SPECIAL TOWN COUNCIL MEETING
STAFF REPORT
MEETING DATE July 22, 2026
PREPARED FOR Mayor and Town Council
PREPARED BY Christine Foster, Assistant to the Town Manager/Deputy Town Clerk SUBJECT Adopt a Resolution Establishing Official Names for the 100-acre Open Space commonly know as the “Wall Property”, Its Features, and Its Trails
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends that the Town Council:
• Receive the report and the final naming recommendations of the Fairfax Open Space Committee (FOSC), the Town Council subcommittee, and the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria (FIGR); • Adopt a resolution establishing the official names for the 100-acre open space, its features, and its trails as set forth in this report; and
• Direct staff to proceed with the design, fabrication, and installation of identification, regulatory, and funding-acknowledgement signage consistent with the adopted names.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The Town acquired the 100-acre “Wall Property” in 2024 and has since worked with the community to establish permanent names for the property and its features. Following an extensive public nomination process, the Fairfax Open Space Committee forwarded a slate of recommended names to the Town Council on December 2, 2025. On January 12, 2026, the Council established a subcommittee of Mayor Hellman and Vice Mayor Egger to work with FOSC and the community to refine those recommendations.
A central outstanding item was the proposed use of an Indigenous name for the property's principal fire road. The subcommittee and staff formally requested a recommendation from the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria, the federally recognized tribe on whose ancestral homelands the property sits. On April 28, 2026, the FIGR Tribal Council — acting on the recommendation of its Sacred Sites Protection Committee and Cultural Resources Department — recommended the name Liile Yomi, meaning “the high place” or “the high up place.” FOSC subsequently voted unanimously to apply that name to the fire road as Liile Yomi Way, replacing FOSC’s previous placeholder name “Miwok Way.” With the Tribe's recommendation now received, the naming slate is complete and ready for Council adoption.
BACKGROUND
The Town of Fairfax acquired the 100-acre property in 2024, preserving it as permanent public open space with support and funding from Measure A, the California Coastal Conservancy, Marin Open Space
Trust, and community donors. Following the acquisition, FOSC initiated a community-based process to gather public input on potential names for the property and its features.
Public input was collected during several community events throughout 2025, including the Fairfax Festival/Ecofest in June, the Town Picnic in September, and through online outreach that continued into the fall. The process generated approximately 100 suggestions from residents. An ad hoc committee of FOSC met in November 2025 to narrow the submissions and forwarded a recommended slate to the full Committee, which adopted the recommendations at its meeting of December 2, 2025.
On January 12, 2026, the Town Council established a subcommittee of two Councilmembers and appointed Mayor Hellman and Vice Mayor Egger to serve. The subcommittee's role was to work with FOSC and the community to review, refine, and contextualize the naming options and to address any procedural, historical, or cultural factors bearing on the process.
At its January 27, 2026 meeting, FOSC reviewed the recommendations and the results of a community survey on Wall Property and trail naming. The Committee identified next steps including signage and, significantly, obtaining the consent and recommendation of the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria (FIGR) before proceeding with any Indigenous place name. The Town submitted its formal inquiry to FIGR on January 30, 2026.
TRIBAL CONSULTATION
The Town's inquiry was carried by the FIGR Cultural Programs Manager to the Tribal Council in February 2026. The Tribal Council directed the Tribe's Cultural Resources Department, under the leadership of its Tribal Heritage Preservation Officer, to consult with the Tribe's Sacred Sites Protection Committee (SSPC) regarding potential names. Members of the SSPC had attended the Town's ribbon-cutting event for the property and were familiar with the site and its characteristics.
The SSPC met over the following weeks to develop and formalize a recommendation, which was then returned to the Cultural Resources Department and to the Tribal Council for action. Throughout this period the subcommittee and staff maintained regular contact with FIGR staff to align the Town's process with the Tribe's own internal review requirements.
On April 28, 2026, FIGR advised the Town that the Tribal Council had landed on the recommended name Liile Yomi, which translates as “the high place” or “the high up place.” The Tribe advises that the name is pronounced “lee-lay yo-me.” The Tribe further offered its continued assistance to the Town on next steps, including signage.
The Fairfax Open Space Committee met and, on April 30, 2026, voted unanimously to apply the Tribe's recommended name to the property's principal path — the upper Marinda Drive fire road — as Liile Yomi Way. This name replaces the placeholder “Miwok Way” that appeared in the Committee's December 2025 recommendations, which had been forwarded expressly subject to tribal approval.
DISCUSSION
Staff concludes that the naming process is complete and that the recommended slate reflects both broad community input and appropriate cultural consultation. Staff recommends that the Council adopt the following names by resolution.
