British Filmmaker Makes Play for 99-Acre Fairfax Open Space

A massive, privately owned swath of open space in Fairfax whose future has been the subject of a slew of buzz over the years is once again the talk of the town, with its owners reportedly in contract with a buyer and an eccentric British filmmaker vying to make a competing bid for it.

“It’s a historical moment for the town to try and preserve that hill for the enjoyment of the community,” said Martin Dunkerton, who hopes to buy the hilly 99-acre property behind St. Rita’s Church and preserve most of it, hopefully with the backing of Town of Fairfax. “The decision the town makes right now is very critical. If the deal as it is go through, that whole area could be effectively destroyed forever.”

At the moment, Dunkerton appears to be on the outside looking in, hoping to win the support of the community for his own proposal in case the offer in contract – reportedly from “a local, well-capitalized developer” – falls through. The property, which has been owned by the Wall family of Fairfax since 1956 and is zoned for no more than one house per 10 acres, or nine total houses on 99 acres, was briefly listed at $1.85 million. The sale is being brokered by Kidder Mathews, whose listing for the property calls it “a once-in-a-lifetime development opportunity."

Dunkerton said he was shocked to find out that town officials didn’t know the property was in contract.

“It’s crazy – the most prominent hill in town is a bit of a secret,” he said.

Dunkerton said he plans to offer $2 million for the land, putting down $1 million in cash and guaranteeing another $1 million with the hopes that the town could raise it over 15 years to preserve most of it – paying for it himself it it can't.

Dunkerton said he’s able to make such an offer by selling his $2 million house on a canal in the Southern California beach town of Venice, a home that was given to him by his brother Julian, the founder of fast-growing clothing retailer SuperDry, which opened a store in San Francisco in 2010.

He’d build one home for himself on the property, along with an “eco-dome” wedding chapel (illustration above) and community space, as well as a small farm that would serve as an educational resource to “teach kids about permaculture.”

Dunkerton said he’s open to other ideas as well. He’s has been renting a place in San Rafael and hopes to move to Marin to be close to a woman he fell in love with recently. As he’s spent more time in Marin in recent months, Dunkerton said he’s gravitated towards Fairfax, given his love of nature and his own background in organic farming (his 80-year-old father makes an alcoholic apple cider).

“Obviously I’m willing to work with town leaders and formulate something that is to the benefit of the town,” he said. “I want the community be to be behind my offer.”

Dunkerton is the founder of Creation Films, a Santa Monica, Calif.-based documentary film company that makes “movies to help transform your soul,” according to its website. He went to Los Angeles nine years ago for a film project and stayed. He’s currently in Pine Ridge, South Dakota to interview the 86-year-old great-granddaughter of Crazy Horse for the third film in a trilogy based in Think and Grow Rich, a self-help book published in 1937 by Napoleon Hill.

Before he left for South Dakota, he unveiled his plans for the Wall property to the town’s open space committee, with Fairfax Mayor John Reed on hand as well.

“I feel really positive about Martin’s presentation,” said Mimi Newton, a member of the Fairfax Open Space Committee, an advisory board to the Fairfax Town Council. “I’m informally encouraging people to work with Martin and see what might be developed in terms of having him move forward with an offer.”

The committee meets again at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday night at the Fairfax Youth Center, with Dunkerton’s proposal among the items on the agenda.

“If you had a really minimal impact, which is certainly what Martin pitched, that would certainly be popular with a lot of members in the town that are not in favor of seeing McMansions lining the ridgeline,” Reed said, noting that “the topography of that property is such that it would probably be hard to even fit the number of houses that it’s zoned for.”

Reed was quick to emphasize, however, that no level of support for Dunkerton’s proposal would free him of the restrictions on the land, from the zoning to the town’s Ridgeline Scenic Corridor ordinance. He also said the town would be more likely to support a public easement on the land because of the liability associated with the hilly open space.

Town Manager Garrett Toy said that the unknown, would-be buyer of the Wall property hasn't spoken to town officials either informally or with a formal presentation. Dunkerton met with town staff and made his presentation to open space committee on Saturday, Toy said.

Dunkerton said he also hopes to move his film company to Marin, call it LoveEarth.com and base it and an “organic garden café” out of the old gas station that former Grateful Dead bassist originally planned to open his Terrapin Crossroads music venue and restaurant. But before any of that, he hopes to move to Fairfax and protect the Wall property for generations to come.

“Right now there’s one way this can go – what I’m offering is another way,” he said. “This way everyone would win – the Wall family would always be thanked for preserving the land for the people.”