Planning commission OKs Scott Valley Swim & Tennis Club membership increase to 430 with new parking, pickleball conditions

The Mill Valley Planning Commission voted to approve an amendment to the Scott Valley Swim & Tennis Club conditional use permit (CUP) that raises the cap on member families from 400 to 430 and adds conditions aimed at reducing parking and noise impacts on nearby neighborhoods.

Senior Planner Daisy Allen presented the staff report, saying the club occupies three parcels at 50 Underhill Road and is the subject of a CUP originally approved in 1972 and previously amended. Allen told commissioners the site has two parking lots with 71 vehicle spaces and 16 bike spaces, and the club currently employs about 30 year-round staff plus roughly 20 seasonal hires. She said the club serves mostly local residents — “over 90% Mill Valley residents, including over 20% from the surrounding neighborhood” — and has a wait list of about 120 families. Allen said the club’s initial application sought 450 families but the applicant negotiated with the Scott Valley Homeowners Association (HOA) to lower that number to 430 and added conditions addressing parking and pickleball hours.

The staff report summarized a parking and a trip-generation study by Hexagon Transportation Consultants. “The parking study indicated that with the increase in membership, peak parking demand would exceed on-site supply during regular weekend days and special events, but that there is sufficient capacity to accommodate the anticipated parking demand when considering the adjacent street parking,” Allen said. The traffic study estimated a conservative increase of up to 24 weekday trips and 36 weekend trips under the larger initial proposal; staff noted the 430-member proposal would generate fewer trips than the original study assumed. Allen said staff added conditions requiring a strengthened parking program, limits on pickleball hours — part of the negotiation with the HOA — and some clean-up of outdated CUP language.

Matt Holt, the club’s general manager, told the commission the club has coordinated with the HOA during the application and plans a phased enrollment increase (five memberships every other month) while monitoring member experience. “We’ll be sending out in the next week our schedule for the upcoming swim season to John and Francine [of the HOA] so we can circulate that in the homes throughout the HOA,” Holt said, explaining the club’s outreach and event-notification practices.

Public comment was mixed. John Palmer, president of the Scott Valley Homeowners Association, told commissioners the HOA supported the 30-family compromise but asked that staff parking be required to use the lower lot and that the club actively promote the HOA membership preference written into the CUP. “The club is a tremendous asset to our neighborhood,” Palmer said, while urging clear, enforceable measures to protect safety and on-street parking. Neighbors and long-time members raised concerns about on-street parking during swim meets, speeding on neighborhood streets and late-night lighting on courts; other neighbors and members spoke in favor of preserving the club as a neighborhood recreational resource.

Commissioners discussed enforcement and implementation details, including signage and cones for special events, employee parking in the lower lot, enforcement of the club’s parking-attendant program at swim meets, and pickleball hours to reduce late-evening noise. Staff clarified that the police department’s automated speed survey showed average speeds below the 25 mph limit during monitored hours but acknowledged that outlier speeding incidents were the source of neighbors’ concerns.

The commission approved the CUP amendment and the revised conditions of approval by a 3–0 vote (two commissioners recused from the item because they are club members). The approval includes: the membership cap increased from 400 to 430; a requirement that club staff park in the lower lot rather than on-street; formalization and strengthening of the club’s parking management plan (including attendants, cones and signage for major events); limits on pickleball hours as negotiated with the HOA; and a requirement that the club actively promote the HOA membership preference when openings occur. The decision is appealable to the City Council within 10 calendar days.

The commission and staff recorded roughly 30 public comments on the project, split between support and opposition. Staff emphasized that the traffic and parking studies were prepared for a larger original request and that the approved 430-member cap represents a negotiated compromise between the club and the HOA designed to balance neighborhood impacts with the club’s demonstrated community role.

What’s next: The club will implement the updated parking program and the conditions of approval. The commission noted that enforcement of on-street parking rules and any permanent right-of-way changes (painted curbs, speed devices) are operations typically handled by Public Works or the police department and not directly part of the CUP, but staff agreed to follow up with Public Works on neighborhood requests such as repainting curbs and public-event signage.