, to adopt a single-use plastic ban and to support long-term leases for ranchers in the Point Reyes National Seashore. He plans to continue holding office hours in West Marin: he credits his victory to being available and responsive to specific community needs.

Measure C, which would levy a 10-cent per building square foot tax for a coordinated countywide fire prevention effort, hangs in the balance. Needing two-thirds approval, the yes vote currently sits at 67 percent.

Fire chief Jason Weber, who spearheaded the effort, is optimistic that it will pass. “Garnering this level of support from the community for such an important issue is energizing,” he said. “We look forward to the additional returns coming in and thank everyone for the support.”

If the measure fails, the Marin Wildfire Prevention Authority, which consists of 17 fire agencies, would dissolve without funding. If it passes, the authority would have an annual income of about $20 million beginning next year. The authority would hold an initial board meeting and request a bridge loan from supervisors to start work immediately. Each member agency, which includes the fire protection districts in Inverness, Bolinas, Stinson Beach and Muir Beach, would select a board director to serve as its representative.

“Our intention is to put this to work immediately,” Mr. Weber said. Projects will be informed by the county’s wildfire protection plan and a document on lessons learned from the 2017 North Bay fire siege, which laid out more than 10 years’ worth of work.

Current election results include all of the ballots cast in person and the vote-by-mail ballots received by the elections department before March 3. Vote-by-mail ballots that were dropped off on or just before Election Day and provisional ballots still need to be counted.

By Friday, the department will have received all of the ballots, but it could take weeks for a final count as workers verify signatures. The county has until the end of the month to finalize the results.

The elections department hired an extra 20 people for this election cycle, which was the first major election for Marin’s new central counting voting system. Instead of poll workers counting votes at the precinct, ballots were placed in a secure bag and brought to the department.

“This was a big test because this was a big election, and I think overall things went really well,” said Lynda Roberts, the registrar of voters. 

In races that weren’t close, Marc Levine will represent the North Bay is the state assembly for another two years, and Jared Huffman will represent the north coast in the United States House of Representatives for another two years.

Measure I, an initiative put forward by the SMART board to extend its quarter-cent per dollar sales tax for 30 years, was rejected by voters, lagging far behind the two-thirds approval needed to pass. The existing tax expires in eight years, and the SMART board is expected to try again.