The city of Mill Valley is pulling out all the stops to get the community engaged with its ongoing Mill Valley 2040 General Plan update, and has called on a trio of experts in public policy, economics and planning to that end.
The city kicks off a speaker series Thursday night in an effort to augment the , essentially the city’s constitution, which hasn’t been updated since 1989.
The speakers will provide a high-level overview of topics and issues that are important to consider while updating the General Plan, including how to work together on tough issues; demographic and economic trends that are important to consider when thinking and preparing for Mill Valley’s future; and maintaining Mill Valley’s “sense of place,” according to senior planner Danielle Staude.
Ed Everett, a senior fellow at the Davenport Institute of Pepperdine University’s School of Public Policy, begins the series with an on a new approach to building community, effective leadership and good decision-making.
He’ll be followed on , the founder and president of Strategic Economics, a Berkeley, Calif.-based urban economics research firm. Belzer will discuss the latest economic and demographic forces at work and how they could influence the future of Mill Valley.
The centers on San Francisco Chronicle urban design critic John King, who will focus on how Mill Valley can maintain a sense of place and retain its essential character in the face of future challenges and regional and statewide forces.
The 411: The MV2040 free speaker series kicks off with Ed Everett on Thursday, April 12 at 7 p.m. Mill Valley Public Library’s Creekside Room, 375 Throckmorton Ave. Subsequent talks are at 7 p.m. on April 19 and 26.
