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DEI Tangible Actions
The City’s goal in relation to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, from the beginning, has been action - not just words. Council gave direction to staff to make measurable, actionable progress in the appropriate scale and within the scope of City government. The list of tangible actions presented below details City accomplishments to date. The list, which grows every day, provides accountability to our community, and demonstrates the City’s commitment to real progress.
- Law Enforcement
- Affordable Housing
- Human Resources
- Recreation & Arts
- Library
- Financial Empowerment
- City-wide
Law Enforcement
- Increased transparency - published:
- Monthly Activities Report
- Calls for Service
- 5-year log of formal complaints
- Updated policies and procedures:
- Adopted Bias-Free Policing Policy, which includes bias-by-proxy
- Adopted Aligned MVPD Policy Manual with procedural justice best practices
- Aligned MVPD use of force policies & practices with 21st Century Policing
- Accessibility to complaint process:
- Business cards include link to complaint form
- All officers carry complaint packets
- Enhanced community engagement:
- National Night Out
- “Meet the Chief”/”Coffee and Conversation” events
- High School events
- TAM High Hawk Day
- Celebrating the Marin City High School Graduates
- Marin City events:
- Collaboration with community groups in Mill Valley, Marin City, and Tiburon
- Increased officer training:
- Bias and Racial Profiling
- Principled Policing
- Cultural Diversity (UCLA Extension)
- Early implementation of AB 953 – Racial Identity Profiling Act (RIPA) and development of a RIPA Data website.
- Developed a formal oversight process with a Council subcommittee
- Created an additional part-time Community Services Officer position and began recruitment for the position of Police Cadet.
- Continued use of outside organizations to assist with calls for service for meeting community needs:
- Marin Mobile Crisis
- Marin Streets Team
Affordable Housing
- Identified public land to leverage new affordable housing at 1 Hamilton Drive.
- Adopted a Resolution declaring the Northern portions of the City-owned parcel located at 1 Hamilton Drive to be "exempt surplus land."
- Adopted a Resolution authorizing the City Manager to negotiate and draft an Exclusive Negotiating Agreement with EAH Housing for the purpose of negotiating the terms and conditions for the potential ground lease or sale of property and development of affordable rental housing on the Northern portion of 1 Hamilton Drive.
- Promoted Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) and the “Home Match” Program:
- Worked jointly with the County on a countywide ADU website https://adumarin.org/
- Allocated $150,000 for the Home Match program
- Council adopted updated Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) Regulations
- Kicked off the City’s Housing Element process.
- Promoted participation in the County of Marin’s Restrictive Covenant Project.
- Council proclaimed April 2021 as Fair Housing Month.
- Council adopted a Resolution to provide funding for "Housing First" case management and allocated $63,000 to support County-wide efforts to support people experiencing homelessness.
Human Resources
- Continued DEI training for all staff. Staff have completed over 270 hours of training since mid 2020.
- Developed a draft training policy for all City staff and elected/appointed officials.
- Conducted a summer Public Works Internship program in 2021.
- Posted inclusive language on the City Career Opportunities webpage stating that the City of Mill Valley is an Equal Opportunity Employer that values and respects a diverse workforce and community.
- Created an informational handout about the City’s commitment to DEI that is shared with all new hires.
- Developed an internal eNewsletter and intranet to share City DEI initiatives, training opportunities and to promote an equitable and inclusive workspace.
Recreation & Arts
- Partnered with Soma Aquatics and Play Marin to provide free swim lessons to Marin City Youth.
- Approved the addition of gallery space in the Aquatics & Fitness Center Lobby for DEI-focused First Tuesday Art Walk.
- Collaboration is ongoing with the Mill Valley Chamber of Commerce on “Enjoy Mill Valley Fest” - a multi-day, multi-genre, multicultural celebration of the arts.
- Launched the “Welcome Back Pass,” which suspended the resident/nonresident rate difference.
- Installed new adaptive play structures/features for children with different needs.
Library
- Library worked with Mill Valley Historical Society to interview former Tam High students about race relations at the school, and more broadly in Mill Valley (14 interviews to date).
- The Library’s 8 Books Remix podcast interviewed BIPOC authors who write novels for teens about their favorite books as well as the importance of diverse representation in literature. (14 episodes to date).
- In the first-ever City Read: Begin with James Baldwin, the Library distributed books, led 10 book discussions and provided weekly curated materials (Dig Deeper) to approximately 180 participants.
- Produced the “Partners in Confinement” series featuring literary partners in interracial marriages sheltering in place.
- Hosted the “Building Bridges to Poetry” Book Club, which discusses poetry books by BIPOC poets.
- Collaborated with the Mill Valley Historical Society on their 2021 edition of “Review” - which focuses on Mill Valley’s Black History.
- Produced a new podcast, The History Mill, which explores all aspects of Mill Valley's unique and rich history. Their latest podcast presents “80 Years of Racial Justice Work in Southern Marin.”
- Library presented to Council a proposal to eliminate fines, which was approved.
Financial Empowerment
Council directed City staff to engage the Mill Valley Chamber of Commerce in a leadership role in supporting financial empowerment and business education initiatives for Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) entrepreneurs. Actions include:
- Ongoing partnership with SCORE.org, a business mentoring non-profit.
- Offering free webinars, networking and mentoring sessions.
- Free Chamber memberships to Marin City nonprofit organizations.
- Partnering with the Marin Independent Journal and Marin Community Foundation on the WeAreOneMarin.com campaign, which showcases and promotes one Marin BIPOC business every week.
City-wide
- Adopted the DEI Work Plan - The City’s plan to take immediate and sustained action on 41 recommendations to address systemic racism and injustice in Mill Valley.
- Created the DEI Work Plan Tracker - a transparent data collection tool for monitoring and tracking DEI initiatives to ensure accountability.
- Created the DEI Core Team - a group of City staff that meet monthly to share department and City-wide DEI initiatives and look for ways to collaborate across departments.
- Conducted an employee organizational assessment with questions related to City DEI initiatives.
- Created a “DEI Resources” webpage with Mill Valley and Marin County resources for tracking racial equity metrics.
- Conducted over 30 public meetings where DEI initiatives were discussed and considered.