Mill Valley School District

AT A GLANCE

Draft EIR – Public Comment Period: September 2 – October 17, 2025
The Draft Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for the Mill Valley Middle School Modernization Project is now available for public review and comment until 5 p.m. on October 17. 

PEA Report – Public Comment Planned for October 2025
The District is completing additional environmental testing at the request of the regulatory agencies providing project oversight. A Revised PEA Report will be submitted in October and released for public comment at the same time.

Key documents associated with the modernization project are available below and on the DTSC’s Envirostor webpage for review. 

• Draft EIR
• Draft EIR Chapter References
• Draft EIR Appendices
• Draft PEA 
• NOA
• NOC
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Superintendent's Presentation on EIR Alternatives

Modernization Project Overview 
The Mill Valley School District (MVSD) is investing Measure G bond funding to modernize our school facilities. These upgrades are designed to meet today’s educational, safety, security, and accessibility standards. A major part of this effort is the Mill Valley Middle School (MVMS) Modernization Project, which aims to provide a middle school environment that supports next-generation learning.

MVMS Modernization Draft EIR 
The Draft EIR is available for public comment from September 2 to October 17, 2025.  The Draft EIR evaluates a wide range of options for the MVMS project. While the proposed project is to build a brand-new school, rising geotechnical and soil disposal costs will exceed the current budget.

MVSD remains committed to a fiscally responsible approach, funding the modernization project without additional financing, while still delivering a state-of-the-art facility for students and the community.

The District is now focusing on two alternatives that can be completed within the current budget:

1. Renovate the Existing MVMS Campus (Sycamore Drive) - This option would modernize the current middle school campus through interior and exterior building upgrades, landscaping improvements, and a possible new STEM classroom building.  The result would be a significantly improved campus with the look and feel of a new school.

2. Build a New Middle School at 70 Lomita Avenue (formerly Terra Marin) - This option would construct a brand-new middle school co-located with Edna Maguire Elementary. 

Both alternatives would upgrade facilities to modern safety, security, and accessibility standards, enhance STEM learning opportunities and replace outdated infrastructure.

Additionally, the Board is assessing housing students at a temporary campus at 70 Lomita Avenue during the two-year construction period as another cost-saving measure.

MVSD recognizes that both alternatives (construction of a brand-new middle school and temporary campus) at the 70 Lomita Avenue site could affect the surrounding community. The District is committed to working closely with residents, families and local partners to develop strategies that help minimize potential impacts.

The Board of Trustees will consider the EIR, public input, and its own criteria – including cost, feasibility and educational programming – to determine the most appropriate location for the middle school. The Board of Trustees is expected to select a preferred alternative in December 2025, which would allow construction to begin as early as June 2026.

How to Comment on the Draft EIR

The District invites community input on the Draft EIR. The Board of Trustees will consider all public comments—along with cost, feasibility, and educational priorities—when selecting the alternatives that best serve students, staff, and the community.

Ways to Participate

• Review the Draft EIR:
• Submit Written Comments:
  • By Email: jarroyo@mvschools.org
  • By Mail:
    Mill Valley School District
    Attn: Julio Arroyo, Director of Maintenance and Operations
    411 Sycamore Avenue
    Mill Valley, CA 94941
• Attend the MVSD Board Meeting: Share your comments on the Draft EIR in person at the MVSD Board of Trustees meeting on September 10, 2025, at 5:00 p.m. at the Mill Valley Middle School Library, 425 Sycamore Avenue, Mill Valley.

Comment Period: September 2 – October 17, 2025

PEA Report – Public Comment Planned for October 2025

The District has completed additional environmental testing at the request of the regulatory agencies providing project oversight. A Revised PEA Report will be submitted in October and released for public comment at the same time.

What the PEA Does

The PEA process evaluates past environmental conditions to determine if the site is safe for today’s use and any future redevelopment. A central part of the process is the Human Health Risk Assessment, which examines whether chemicals or contaminants at the school could pose health risks to students or staff.

Agency Comments on the PEA

MVSD submitted a draft PEA earlier this year. After review, DTSC and Marin County requested additional testing and updates. 

• Methane Monitoring: Marin County requested methane monitors at the campus. These are now installed in all school buildings and lower-level classrooms. No exceedances have been detected.
• Soil and Vapor Testing: DTSC requested more sampling and a new risk assessment using updated soil vapor data. July 2025 samples, collected under conservative conditions, confirmed:
  • Students: No health hazard or increased cancer risk under typical school use (6 hours/day, 180 days/year, 3 years).
  • Teachers/Staff: No immediate health hazard. A slightly elevated lifetime cancer risk (4 in 1 million) was calculated using a conservative exposure scenario (8 hours/day, 250 days/year, 25 years). This falls within DTSC’s acceptable risk range.
• Sub-slab vapor sampling beneath classrooms and offices confirmed that vapors in soil are not entering indoor air at levels of concern. A second round of sampling will be done this winter to check for seasonal variation.
• Indoor air testing may be conducted if future results indicate it is needed.
• Soil sampling in landscaped areas was completed and are being tested for metals and dioxins.  

The results show that the campus is safe for students and staff today. Looking ahead, if the middle school is renovated, MVSD will add a protective barrier under the building as an extra safeguard to keep vapors from entering indoor air.

Next Steps in the PEA Process

The results from the summer sampling activities will be incorporated into the revised PEA, which will be submitted to the agencies and released for public comment in October 2025, followed by a public hearing in November. The revised PEA will also be posted on the District’s website for community review.  

 Modernization Project Schedule

Please refer to the table below for details on the current schedule.

Mailing list

To be added to the project mailing list, request a briefing for your organization, or ask a question, please email us at: info@mvmsmod.com.  

Project Documents

Key documents associated with the modernization project are available below and on the DTSC’s Envirostor webpage for review. 

• Draft EIR
• Draft EIR Chapter References
• Draft EIR Appendices
• Draft PEA 
• NOA
• NOC
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Superintendent's Presentation on EIR Alternatives