The Last Resort—one man’s elaborate, idiosyncratically engineered experiment in sustainable architecture—may yet live on in Lagunitas despite the county’s repeated attempts to shut it down.
At a hearing on Monday in Marin County Superior Court, the court-appointed receiver for the property said two foundations dedicated to preserving innovative architecture have expressed interest in helping bring the Tibetan-inspired compound into compliance with county codes.
“It does appear as though we have some nonprofit charitable organizations that are well funded and who are very interested in preserving the property notwithstanding the very high cost to do so,” said Eric Beatty, the receiver from San Bernardino who is tasked with resolving the property’s fate.
Mr. Beatty took control of the property on June 1, the most recent of many eviction deadlines the court has given the owner, tea merchant David Lee Hoffman. The receiver has begun securing the site, and Mr. Hoffman has begun removing his belongings from the compound.
“That is a fluid, long process because Mr. Hoffman has a very large amount of personal items at the property,” Mr. Beatty said.
Judge Andrew Sweet agreed to give the receiver time to work out an arrangement with the two nonprofits. The site could potentially operate as a museum if they are able to address the dozens of violations that county code inspectors have identified on the property over the last several decades.
Mr. Beatty identified the nonprofits as the Buckminster Fuller Institute and the Kohler Foundation but offered little information beyond their names.
Reached by the Light on Monday, both organizations confirmed they had been in talks with Mr. Beatty but declined to say more.
The Buckminster Fuller Institute was founded to carry on the legacy of R. Buckminster Fuller, a visionary architect, designer, inventor and philosopher who, among other things, popularized the geodesic dome.
“BFI is dedicated to the realization of R. Buckminster Fuller’s vision of a world that works for 100% of humanity without ecological offense or disadvantage of anyone, by means of a design science revolution,” according to the organization’s website.
The Wisconsin-based Kohler Foundation is dedicated to preserving art collections and “art environments.” “In some cases, artists have transformed their homes and/or their yards into powerful and unique works of art,” its website states.
Mr. Hoffman regards The Last Resort a model of how humans can live in harmony with the environment without squandering its natural resources.
In February, California’s Historical Resources Commission nominated the site for inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places. “This is a piece of art that should be preserved, shared and used as a model for how we need to live sustainably in the future,” one commissioner said at the time.
The commissioners rebuffed pleas from county officials, who sent a letter urging them to vote against The Last Resort. They maintained that the code violations at the property endanger the health and safety of neighbors, occupants and the public.
But friends, neighbors and fans have rallied to Mr. Hoffman’s cause, forming a nonprofit called The Lagunitas Project and seeking donations to preserve the site. Mr. Beatty told the court that their efforts had not generated sufficient funds, but he expressed confidence that the Buckminster Fuller Institute and the Kohler Foundation had the means to follow through.
During his 50 years developing the site, Mr. Hoffman, who is 79, did not apply for building permits. As he tells it, when he began the project in 1973, the county was less diligent about enforcement.
A self-taught architect and engineer, Mr. Hoffman purchased the two-acre property for $30,000 in the early 1970s after returning from years of travel in Asia, including long stays in Nepal. It was the back-to-the-land era, when scores of the environmentally minded moved to Marin.
Over the years, Mr. Hoffman built dozens of unpermitted structures, from a pagoda and a cave where he stores aged tea to elaborate wastewater and greywater systems. He designed a worm-powered composting toilet called “Le Petit Pissoir” and the three-story, solar-powered Shower Tower. The property is built from recycled materials, including granite from China’s Fujian Province, cobblestones from San Francisco and slate shingles from the Los Angeles estate of musician Don Henley.
Judge Sweet scheduled another hearing for Sept. 16, when Mr. Beatty will update him on his conversations with the nonprofits.
In an interview after the hearing, Mr. Hoffman said he was greatly encouraged that the two organizations had stepped forward. He built The Last Resort as an example of what humans can do to preserve the environment for generations to come. “I have two grandsons, and I want to make sure that they have a planet to live on,” he said.
After pouring his heart and soul into his land for 50 years, turning it over to the receiver wasn’t easy, Mr. Hoffman said.
“My hope was that when people came to visit, they would leave being inspired,” he said. “I was wrong. They got inspired as soon as they walked up the driveway.”
He is satisfied with his legacy. “I’ve done my work,” he said. “My work is complete.”