Kelly wants New Year's appointments rescinded BY PATRICIA A. MILLER Staff Writer CHRIS KELLY staff New Brick Township Mayor Daniel J. Kelly pauses during a busy first day on the job in town hall on Monday. Kelly was sworn in on Friday to replace former Mayor Joseph C. Scarpelli. BRICK TOWNSHIP - Mayor Daniel J. Kelly plans to model his administration after two of his heroes who were also thrust into office - President Gerald R. Ford and state Senate President Richard J. Codey. "I'm here today because of circumstances beyond our control," he told the audience gathered at his swearing-in ceremony on Jan. 5. "I've been asked to steer the ship through somewhat similar circumstances." Ford took over as president when Richard M. Nixon left office, and Codey as governor when James E. McGreevey resigned. Both men did a good job, Kelly said. "I hope to be able to do the same," he said. He pledged to work with Township Council members in a cooperative spirit. "But that is a two-way street," he said. Kelly said he planned to ask council members to rescind the appointments made last week by then-acting Mayor and current Township Clerk Virginia Lampman. "I don't want to talk about this anymore today," he said, "We have a great challenge ahead of us. Thank you, thank God, and thank God for Brick Township." The GOP-majority Township Council tapped Kelly to serve as mayor at a special meeting on Jan. 3. Kelly replaced former longtime mayor Joseph C. Scarpelli, who resigned abruptly on Dec. 8. Scarpelli pleaded guilty to accepting a bribe in federal court on Monday. Kelly was one of three names submitted to the council by the Democratic municipal committee. He will serve until a special mayoral election is held in November. The other names submitted were former Mayor and state Assemblyman Daniel F. Newman and former Councilwoman and Municipal Prosecutor Kim Casten. Picking the new mayor was a tough decision to make in a short period of time, said Councilwoman Anthony Matthews, who chaired a subcommittee to make the selection. "We don't want politics to interrupt the business of the town," he said. Councilwoman Ruthanne Scaturro, who also served on the subcommittee, challenged the new mayor to "be his own person." Councilwoman Kathy Russell, the only Democrat on the Township Council, questioned what criteria the subcommittee used to make a decision and if they had considered the candidates' experience in municipal government and education. Matthews said it was a combination of factors. "Did the individual know what had gone on over the last three years, was the individual aware of what's happening in Brick Township?" he said. Matthews then named Kelly. Kelly asked that his formal swearing-in be postponed until the following day, so he could have his family with him. "I'm humbled right now," he told the audience that packed the council caucus room. "I was with two good people. They picked me. I'll do the best job I can for Brick. I'm going to give you the truth, I'm going to work hard, I can't do anything else." He also referred to the controversial appointments Lampman made before she left office. "I'm the mayor of Brick Township," he said. "I'm going to do the job of mayor. I'm sorry there was a problem last night. I think if I'm the mayor for the next 10 months, I should make the appointments." Newman stood quietly against the wall of the council caucus room during the meeting. But he reacted angrily after the meeting when he was asked what he thought about the mayoral appointments. "That was highway robbery," Newman said. "Those appointments belonged to the mayor and they bulldozed the clerk into doing it. The Republican Party in Ocean County under George Gilmore never surprises me." Lampman said after the New Year's Day meeting she was an appointed, temporary official who made the appointments based on recommendations from elected officials. Newman then lashed out at Councilman Daniel Toth, who passed him on his way out the door, for remarks he made to a local paper about not favoring Newman or Casten for mayor because they were associated with Scarpelli. "Someday I hope to judge you on what you do and not what your friends do," he said. "It's typical … what you guys are up to. You insulted me." Toth told Newman the press "will take bits and pieces of what you say." "If I insulted you, I'm sorry," he told Newman, and the two men shook hands.