MEET PAT EKLUND
Pat Eklund is a public servant and our Novato neighbor
Raised in Terra Linda and now living in Novato, Pat has spent 50 years as our neighbor, always answering to residents — not insiders.
Get the basics right.
With costs rising for everything, Pat believes Novato needs a City Council that spends taxpayer money wisely and stays focused on what matters most: public safety, safe streets, and protecting our environment and quality of life. As a former Mayor and Councilmember, she has a proven track record of standing up for residents; like leading the effort to keep Novato’s 911 dispatch local, strengthening our police force by hiring officers, and creating the city’s K9 unit.
This year, she stood up for a balanced budget for Novato — investing in road and pothole repair, park maintenance, small business grants, and the SAFE program, which is already moving people from tents into permanent housing. She’s focused on building housing our residents can afford by streamlining the permitting process, while protecting our hillsides, and has helped protect taxpayers and the environment by investing in solar generation on city buildings that drives down utility costs. She’s also helped bring new life to downtown and Hamilton with the Novato Arts Center, the Hamilton Museum, and through the SF Brewing Company agreement and others.
Decades protecting our quality of life.
Standing up for our community.
Pat’s public service reaches well beyond City Hall. She has served on the Board for the Cities, Counties and Schools Partnership — a joint effort of the League of California Cities, California State Association of Counties, and California School Boards Association, where she twice served as President — and on the League’s Environmental Quality Policy Committee. She currently serves on the Executive Board of the Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG) representing Marin County’s 11 cities, ABAG’s Regional Planning and Administrative Committees, and as a board member of the Hamilton Restoration Advisory Board and alternate to the Transportation Authority of Marin (TAM). She previously served on the Marin Major Crimes Task Force.
She’s a Rotarian, a neighborhood leader, and a dedicated community volunteer. She has participated in Career Days in local schools, the Native Sons of the Golden West 4th grade essay contest, and Read Across America at Olive Elementary. She holds membership in the Novato Historical Guild, Sierra Club, and Marin Conservation League, and was a founding member of the Indian Valley Artists.
On the Novato City Council: Pat has served the community for decades, and has been elected by her Council colleagues to serve as Mayor seven times — most recently in 2020–2021.
Previously served on: Novato Planning Commission · Novato Community Hospital Board · Marin County Flood Control Board · President, League of California Cities · Novato Representative, TAM · Board Member, SMART (Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit) · Public Safety and Revenue and Taxation Policy Committees, League of California Cities · President, Cities, Counties, and Schools Partnership