A Mill Valley Record article on Sept. 21, 1960, reported that Bill Feeney
is considered to be the sixth member of the Mill Valley City Council.
He had lived in Mill Valley at 401 Eldridge since 1919. When he retired from his post as Pacific Telephone and Telegraph collections supervisor for Northern California, evenings hung heavy on his hands. So, he began to attend city council meetings.
Between 1948 and 1960 he missed only two meetings, and
when it happened, councilmen would dispatch an immediate message to find out why he wasn’t there.
Feeney was never late, and many times he was the
only spectator present when the council adjourned. Feeney began attending
meetings when the city had no manager and was literally run by City Clerk Will Falley [known as “Will Falley of Mill Valley”].
Reporters and others depended on Feeney to provide details which no one else, not even council members could remember. In 1960, Feeney’s opinion was that city government had steadily improved in recent years. The biggest improvement made in the city was the sewer plant expansion finished in the past two years, in Feeney’s opinion.
Compiled for the Mill Valley Herald by the Mill Valley Historical Society.
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