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Marin Voice: Groundwater Data Matters As Sea Level Rises

Marin’s sea-level-rise planning will be stronger if groundwater, land-motion monitoring and other flood factors are integrated into existing flood-risk planning before major public investments are designed, funded or built. Marin has spent years discussing sea-level-rise risk through reports, maps and adaptation studies. One additional data layer deserves more consistent attention in public planning discussions: groundwater…

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Marin IJ Earns Top Statewide Journalism Award

The Independent Journal has won 19 awards in the California News Publishers Association’s annual journalism contest — including the award for general excellence, its top honor. The general excellence award is the IJ’s second in four years in its circulation category. The award was for consecutive editions on Oct. 26 and 27, 2025. Overall, IJ…

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Marin IJ: Editorial: Mill Valley Leaders Do What They Can to Get New Homes Built

Mill Valley is taking steps to promote construction of the type of housing the community needs. Its decision to update its zoning to allow for building more affordable housing, including so-called ā€œmicroā€ apartments, is a step toward actually seeing a long-term need addressed. The council has taken a hard look at its ā€œinclusionaryā€ requirement, a…

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MarinIJ: Marin Students Recognized for Anti-Pollution Drone Project

Four juniors at Tamalpais High School in Mill Valley have received state recognition for their environmental cleanup efforts. Justin Merlin, David De Zafra, Gideon Palestrant and Vaughn Neumann founded the Tam Air Club. As part of their work with the club, the teens built a small fixed-wing drone aircraft to survey Marin for pollution and…

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Marin IJ: Another View: Our Digital Lives Have Hidden Costs

Every time we stream a movie, upload photos, send emails or ask artificial intelligence to answer a question, the action feels effortless. The internet appears weightless — floating somewhere in an invisible ā€œcloud.ā€ But the cloud is not weightless at all. Behind every digital activity lies a vast physical infrastructure of data centers, servers, cables…

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The Southern Marin Fire Protection District Board of Directors Appointed Former Southern Marin Fire Deputy Chief & Former Mill Valley Fire Chief Tom Welch to Serve as Interim Fire Chief effective June 29, 2026.Ā 

The Southern Marin Fire Protection District Board of Directors has appointed former Southern Marin Fire Deputy Chief and former Mill Valley Fire Chief Tom Welch to serve as Interim Fire Chief effective June 29, 2026. Welch will assume the role following the retirement of Fire Chief Chris Tubbs on June 30, 2026, while the Board continues…

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A Shout out to the Rotary Club of Mill Valley as They Celebrated their 100th year of Service Above Self! They Celebrated at Boyle Park!

Our members not only volunteer to support many worthy organizations, in 2025-26 we were able to contribute a total of $54,650 in grants to the following: The Redwoods Redwoods Alzheimers Walk The Kern Project (Dog Rescue) Schurig Center for Brain Injury Recovery Rotaplast (Child Cleft Palate/Lip Surgery) RYLA – Rotary Youth Leadership Painted Bins Next Steps Liaison…

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Planting the Future: The Outdoor Art Club Gets Ready for Its Next Century

Planting the Future

If you’ve walked past the shingled building tucked behind the wisteria-covered gate at 1 West Blithedale Avenue lately, you may have noticed something: the Outdoor Art Club has been busy. In fact, over the past three years, the Club — one of the Mill Valley Chamber of Commerce’s longtime members — has quietly undertaken a once-in-a-century effort to preserve and renew one of downtown’s architectural gems. The club has hosted generations of civic gatherings, performances, celebrations, and community conversations – but few people remember that in the 1930s it narrowly escaped demolition when the City proposed turning the site into a parking lot. Now, the Club’s members have once again rolled up their sleeves to care for this landmark — this time by ensuring it meets modern safety and health standards while preserving its historic character.

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On the Heels of Multiple Planning Commission Study Sessions, City Council Will Dictate the Road Ahead for Loosening the Rules on Land Use

Key Issues Discussion

In prior hearings, food and beverage service remained focused on the possibility of Food Trucks. The updated code provides specific regulations that would apply to all food and beverage service businesses, even those without a use permit. These regulations codify the ā€œgood neighbor policyā€ that is often required as a CUP condition of approval for restaurants. By codifying these regulations, the intention is to reduce the need for CUPs and also provide clear guidance to businesses and staff. City Staff recommended 5,000 square-foot threshold for larger spaces like the former Rite Aid space, but not setting it too high. The Planning Commission felt that the size threshold should be 3,000 in downtown downtown commercial districts.Ā Mill Valley Chamber: “There remains interest in and discussion of food trucks, though none more than Zorba’s at Goodman’s. Mill Valley currently has two very large, very empty historic restaurants, and maybe there is a business that might be interested in giving a food truck a shot and potentially eyeing it for a future brick & mortar business. Maybe that’s backwards thinking…but we should be thoughtful and not restrictive and keep our options open.”

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