Bay Area

Parties Work to Preserve Tiburon Peninsula Land

“Marin County Parks is pleased to support the long-time efforts of the community and now TPL to protect this stunning landscape,” said Parks Director Max Korten. “I look forward to the work ahead with all stakeholders and the potential of caring for this special place, for its unique natural resources and to provide outstanding recreation opportunities for all to enjoy.”

Published

4 years ago

June 30, 2022

Oakland Post

The private parcel above Tiburon known as the Martha Property has been with the same family for more than 100 years.

Proposal to convert Martha Property on Easton Point into County open space

Courtesy of Marin County

One of the most pristine pieces of undeveloped property in the San Francisco Bay Area could be preserved as open space under a proposed agreement between the County of Marin, the property ownership group, and an environmentally minded nonprofit.

The 110-acre parcel on Easton Point, often called the Martha Property because of the ownership group’s name, is near the southern tip of the Tiburon Peninsula and overlooking Tiburon, Belvedere, Sausalito, Angel Island, San Francisco, the Golden Gate Bridge, and beyond. For more than 50 years, nearby residents were uncertain whether the land would be developed for homes or left unscathed for the preservation of nature and recreational purposes. The land has been with the same family for more than 100 years.

On June 21, the Marin County Open Space District Board of Directors will discuss a proposed purchase and sale agreement for the County to acquire the Martha Property from the ownership group and partner with the Trust for Public Land (TPL) on a two-year plan to raise funds and finalize the purchase. The goal would be to transfer the property to the Open Space District and either add it to the existing adjacent Old Saint Hilary’s Open Space Preserve or create a new preserve.

Tiburon Peninsula residents have longed to protect the Martha-owned parcel, which is habitat for several species of rare native plants. Its preservation and acquisition is cited in the Open Space District’s strategic plan of 2008 and long-range plans of the nonprofit Greenbelt Alliance.

The terms of the purchase agreement include $26.1 million from the Open Space District and a term expiration date of Aug. 30, 2024. Of that price, approximately $18 million would be raised by a localized special tax known as a Mello-Roos bond measure – the same arrangement that was made to purchase the Old Saint Hilary’s site in the late 1990s. If approved by a two-thirds majority of voters in the November 2022 election, only property owners in Tiburon east of Trestle Glen Boulevard and the City of Belvedere would be subjected to the tax.

The total price of the land is $42.1 million, pending several conditions to closing stipulated by the agreement. The breakdown in funding sources would be: $18 million from the Mello-Roos bond measure; $15 million from private donations coordinated by TPL; $6 million from Measure A tax revenues; $2.1 from the Old Saint Hilary’s bond measures in 1993 and 1997.

Measure A, which is on pace to be renewed with approximately 75% support during the June 7 election, is a quarter-cent sales tax that supports parks, open space, and sustainable agriculture across Marin.

The deal would not proceed if voters reject the Mello-Roos bond measure or if TPL is unsuccessful in raising the private funds.

For more details on the proposal, see the Open Space District’s staff report and presentation to the Board of Supervisors and the TPL statement.

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Oakland Post: Week of February 25 – March 3, 2026

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of – February 25 – March 3, 2026

Published

4 days ago

March 1, 2026

Oakland Post

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Chase Oakland Community Center Hosts Alley-Oop Accelerator Building Community and Opportunity for Bay Area Entrepreneurs

Over the past three years, the Alley-Oop Accelerator has helped more than 20 Bay Area businesses grow, connect, and gain meaningful exposure. The program combines hands-on training, mentorship, and community-building to help participants navigate the legal, financial, and marketing challenges of small business ownership.

Published

2 weeks ago

February 21, 2026

Oakland Post

Bay Area entrepreneurs attend the Alley-Oop Accelerator, a small business incubation program at Chase Oakland Community Center. Photo by Carla Thomas.

By Carla Thomas

The Golden State Warriors and Chase bank hosted the third annual Alley-Oop Accelerator this month, an empowering eight-week program designed to help Bay Area entrepreneurs bring their visions for business to life.

The initiative kicked off on Feb. 12 at Chase’s Oakland Community Center on Broadway Street, welcoming 15 small business owners who joined a growing network of local innovators working to strengthen the region’s entrepreneurial ecosystem.

At its core, the accelerator is designed to create an ecosystem of collaboration, where local entrepreneurs can learn from one another while accessing the resources of a global financial institution.

“This is our third year in a row working with the Golden State Warriors on the Alley-Oop Accelerator,” said Jaime Garcia, executive director of Chase’s Coaching for Impact team for the West Division. “We’ve already had 20-plus businesses graduate from the program, and we have 15 enrolled this year. The biggest thing about the program is really the community that’s built amongst the business owners — plus the exposure they’re able to get through Chase and the Golden State Warriors.”

According to Garcia, several graduates have gone on to receive vendor contracts with the Warriors and have gained broader recognition through collaborations with JPMorgan Chase.

“A lot of what Chase is trying to do,” Garcia added, “is bring businesses together because what they’ve asked for is an ecosystem, a network where they can connect, grow, and thrive organically.”

This year’s Alley-Oop Accelerator reflects that vision through its comprehensive curriculum and emphasis on practical learning. Participants explore the full spectrum of business essentials including financial management, marketing strategy, and legal compliance, while also preparing for real-world experiences such as pop-up market events.

Each entrepreneur benefits from one-on-one mentoring sessions through Chase’s Coaching for Impact program, which provides complimentary, personalized business consulting.

Garcia described the impact this hands-on approach has had on local small business owners. He recalled one candlemaker, who, after participating in the program, was invited to provide candles as gifts at Chase events.

“We were able to help give that business exposure,” he explained. “But then our team also worked with them on how to access capital to buy inventory and manage operations once those orders started coming in. It’s about preparation. When a hiccup happens, are you ready to handle it?”

The Coaching for Impact initiative, which launched in 2020 in just four cities, has since expanded to 46 nationwide.

“Every business is different,” Garcia said. “That’s why personal coaching matters so much. It’s life-changing.”

Participants in the 2026 program will each receive a $2,500 stipend, funding that Garcia said can make an outsized difference. “It’s amazing what some people can do with just $2,500,” he noted. “It sounds small, but it goes a long way when you have a plan for how to use it.”

For Chase and the Warriors, the Alley-Oop Accelerator represents more than an educational initiative, it’s a pathway to empowerment and economic inclusion. The program continues to foster lasting relationships among the entrepreneurs who, as Garcia put it, “build each other up” through shared growth and opportunity.

“Starting a business is never easy, but with the right support, it becomes possible, and even exhilarating,” said Oscar Lopez, the senior business consultant for Chase in Oakland.