Meet the new face coming to City Council in Ocean City

One of the complaints that Jim Kelly heard from Ocean City voters when he was out on the campaign trail was that they were tired of seeing “the same people over and over” run for office.

“It’s one of the reasons that I thought to run – to bring new people into the city’s government,” Kelly said in an interview Wednesday.

Kelly has succeeded in bringing at least one new face into the local government – his own.

Running as a political newcomer, he was the second-leading vote-getter among four candidates vying for three open at-large City Council seats in Tuesday’s municipal election.

Incumbent Councilman Sean Barnes was the top vote-getter, followed by Kelly and then incumbent Councilman Tony Polcini to lock up the three seats. Finishing fourth in the voting, Board of Education member Jocelyn Palaganas fell short in her attempt to win a Council seat.

“I think we all did a fantastic job. I’m just proud to say that I’m part of that group,” Kelly said while congratulating Barnes, Polcini and Palaganas for running positive campaigns.

Reflecting on his election win, Kelly is promising to bring a new perspective and fresh ideas to the seven-member Council, which includes the three at-large seats and four ward representatives.

He will be the first new Council member since Barnes joined the governing body in 2024. Barnes won a special election in 2024 to serve the remaining two years of former Councilwoman Karen Bergman’s four-year term after Bergman resigned to become supervisor of the city’s Howard S. Stainton Senior Center.

Barnes, Kelly and Polcini will join Mayor Jay Gillian, who won re-election Tuesday, in taking the oath of office on July 1 to begin their new four-year terms.

Kelly didn’t endorse Gillian or his two mayoral challengers, Keith Hartzell and Pete Madden, as part of his campaign platform emphasizing his political independence.

Already, Kelly is sketching out plans that he hopes to accomplish in his first year on Council, followed by longer-range goals. He wants to collaborate with the other Council members.

“It’s a good balance,” he said of blending his new style with the experienced councilmen.

    Jim Kelly and his wife, Donna, celebrate his election victory. (Courtesy of Jim Kelly)
  

In his first year on Council, Kelly is looking to have more oversight of the city’s finances. He wants to form a standing finance committee on Council that would scrutinize the city’s spending and taxes and issue periodic reports for the public to see.

“People are always interested in their financial circumstance. I think what people are looking for is more openness in the budget process. I think people want to see City Council take a more active role. City Council’s oversight should be 12 months a year, not once a year,” he said.

Kelly also wants to increase public engagement in the city’s government beyond the regular Council meetings. He would like to hold public forums focusing on issues of great interest to Ocean City residents.

One example cited by Kelly needing more public input is an ongoing controversy about a proposed 125-foot-tall cellphone tower proposed in the area of 33rd Street and Bay Avenue. Residents living in that area have appeared at the last two Council meetings to urge city officials to use their power to block the cellphone tower.

Although he doesn’t currently hold elected office, Kelly serves as a member of an advisory committee that is studying the zoning requirements and development options for the commercial areas of the Boardwalk from Sixth Street to 14th Street.

The subcommittee was formed in October by Council President Terry Crowley Jr. amid growing concerns about the future of the former Wonderland Pier amusement park at 600 Boardwalk.

Developer Eustace Mita, who owns the Wonderland property, wants to build a $150 million luxury resort hotel. The town has been deeply divided over whether the proposed 252-room hotel would be a boon or bane for the Boardwalk and the rest of Ocean City.

Kelly hopes that the city and Mita will reach “common ground” for a mixed-use project that blends entertainment, dining and retail shops along the Boardwalk’s frontage, with a smaller boutique hotel on the back of the property.

“Planning for 600 Boardwalk will take more serious deliberations,” Kelly said.

He doesn’t want to rush the hotel project through the city’s approval process. He considers Wonderland’s future as one of his top long-term priorities as a new Council member.

    Jim Kelly appears during a City Council meeting in March to outliine his concerns about a planning consultant contract for the former Wonderland Pier site.
  

Ocean City 2050, a community group Kelly formerly led, has been among the most outspoken opponents of Mita’s project. The group claims the high-rise hotel would overwhelm the surrounding neighborhoods and would not fit in with Ocean City’s family-friendly atmosphere.

Kelly stepped down from his leadership role with Ocean City 2050 to maintain his independence as a Council candidate.

Throughout the Wonderland controversy, Kelly has been opposed to designating the property into an area “in need of rehabilitation” to help fast-track the hotel’s development.

“It doesn’t need a rehabilitation zone. The statute is intended to rehabilitate areas that are economically distressed,” he said. “Surely, Ocean City is not economically distressed. Our real estate is some of the most sought after real estate in the country. It doesn’t fit the statute’s intention.”

Professionally, the 62-year-old Kelly serves as vice president of business strategy and administration for Erickson Senior Living, a major developer of retirement communities.

He believes his experience at Erickson in building large projects would be of immense help in the city’s oversight of the proposed Boardwalk hotel.

“I’ve got 43 years of experience in building successful communities across the country. I’ve got executive-level experience in finance, in operations and in long-term strategic planning. I’m really the only candidate who’s got practical experience in complex land use, planning and decisions,” he said in an interview leading up to the election.

Beginning July 1, he will use those skills as the new face on City Council.