Milton Vice Mayor Kevin Kelly declines to seek re-election

After two terms serving on Milton Town Council, Vice Mayor Kevin Kelly, 70, will officially leave office in April after declining to seek re-election.

“It has been a great honor to have served the people of Milton,” he said. “I have worked determinedly for the people of our terrific town, and I hope I will be judged to have served honorably. I have always believed that as important as it is to make decisions, it is equally important to step back and assess the impact of the decisions made, and I believe that is best accomplished as a private citizen.”

Kelly was appointed to council in September 2015, filling out the remaining three years on the term of Councilman Ed Kost, who had resigned that July. Kelly was interim director of the Milton Historical Society when he was appointed. He won a full term of his own in 2018 when he ran unopposed. 

The son of a Navy man, Kelly was born in 1950 at Naval Air Station Patuxent River in St. Mary’s County, Maryland. He moved with his family to different naval air stations around the country until 1964 when they settled in Fairfax, Va. After graduating from George Washington University in 1972, Kelly married his wife, Joy, and they had three children. Kelly spent his career working in the Fairfax County public school system.

Upon Kevin’s retirement, the Kellys began exploring a move to Sussex County, where Joy had family. After driving through Milton, they decided to settle there, and Kelly became involved in the historical society and joined the Historic Preservation Commission. 

While he has decided to step away for now, Kelly did not rule out a future run for office.

“I do not close the door to seeking public office in the future, nor do I suggest I will [run again],” he said

Kelly's seat, as well as the one formerly held by Councilman Charlie Fleetwood, who resigned in December, will be up for grabs in the Saturday, March 6 municipal election. Seeking the seats are former council members Emory West and John Collier, who is also former town project coordinator; board of adjustment member Allen Sangree; and historic preservation commission member Lee Revis-Plank.