Entire Property
• FAIRFAX OPEN SPACE PRESERVE — the name recommended by FOSC for the property as a whole.
Features and Lookouts
• THE BRIGHT SIDE OVERLOOK (bench area) — recognizing the bench already located at this site honoring the memory of Diane Bright, given by her husband, Ted Bright. • JESSICA’S SPIRAL (spiral level, where the Wall Family bench is located) — in memory of Jessica Green, who loved the spiral and provided a $40,000 donation toward acquisition of the property. • REDFORD RIDGE (the ridge at the top of the property above the housing) — in honor of local environmentalists and filmmakers the late Robert Redford and James “Jamie” Redford. Jamie Redford, a Fairfax resident, was instrumental in helping the community raise funds for the acquisition of Sky Ranch.
• MARINDA PERCH (at one of the upper levels of the property, exact location to be determined).
Staff will work with FOSC to determine the exact location of the signs for Redford Ridge and Marinda Perch.
Trails
• LIILE YOMI WAY (the upper Marinda Drive fire road) — recommended by the Tribal Council of the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria and adopted unanimously by FOSC. • MOST TRAIL (the other major maintained trail on the property) — honoring the Marin Open Space Trust and those who assisted in the acquisition of the property.
Signage
Adoption of the names will allow staff to proceed with a coordinated signage program. In addition to identification signs for the property, features, and trails, the following signage is required or recommended:
• Town park and open space rules signage;
• An entrance sign at the Marinda Drive fire road entrance; • Recognition that Measure A funds were used to acquire the open space property; • Acknowledgement signage for the California Coastal Conservancy in recognition of its contribution; and
• A sign for Kite Hill, adjacent to the property, which appears on maps but is currently unsigned.
FIGR has offered to assist the Town with signage, and staff recommends that the Tribe be consulted on the design, spelling, and pronunciation guidance for any sign bearing the Liile Yomi name.
COMMUNITY OUTREACH
The naming process was community driven. FOSC gathered approximately 100 name nominations from residents through in-person engagement at the Fairfax Festival/Ecofest and the Town Picnic and through online submissions, then narrowed and adopted its recommendations in noticed public meetings. FOSC subsequently conducted a community survey on property and trail naming, which the Council subcommittee reviewed with the Committee in early 2026. Formal consultation with the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria took place between January and April 2026 and produced the Liile Yomi recommendation reflected in this report.
FISCAL IMPACT
There is no fiscal impact associated with the adoption of the names themselves.
Implementation of the signage will have a cost. Staff estimates the total cost of identification, regulatory, and acknowledgement signage at approximately $1,500 for standard durable metal signs purchased through the Marin County Sign Shop. Funds are available in the FY 2026–27 budget in the 51-829 Measure A Parks for Wall Property or 01-611-842 Park Maintenance Supplies.
ATTACHMENTS
A. Map Identifying the named features and trails
B. Fairfax Open Space Committee Name Recommendations (December 2025) C. Resolution Establishing Official Names
FAIRFAX OPEN SPACE PRESERVE
The Bright Side
Overlook
Jessica's Spiral
MOST Trail
Liile Yomi Way
ATTACHMENT A ***Staff will work with FOSC to determine the exact location of the signs for Redford Ridge and Marinda Perch.
ATTACHMENT B
DECEMBER 2025
ATTACHMENT B
DECEMBER 2025
Dear Fairfax Town Officials,
This is a summary of the decisions and recommendations from the Fairfax Open Space Committee at our December 2, 2025 meeting that pertain to naming Wall property. The Town and FOSC received about 100 suggestions / nominations from the annual Fairfax Festival / Ecofest in June, online this summer and fall until the Town Picnic in September, and beyond that time period.
Our Ad Hoc Committee in November narrowed down the choices and submitted recommendations to the full Fairfax Open Space Committee for the December 2, 2025 meeting.
Here are the FOSC recommendations:
Entire Property: FAIRFAX OPEN SPACE PRESERVE
Bench Area: THE BRIGHT SIDE OVERLOOK
(where the bench is already located honoring the memory of Diane Bright by gift of her husband, Ted Bright)
Spiral Level: (where Wall Family bench is already located) JESSICA’S SPIRAL (in memory of Jessica Green who loved the spiral and provided a $40,000 donation for acquisition of the Wall property)
Sites and Lookouts:
REDFORD RIDGE (in honor of local environmentalists and filmmakers the late Robert Redford and James “Jamie” Redford. Jamie, the late Fairfax resident, was instrumental in helping the community raise funds for acquisition of Sky Ranch.
