City of Mill Valley
NYT Reporter Conor Dougherty Has Long Educated Marin & Larger Bay Area About How Best to Navigate Housing, Whether its ‘Abundance,’ Affordability, Now He Suggests ‘America Needs New Cities – a Whole City from Scratch. It’s Been Done Before & Might Solve the Housing Crisis
In the United States, where real estate is ultimately about profit and loss, the best way to bend the paradigm is to prove something different can be lucrative. But first you have to build it.
Read MoreCity Hall Has Nearly 60 Projects It Wants to Accomplish – Vitality, Branding Mill Valley as a Destination, Signage, Farmers Market… Councilmember Urban Carmel: “It’s More Like a 5-Year Plan.”
In the latter part of 2025, the Mill Valley City Council, led by then-incoming Mayor Max Perrey, made it clear that the intentions for the City of Mill Valley were bold. That has become increasingly clear in 2026, with Perrey and the rest of the City Council unveiling a Work Plan that spans nearly 60 projects it seeks to accomplish or launch over the next two years. The to-do list includes building a public works complex and multimillion-dollar renovations at the golf course clubhouse and library. It includes creating a recurring “Miller Nights” event series where streets would be closed for music, dining and kids’ activities. The list also includes extending local taxes and raising new revenues, developing affordable housing, updating traffic signals and transit options, making progress on sea-level rise and wildfire protection, further streamlining the permit process and expanding neighborhood and community-wide events.
Read MoreThe Mercury News: Are California Businesses Overregulated? This Researcher Compared Requirements Across States
For decades, business leaders have complained that California’s regulatory climate has overburdened companies across the state, blaming a morass of rules, permits and paperwork for pushing businesses and jobs out of state and holding back economic growth. To help measure the impact of the regulations, the Public Policy Institute of California, a nonprofit, nonpartisan think tank, sought to compare the number of business requirements in the state with those in other parts of the country. In a new report, researchers with the PPIC found that while California is not an outlier nationwide when it comes to state and local business regulations, it has by far the most specific constraints on businesses — defined as regulations containing the words “shall,” “must,” “may not,” “required” and “prohibited.” Researchers found states with more of these types of strict regulations — ranging from environmental standards to consumer safety protections — tend to see fewer new businesses forming, though the report stopped short of establishing a definitive causal relationship.
Read MoreScenes from Marin Sanitary Service in San Rafael: New Report Lays Out Just How Bad California’s Recycling System Is – Will New Legislation Change Anything?
California acts as a model for environmental legislation across the country, spearheading strict regulations and pushing the boundaries on climate action. Even still, its recycling rates remain dismally low. A recent report from CalRecycle, the state agency that oversees recycling and waste disposal in California, estimates just how few of our milk cartons, peanut butter jars and takeout containers actually end up being properly recycled. Spoiler alert: The results are enough to make any concerned citizen feel miserable about the prospect of their yogurt container getting new life. Despite California’s best efforts, no material category came in anywhere near a recycling rate of 100%. The biggest offenders were aseptic and gable-top cartons — the common containers of milk, juice and broth — with less than 1% of those materials recycled.
Read MoreEconomic Outlook for 2026 Indicates North Bay at a Crossroads: Economist Robert Eyler Warns of Stagnation, Structural Shifts, Uneven Paths Forward
The North Bay economy is undergoing a profound transition marked by stalled job growth, shifting demographics, housing market stagnation and a wine industry facing long-term restructuring. While the challenges are significant, a noted local economist said opportunities remain — if regional leaders understand the depth of the changes underway and respond with coordinated, realistic strategies. Robert Eyler, an economics professor at Sonoma State University and president of Economic Forensics and Analytics, presented his analysis. Using county-level data, statewide and national trends, he described an economy that is no longer behaving as Californians have historically expected, particularly in regions once seen as beneficiaries of pandemic-era migration. Unprecedented jobs plateau. One of the most striking indicators Eyler presented was California’s prolonged lack of job growth. “We’ve seen about a 24-month period in which we had zero jobs growth in California, which is unprecedented in the recorded history of California’s economy outside of recession,” he said. cross the North Bay, that stagnation shows up in different ways. Sonoma and Marin counties remain below their pre-pandemic labor force levels. Napa County has posted modest gains, while Mendocino County has remained largely flat. “The Bay Area and California economies showed encouraging signs of labor market stabilization in November,” Anderson told the news outlet.
Read MoreOn January 12, City Council Considers Reapproving Bayfront Terrace Project With a Modified Project Footprint for the Site of 1.60 acres & No Additional Changes to the Design – Hearing is at 5:30pm at City Hall
On January 12, City Council Considers Reapproving Bayfront Terrace Project With a Modified Project Footprint for the Site of 1.60 acres & No Additional Changes to the Design – Hearing is at 5:30pm at City Hall. In a previous post, “We have an opportunity to change the life trajectory of 44 families,” Councilman Urban Carmel added. “Nothing can change your life trajectory more than the place you grew up in. This is really exciting and gratifying – I can’t imagine a better moment.”
Read MoreThe Outdoor Art Club Hosts an Extraordinary Season of Deep Dives into the Arts, Local Politics & the Natural World, From Grammy-Nominated Legends to World-Class Climate Scientists!
The OAC’s public speaker programs for 2025-2026 begin in September. We hope you will join us for an engaging year of speaker programs and public events. Be sure to note the location for each program. Our Clubhouse will be closed from January through May as our kitchen undergoes a major renovation. Programs during that period will be at various locations.
Read MoreAfter a 9-Year-Hiatus, The Redwoods Is Bringing Back the Celebration of Service Awards – This Event Recognizes Individuals of all ages whose service strengthens Mill Valley and enriches the lives of our seniors
As we look forward, we honor our history: after a nine-year hiatus, we are bringing back our beloved Celebration of Service Awards. Founded by Bob Canepa in 1994, this event recognizes individuals of all ages whose service strengthens Mill Valley and enriches the lives of our seniors. On Sunday, April 26th at 2pm, we will proudly revive this tradition, once again free and open to the public. We hope you’ll join us as we recognize community members in five categories: youth service, adult service, resident service, teaching excellence, and public safety.
Read MoreMarin IJ: Marin Officials Question Projections in Regional Growth Plan – Draft Plan Bay Area 2050+
While the number of Marin households is projected to grow from 108,000 to 131,000 by 2050, the job growth is projected to be stagnant, with a job base remaining at 126,000 over the same time period, the plan says. Across the region, the plan anticipates a population growth of about 7.7 million to 9.6 million, which is nearly four times the forecast provided by the California Department of Finance. Mill Valley Mayor Max Perrey said city officials agree that MTC and ABAG need to revise their projections and develop better mitigations to address impacts to wildfire risk, water supply, emergency services, air quality and flooding, among other issues. “The regional growth forecast the plan relies on differs from the state’s official projections, and it doesn’t take into account the changing economy, both the impact that AI will have on the workforce as well as vacancy rates for commercial space, which continues to persist,” Perrey said. “It also has a large dependence on major future funding streams that have not been secured for projects, which presents funding risks for infrastructure, for services and hazard mitigation measures.”
Read MoreMill Valley Middle School Unveils Environmental Impact Report
“It has taken time and a great deal of careful work to get here, but we are finally nearing key decisions for Mill Valley Middle School,” Sharon Nakatani, president of the district board, said in an email Friday. “The board expects to be in a position this December to certify the Final EIR and select both the interim and permanent campus plans — steps that move us toward delivering the modern middle school this community has asked for and supported from the beginning.”
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