After nearly 12 years on the Novato City Council, Denise Athas says she will not seek reelection in November.
Athas, who was elected in 2009, said she decided to forgo a fourth term to spend more time with her husband George Athas, with whom she runs a downtown real estate business.
“He’s been extremely patient in being very generous with my time and it’s time for us to start to do other things,” Athas said. “We still have our brokerage and are not retiring from real estate. We’ll always stay engaged in the city. It’s just our nature. It’s just time to pass the torch.”
Prior to joining the council, Athas was a board member at the Novato Chamber of Commerce and the Downtown Novato Business Association. On the City Council, Athas served as mayor — a position rotated among council members each year — in 2012, 2017 and 2020.
Athas’ departure will prompt a race for the District 2 seat, which represents northwestern Novato south of Novato Boulevard.
Pat Eklund is the only remaining council member who was serving when Athas joined in 2009. Eklund said she was disappointed to hear Athas would be leaving.
“She added a lot of value to the council and I will miss her,” Eklund said.
Eklund’s seat in District 4 representing southwest Novato is also in play for the November election. Eklund, a former U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency employee, has been on the council since 1995 and will be seeking a seventh full term.
“I really stand up for the people and I believe that is what the elected officials should be doing, is really standing up to protect the city and to make sure the city keeps progressing onward,” Eklund said.
The District 5 seat representing southeastern Novato will also be up for election in November. The council had appointed Mark Milberg to serve in the seat until November 2022 following Councilwoman Amy Peele’s decision to step down from the council in 2021.
Another vacancy on the council might open if Mayor Eric Lucan, who represents District 3 in the downtown area, is elected to the Marin County Board of Supervisors this year. In that event, the council could choose a replacement or hold a special election.
Athas was elected as part of the first all-women City Council in Marin County history and the second all-women council in California history.
“We’ve always been slanted more to the women,” Athas said. “Right now it’s probably the most balanced it’s been. But it was a really a thrill to be a part of a historic moment and all that.”
While Athas said her experience working with city business organizations played a role in her running for public office, the decision was reinforced following the death of her mother in April 2009. There was one convalescent hospital in the city at the time and Athas said she decided to hire a 24-hour caregiver to care for her mother instead.
“It was a promise to my mom that I would want to make sure we had a place for seniors where seniors could age in place and not have to go elsewhere or some other city in order to get the care they needed and step away from their own hometowns,” Athas said. “I think my proudest achievement, 13 years later, is the fact that we have people living in Oakmont of Novato and Elegance at Novato and a lot of other opportunities for seniors.”
Athas also joined the council at a time when local governments were feeling the strains of the Great Recession. Novato faced a large deficit and laid off staff. A decade later, the city faced another crisis from the coronavirus pandemic, which resulted in the first layoffs since the recession.
Athas said the struggles of the pandemic were not a factor in her decision to leave the council, but she said it did cause her priorities to shift. Athas said her city duties and various other commitments, such as the League of California Cities, have always taken priority.
“You start to look at who knows how many years are left, and I want to make sure that George and I hit some of our bucket list that we’ve been putting off for a long, long time,” Athas said.
Business growth and retention have also been important goals for Athas. Coy Smith, chief executive officer of the Novato Chamber of Commerce, said that while he and Athas did not always agree, he said she has been “nothing but fantastic” as a councilwoman.
“I think in general what she helped bring to the table and changed the perception that business is welcome in Novato, that we want business in Novato, that is good for the city, the economy and the community as a whole,” Smith said. “I think she helped get that message across and I think she was clearly a cheerleader from the city saying, yes, we’d love to talk with you and how to fit into our community.”
