On Thursday September 3, 2009, the Ross Valley Seniors were given a special guided tour of the long-closed Marin Town & Country Club in Fairfax, California. For many of the attendees it was their first look at the fondly remembered recreation site in nearly forty years -- or longer.
It's been written by other visitors that time seems to have stood still at MT&CC. Although the former summer cottages are now occupied by long-term tenants, the abandoned swimming pools, picnic areas and playgrounds have been left virtually untouched. MT&CC is a place where Coca Cola and Pepsi ice chests lie rusting alongside abandoned barbecue pits, and discarded cash registers and Ping-Pong paddles litter the floors of padlocked concession stands.
"Max Friedman operated the property as the Marin Town and Country Club, a first class public recreational resort from 1944 until the end of its 1972 season. The property consisted of some 32 plus acres. The 26 on the south side of the creek comprised the glen. On the glen were situated the former restaurant building, (once operated by the Pastoris but used during the Emporium era as the club house), a number of small cottages and bungalows, a barn, a large swimming pool, tennis courts and a large open field, (a section of which was used as a baseball diamond with accompanying covered bleachers.)"