City
Mill Valley
Mill Valley is an incorporated city in Marin County with an estimated 2025 population of 13,799. It handles many rules and services inside its limits. The county still handles property records, taxes, courts, elections, public health, and many household programs.
Starting point
Confirm the address is inside local limits first.
If the address is inside Mill Valley, city or town offices may handle local permits, code, and services. If it is outside limits, county routing may be the better first stop.
What changes the answer: A mailing city is not always the same as city government jurisdiction.
How local government works here
The city line changes some rules, but not every public office.
The mailing address can say Mill Valley even when the property sits outside local limits. Check the city line before relying on a local rule or permit page.
City limits choose the local counter
Inside Mill Valley, the city usually handles permits, zoning, parking, business licenses, and local code. Outside the city line, start with county planning or building.
The county still handles county work
Marin County handles property value and tax bills. It also handles deeds, court, elections, health, and many aid programs. Living inside Mill Valley does not move those jobs to the city.
A provider can have its own boundary
Water, sewer, fire, schools, transit, trash, and power may belong to a special district or other provider. Use the address, parcel, or service bill to find the right agency.
Place story
Mill Valley starts its big trail story under redwoods
Old Mill Park and the Dipsea Race give Mill Valley a compact story: redwoods, a historic mill, steep stairs, and a trail route to Stinson Beach.
Read the full explanation2025 population
13,799
Land area
4.785 sq mi
Water area
0.084 sq mi
Local front desk
Start with the task in front of you.
Mill Valley is incorporated. Start with the city for work inside its limits, while Marin County still handles property records, taxes, courts, elections, many benefits, and county alerts. Marin County is the public-health layer.
- Property Open the property-tax path
Assessed value, exemptions, tax bills, and appeals
Marin County assessor handles value and exemptions. The clerk of the board handles a formal value appeal. The tax collector handles the bill, payment, and penalties.
- Records Open the records path
Deeds, birth and death records, marriage records, and name changes
Marin County recorder is the usual deed and public-record door. Vital-record access depends on the record and year. A legal name change or divorce decree can involve Superior Court.
- Property work Open the local-office path
Building permits, ADUs, zoning, code, water, and septic
Start with the city planning or building office for an address inside Mill Valley. Start with the county for an address outside local limits.
- Housing Open the housing path
Rent rules, repairs, notices, and eviction papers
Start with a local rent, housing, or code office if one serves the address. Court papers go to the Superior Court self-help path, and the deadline on the papers keeps running.
- Household help Open the benefits path
CalFresh, Medi-Cal, CalWORKs, General Assistance, and IHSS
Marin County social-services agency is the main local door. Coverage, food, cash aid, and in-home support remain separate programs with separate notices.
- Public health Open the health path
Vaccines, disease reporting, health records, and local health programs
Marin County public health is the local health jurisdiction. Health coverage and benefits still use separate program doors.
- Business Open the business path
Business setup, seller's permits, local licenses, and regulated work
State filings and tax accounts do not replace Mill Valley zoning, licensing, building, fire, or health approvals for the address.
- Neighborhood services Open the local-office path
Potholes, streetlights, graffiti, trash, and service requests
For a city-owned street or service inside Mill Valley, start with the local request system. County roads, Caltrans routes, utilities, private property, and separate service providers use different doors.
- School and care Open the school and care path
School enrollment, student records, and child-care checks
The school district handles assignment and records. County offices can help with some family services, while the state licenses child-care facilities.
- Parking Open the parking path
Residential, guest, overnight, and local parking permits
A local parking permit is separate from a citation, moving ticket, and toll notice. Match the permit to the address, vehicle, district, or parking facility.
- Tickets Open the ticket path
Traffic court, parking citations, and toll notices
Marin County Superior Court handles traffic court matters. A city or issuing agency handles parking. The toll operator handles toll notices.
- Safety Open the emergency path
Emergency alerts, evacuations, smoke, roads, and power
Use the county or city alert system for local warnings. Follow the local emergency office for evacuation wording, then use the state fire, smoke, road, and utility sources for the matching layer.
Official city doors
Start local when the address is inside Mill Valley.
The official website is always here. Direct service links appear only when the California Porch source trail supports them; an unlisted service has not been guessed.
County handoff
Keep the county layer close.
Mill Valley does not replace the county for records, property taxes, courts, elections, benefits, public health, or county alerts. The official doors stay together below.
Marin County
Practical notes
Office, map, permit, and paperwork notes for Mill Valley
County practical note · Cars and driving · Reviewed July 7, 2026
Bay Area bridge tolls use FasTrak, plates, or invoices
Bay Area toll bridges use automatic toll collection, with FasTrak, License Plate Account, One-Time Payment, and invoice options depending on how the vehicle is set up.
County practical note · Rules and licenses · Reviewed July 3, 2026
A Marin County DBA starts with the County Clerk record
Marin County fictitious business name filings create a public DBA record, separate from city, county, and state business steps.
County practical note · Money and taxes · Reviewed July 3, 2026
Marin County property tax starts with the roll or the bill
Marin County property tax questions usually start with Assessor records for parcel and roll information, or the tax bill page for bills and payments.
County practical note · Home and property · Reviewed July 5, 2026
Novato Permits puts city project tracking in one portal
Novato Permits is the city's online portal for building permits, planning projects, inspections, licensing, code requests, permit status, records search, and some express permits.
County practical note · Home and property · Reviewed July 4, 2026
Novato service requests are for non-emergencies
Novato's service request tool routes non-emergency issues to the proper city department, while sewer backups, water main breaks, blocked streets, and life-safety issues use emergency contacts.
County practical note · Outdoors · Reviewed July 1, 2026
At Point Reyes, the San Andreas Fault is easy to picture
The Earthquake Trail near Point Reyes Station gives visitors a calm, clear way to see where the San Andreas Fault shapes the landscape.
Stories & Notes
Stories and local context in Marin County
County place story · History and culture
Angel Island tells a quieter immigration story in the Bay
Angel Island Immigration Station near Tiburon keeps Bay Area immigration history visible through detention barracks, Chinese poetry, exclusion-era rules, and family memory.
County place story · History and culture
Sausalito's waterfront still carries the Marinship story
Sausalito's Marinship area connects World War II shipbuilding, Richardson Bay, historic exhibits, marinas, houseboats, and a working waterfront just north of the Golden Gate.
County place story · History and culture
Fairfax sits right by one of mountain biking's home hills
Fairfax's bicycle story connects Mount Tamalpais, early off-road riders, the Repack races, and the Marin Museum of Bicycling on Sir Francis Drake Boulevard.
County place story · History and culture
Larkspur's old downtown still carries the town's early shape
Larkspur's Magnolia Avenue, City Hall, historic district, ferry landing, and brick kiln give the Marin town several easy history stops.
County place story · History and culture
Belvedere is a tiny island city built around water and views
Belvedere is one of California's smallest and oldest cities, with two islands, an artificial lagoon, little retail, yacht-club history, and San Francisco Bay views.
County place story · History and culture
Corte Madera's archive turns family memory into town memory
Corte Madera's Archive and History Center grew from local photos and oral histories into a public way to share more than 100 years of town life.
County place story · History and culture
Ross grew around a creek, old land grants, and a protected tree canopy
Ross in Marin County has Coast Miwok roots, Mexican land-grant history, James Ross's 1857 purchase, concrete creek bridges, and a long habit of protecting trees.
County place story · History and culture
San Anselmo has a tiny park with a big movie-story wink
Imagination Park puts Yoda, Indiana Jones, George Lucas, downtown San Anselmo, and Town Hall into one small Marin County stop.