Fire Guts MALT Founder’s Home

A three-alarm blaze badly damaged a Del Casa Drive home early Thursday and displaced its owner, Marin Agricultural Land Trust (MALT) founder Phyllis Faber.

At around 12:50 a.m. Thursday, a smoke alarm alerted a sleeping Faber of the fire, which originated in a second floor office, according to Capt. Mark Glenn. She called 911 and fled the home, escaping without injury. When fire crews arrived, flames were shooting from the rear of the home and two of its three floors were involved, Glenn said.

Mill Valley firefighters were joined by personnel from Larkspur, Corte Madera, Tiburon, Marin County Fire and Southern Marin Fire, Glenn said.

The cause of the fire is undetermined, Glenn said. The damage is estimated to be at least a couple hundred thousand dollars, he said. City officials red-tagged the residence Thursday afternoon and it was boarded up by a contractor for Faber's insurance company.

Faber, a wetland biologist, former California Coastal Commission member and longtime author of environmental books published by her Pickleweed Press, is staying with her children, according to MALT Executive Director Bob Berner.