This ridge is at the top of the property above the housing.) MARINDA PERCH (at one of the upper levels of the property to be determined) Trails:
MIWOK WAY (this is now the upper Marinda Drive fire road.) Permission to rename this as Miwok Way may need approval from the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria and Coast Miwok Tribe.
MOST TRAIL (for the other major maintained trail on the property to honor the Marin Open Space Trust and those helping in acquisition of the property. FOSC member Michael Reeves will work with someone from the Fairfax Planning Department to identify this trail on the map for the Town Council packet.
ATTACHMENT B
DECEMBER 2025
ATTACHMENT B
DECEMBER 2025
Other Signage:
The Town of Fairfax will also need to install signs about the Town’s parks and open space rules.
The Marinda Drive fire road may need a sign at that entrance.
Also required:
- Recognition that Measure A funds were used to acquire the open space property. - California Coastal Commission signs as acknowledgement for their contribution.
Other Signage:
Kite Hill, adjacent to the Wall property, is listed on maps, but there is no sign.
Town of Fairfax ATTACHMENT C
Resolution No. 2026-
RESOLUTION NO. 2026-
A RESOLUTION OF THE TOWN COUNCIL OF THE TOWN OF FAIRFAX ESTABLISHING OFFICIAL NAMES FOR THE 100-ACRE OPEN SPACE PROPERTY COMMONLY KNOWN AS THE “WALL PROPERTY,” ITS FEATURES, AND ITS TRAILS WHEREAS, the Town of Fairfax acquired the 100-acre property commonly known as the “Wall Property” in 2024, preserving it as permanent public open space with support and funding from Measure A, the California Coastal Conservancy, the Marin Open Space Trust, and community donors; and WHEREAS, following the acquisition, the Fairfax Open Space Committee (FOSC) initiated a communitybased naming process that gathered approximately 100 name nominations from residents at the Fairfax Festival/Ecofest, the Town Picnic, and through online outreach during 2025, and FOSC adopted a recommended slate of names at its duly noticed meeting of December 2, 2025; and WHEREAS, on January 12, 2026, the Town Council established a subcommittee consisting of Mayor Hellman and Vice Mayor Egger to work with FOSC and the community to review, refine, and contextualize the naming recommendations, including review of the results of a community survey on property and trail naming; and
WHEREAS, the proposed use of an Indigenous name for the property’s principal fire road was forwarded expressly subject to the consent and recommendation of the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria (FIGR), the federally recognized tribe on whose ancestral homelands the property sits, and the Town submitted a formal inquiry to FIGR on January 30, 2026; and WHEREAS, on April 28, 2026, the FIGR Tribal Council, acting on the recommendation of its Sacred Sites Protection Committee and Cultural Resources Department, recommended the name Liile Yomi, meaning “the high place” or “the high up place,” and on April 30, 2026, FOSC voted unanimously to apply that name to the upper Marinda Drive fire road as Liile Yomi Way, replacing the placeholder name “Miwok Way”.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Town Council of the Town of Fairfax hereby:
1. Adopts and establishes the following official names for the 100-acre open space property, its features, and its trails, as recommended by the Fairfax Open Space Committee, the Town Council subcommittee, and the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria:
FAIRFAX OPEN SPACE PRESERVE — the property as a whole;
THE BRIGHT SIDE OVERLOOK — the bench area honoring the memory of Diane Bright; JESSICA’S SPIRAL — the spiral level where the Wall Family bench is located, in memory of Jessica Green;
REDFORD RIDGE — the ridge at the top of the property, in honor of the late Robert Redford and James “Jamie” Redford;
MARINDA PERCH — an upper level of the property;
LIILE YOMI WAY — the upper Marinda Drive fire road, as recommended by the Tribal Council of the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria; and
MOST TRAIL — the other major maintained trail on the property, honoring the Marin Open Space Trust.
Town of Fairfax ATTACHMENT C
Resolution No. 2026-
2. Provides that the adoption of these names does not establish the specific locations of signs, which shall be determined by staff in consultation with the Fairfax Open Space Committee and, for any sign bearing the Liile Yomi name, in consultation with the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria regarding design, spelling, and pronunciation guidance.
3. Provides that this resolution shall become effective immediately upon its adoption.
PASSED, APPROVED, AND ADOPTED by the Town Council of the Town of Fairfax at a duly noticed meeting held in said Town on the 22nd day of July, 2026, by the following vote:
AYES:
NOES:
ABSTAIN:
ABSENT:
_____________________________
STEPHANIE HELLMAN
MAYOR
ATTEST
_____________________________
CHRISTINE FOSTER
DEPUTY TOWN CLERK