The new owner of a storied property in Forest Knolls paid long delinquent property taxes last week, officially ending the county’s effort to acquire the property. Victor Scheinmen, who held a lien on the property formerly owned by Josh Hedlund, took ownership of the seven-acre parcel after holding an auction in January that drew no bids. Mr. Hedlund sought to build a home there a decade ago, but a lawsuit over impacts to a nearby stream stopped him; he subsequently pled guilty and went to prison for marijuana cultivation and money laundering. He hadn’t paid property taxes on the land since 2007. Last fall, the county authorized funds of over $100,000 to pay the back taxes and take ownership of the property for the purpose of “stream conservation.” (Owners must fail to pay state property taxes for five years before a government can pay the taxes to the state itself.) The owner, whoever it might have been, had till April to pay the taxes to stop that process. Mr. Scheinman told the Light in an email that he hopes to interest local groups or the county in purchasing the parcel. “I still would prefer to sell the property to the County and any local organizations who would preserve the property as open space for public use,” he wrote. “The price would be my costs and investment to any sale date,” which he estimated at about $375,000. However, Steve Kinsey, West Marin’s county supervisor, said Marin’s interest in owning the property was likely over. “At this point, I do not expect the County to pursue acquisition of the property, owing to the potentially significantly greater market value of the property,” he said in an email. “However, if at some point in the future, the new land owner or any other interested party chooses to approach the County to propose participation in a purchase for resource protection purposes, the issue would be considered on its merits at that time.” He added, “Regardless of the outcome in this instance, the good news for taxpayers is that the County coffers were made whole on the back taxes that were owed as a result of our initiative.”