By DONALD WITTKOWSKI
He walked into the room as Ocean City resident Terry Crowley Jr. He left the same night as City Councilman Terry Crowley Jr.
It was a whirlwind City Council meeting on Aug. 26 when Crowley was selected from among seven candidates seeking to fill the vacancy created by the resignation two weeks earlier by former First Ward Councilman Michael DeVlieger.
Crowley was suddenly thrust into the spotlight of city government. But even though he is a newcomer to politics, he said he was immediately ready to take on the responsibilities as the First Ward’s new councilman.
“I feel like my whole life I’ve been in that position in one way or another,” he said in an interview at his home Thursday.
Crowley noted that he entered the Council Chambers on the night of Aug. 26 fully prepared for the interviews the Council members conducted in closed session with each candidate who was looking to succeed DeVlieger.
“I thought the interview process was tough,” he said. “But I was very confident and comfortable in answering any question they had.”
Among the questions the Council members asked him were, how does Crowley approach his decision-making, how does he conduct his research and what does he think are the major issues facing Ocean City?
In the end, the Council members must have liked his answers. After reconvening in public session, the governing body voted 6-0 for Crowley to fill the First Ward vacancy until the Nov. 2 general election.
“It was a well-rounded group and we appreciate the courage it takes to participate in this process,” Council President Bob Barr said of the candidates.
DeVlieger had recommended Crowley’s appointment on Council, citing his “track record of independent voting based on the facts.”
Crowley has filed his nominating petitions to run in the election and will face fellow First Ward residents Donna Swan DeRocher and Donna Moore. The winner will fill the remainder of DeVlieger’s unexpired term through June 30, 2024.
Although he is new to Council, Crowley has already gotten a sense of how government bodies work by serving on the Ocean City Planning Board for five years. The planning board has given him an insider’s view of the array of residential and commercial projects that are part of the resort’s growth. He has resigned from the planning board to join Council.
He has also been involved in the community by serving as a youth football coach and as president of the youth hockey association in Egg Harbor Township. His two sons, Tripp and Ian both played football and hockey.
“I’ve always preached to my kids that you have to stay involved in the community. I see this as the next step to use my experience to better the city,” he said of his appointment to Council.
Crowley has lived in Ocean City on and off for the past 25 years, making the resort his full-time home six years ago. He lives at 123 Bay Avenue with his wife, Jennifer, and their two sons. Tripp, 18, is a freshman at Penn State University, while 15-year-old Ian is starting his sophomore year at Ocean City High School.
The 50-year-old Crowley is an executive sales representative with the pharmaceutical company Johnson & Johnson. His wife, a registered dietician, formerly worked as director of the Nutrition Department at Shore Medical Center in Somers Point and is now a national account director for Nestle Health Science.
Crowley’s ties to Ocean City began when his parents would take him and his four sisters to the shore for family summer vacations when he was growing up in Woodstown, Salem County.
“I fell in love with Ocean City from an early age,” he said.
Now, as an adult, he will be in a position to help shape the city’s future as one of the leaders of the local government.
Alluding to the city’s economic growth, Crowley said he is running for Council to help keep Ocean City on a “positive trajectory.”
“My 25 years of success and experience in the business world is something I can bring to the city,” he said.
Originally, Crowley had no political aspirations, but said he was inspired by the job DeVlieger had done serving as the First Ward councilman since 2012.
“I think Mike did a great job for the ward. He was elected three times,” Crowley said. “It was a unique opportunity to step in and continue the positive momentum started by Mike in the First Ward.”
Crowley emphasized that one of his top priorities on Council will be to serve as an “advocate for fiscal responsibility.”
He plans to scrutinize the city’s capital improvement plan and other projects to see how they would affect the tax rate for homeowners.
Crowley wants to continue a series of infrastructure projects throughout town, including road construction and drainage upgrades to reduce flooding.
He also strongly supports the city’s dredging program to clear sediment from the lagoons and channels along the back bays. He considers the bay as one of the city’s most important assets.
“It’s something that needs to get done sooner than later,” he said, adding that he considers dredging projects as a key safety issue for boaters and others who use the back bays.
On the beaches, he wants to explore ways of making them more accessible to senior citizens and people with disabilities.
Crowley is also adamant about protecting Ocean City’s reputation as “America’s Greatest Family Resort.”
“I want to respect and maintain the family values reflected in the First Ward,” he said.
