What is the latest estimate of when construction will begin?

• As of September 2025, the District estimates that construction will begin in June 2026 with completion in December 2028.

What are the key dates and milestones between now and then?

The following is the current set of dates, as of September 2025, but the project has already been pushed back twice, so this could all shift again.

• September 2, 2025: Draft Environmental Impact Report (EIR) posted

• September 2 - October 17, 2025: Public comment period on draft EIR

• September 10, 2025: School Board meeting to accept comments on Draft EIR.

• October 2025: Public comment period for Preliminary Endangerment Assessment (PEA)

• December 2025: Final PEA and Final EIR certification and project selection

• February 2026: Mitigation plan based on alternative selected

• March 2026: Public comment on mitigation plan

• April 2026: Final mitigation plan approved

• June 2026: Start construction and implement mitigation plan

What are the regulators and experts saying about the current MVMS site?

• As the CEQA process continues, various independent experts are starting to weigh in with serious concerns about seismic hazards and soil contamination.

All construction projects have things to mitigate. This kind of project happens all the time in California. The experts will handle it.

• There is only one former burn dump site in Mill Valley. It is directly under the current site. No other construction project in the area has anything approaching this risk profile. Schools are also subject to stricter rules than other construction projects. 

How did Mill Valley build the Community Center then? Why is this different?

• At the August 2025 School Board meeting, the School Board members asked this exact question to the District’s environmental and geological experts. The answer was that the Community Center was built over twenty years ago, when standards and technologies were different, and in any event, schools are subject to stricter requirements.

The School District is clearly in a difficult position. What are the options from here?

• District’s proposed alternatives

• Our other ideas

What is the full story with the Superfund site?

• This is a bit complicated, so bear with us. We are learning as we go too! First, MVMS and the Mill Valley Dump are included on the EPA’s Superfund Site Information list and the site has an assigned EPA ID Number (CAN0000905996).

• That website then labels it an NFRAP-Site that does not qualify for the NPL based on existing information. Let’s unpack those acronyms and the Superfund process.

• First, a concerned agency can petition the EPA for an assessment.  In this case, the Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) identified the Mill Valley Dump as a hazardous waste site due to hazardous substances and landfill gasses. The EPA then requested a Preliminary Assessment, which DTSC completed for the Mill Valley Dump on March 25, 2003.

• The Preliminary Assessment evaluates the Hazardous Ranking System (HRS) factors. If a site’s HRS factors warrant it, the site will be added to the National Priorities List (NPL). Sites that are not added to the NPL are added to the No Further Remedial Action Planned (NFRAP) list. That is the designation the Mill Valley Dump received. But, it’s important to understand why the site was placed in that category.

• The Preliminary Assessment, which DTSC completed for the Mill Valley Dump on March 25, 2003, acknowledges the presence of heavy metals, other chemicals of concern, and landfill gases. Nevertheless, the EPA determined that the following pertinent Hazardous Ranking System factors are associated with the MVMS site: “The entire surface is covered with pavement, buildings or soil cap of 2-3 feet of sandy-clay. The metal contamination is below 2 feet, found at dept 7.5 to 13.5 bgs.” The Remedial Site Assessment Decision included in the report describes the rationale for the NFRAP listing as, “The site is covered by pavement, buildings and 2-3 feet cap of sandy-clayey soil. The high concentrations of metals (lead, copper, zinc) are buried 7.5 to 13.5 feet below ground surface.”

• So, if construction disrupts the soil cap, as it could do, even with the new renovation alternative, the entire basis for the NFRAP listing disappears and the EPA may need to reconsider how the site is categorized under the Superfund program.

• Regardless of how this site is classified, it needs to be closely monitored via the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA). This is why DTSC is monitoring this site and paying such close attention.