Following the deaths in Jonestown, lawyers for Peoples Temple filed a Petition for Dissolution. In granting the petition, Superior Court Judge Ira Brown appointed Robert Fabian to identify, evaluate, and liquidate all Temple assets in order to settle the mounting financial claims against the church.
One asset was the facility which Peoples Temple constructed in Redwood Valley a few years after its arrival in the Northern California community in 1965. The sale of the Temple complex – including the church building and three residential properties – was handled through Crescent Realty of San Francisco.
An undated real estate brochure describes the complex as a “community center.” The church building itself is a “multi-purpose structure of approximately 6800 sq. ft. … with a large indoor swimming pool, a kitchen, an office and two bathrooms with showers, surrounded by a large parking area.” While “Building No. 1” – as it is listed elsewhere in the brochure – was exempted from taxes, nowhere does the document mention Peoples Temple by name or direct reference, and the picture of the church building on the outside of brochure partially obscures the cross. Only in the overall description does the brochure suggest “The property is suitable for a residential school, retreat center, seminar or study center, or church facility.”
Crescent Realty listed the complex for sale at $300,000 and offers “institutional financing.”
Real Estate Brochure for Peoples Temple Property