Larry Kelly

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For the American football player of the 1930s, see Larry Kelley.
Larry Kelly
Mayor of Daytona Beach, Florida
In office
1974–1993
Preceded byRichard Kane[1]
Succeeded byPaul Carpenella
Personal details
Born1934 or 1935 (age 88–89)[2]
Carbondale, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Spouse
Joan Kelly
​
(died 2015)​
Children5

Lawrence J. Kelly Sr.[3][4] (born c. 1935) is an American former politician and logistics engineer. He served as the mayor of Daytona Beach, Florida, for 12 consecutive terms from 1974 to 1993. He was instrumental with getting MTV to showcase Spring Break in Daytona Beach during 1986–1993, although he later lamented it was a mistake because locals experienced many problems due to it.

Biography[edit]

Kelly, who was born circa 1935, is a native of Carbondale, Pennsylvania.[2] He served in the U.S. Air Force.[2]

Kelly was a logistics engineer by profession. In 1963, he and his wife moved to Daytona Beach, Florida, while Kelly was employed by General Electric.[2][5] He retired from General Electric in 1991.[6] In 1994, the gridiron at Municipal Stadium in Daytona Beach (now known as Daytona Stadium) was named for him.[7]

In 2000, Kelly was elected to the board of directors of the Stewart-Marchman Foundation.[8] In 2017, Kelly joined with retired Yonkers, New York, police commissioner Albert McEvoy to solve Daytona Beach cold cases.[2][9]

Politics[edit]

Kelly was on the Daytona Beach planning board for four years before being elected to the Daytona Beach city commission in 1971. Kelly was a commissioner until he was elected mayor in 1974 in a special election to fill the vacancy in that office.[6] Kelly then served as mayor of Daytona Beachfor 12 consecutive two-year terms, from 1974 to 1993.[6][7][10][11]

After Fort Lauderdale started discouraging college students from vacationing there for Spring Break in the mid-1980s, Kelly appeared on national television to encourage college vacationers to come to Daytona Beach for Spring Break instead.[7][12][13] Soon after, beer and cigarette brands started advertising in Daytona Beach for Spring Break. MTV Spring Break coverage moved to Daytona Beach in 1986.[13][14] He later called that decision a mistake as locals experienced many problems during Spring Break every year.[12][15][16][17][18] Kelly's efforts to rein in the revelry included promoting athletic competitions called "Spring Games" to channel youthful energy in a wholesome direction,[19] and proposing that hotels be billed for the cost of sending police to respond to calls during spring break.[20]

In 1993, Kelly lost his bid for re-election to a potential 13th term in a major upset.[6] Kelly was defeated by restaurateur Paul Carpenella by 210 votes.[6] Carpenella received 3,689 votes (50.3%), to win the mayoral election, while Kelly placed second, garnering 3,479 votes (47.4%).[6] Turnout in the 1993 municipal election was just 25%.[6] That year, Daytona Beach officials cut their Spring Break marketing budget and ties with MTV.[13][21]

Personal life[edit]

Kelly's wife, Jane, a registered nurse, died on July 31, 2015, at the age of 78.[22] The couple had five children.[23] One son, Chris Kelly, was elected a Volusia County court judge in 2012 with 63% of the vote.[24]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Central Florida Corridor Transportation Conference: Sheraton-Orlando Jet Port Inn, Orlando, Florida, November 7, 1973". 1973.
  2. ^ a b c d e Holt, Tony. "Retired mayor, police commissioner tackle Daytona's 79 cold cases". Daytona Beach News. Retrieved 2018-05-29.
  3. ^ "On the Move". Orlando Sentinel. November 17, 2002. p. K12. Retrieved January 28, 2024 – via newspapers.com.
  4. ^ "Kudos". Orlando Sentinel. November 21, 2001. p. D5A. Retrieved January 28, 2024 – via newspapers.com.
  5. ^ Lane, Mark. "1960s in Daytona Beach — When everything changed". Daytona Beach News. Retrieved 2018-05-29.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g Lancaster, Cory Jo (1993-10-20). "Daytona's Mayor Out In 13th Bid". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved 2013-07-30.
  7. ^ a b c Lane, Mark (2015). Legendary Locals of Daytona Beach. Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 9781467102223.
  8. ^ "Larry Kelly Sr. Was Re-elected To A Second". tribunedigital-orlandosentinel. Retrieved 2018-05-29.
  9. ^ "Cold Case Detectives - From the Newsroom: The Daytona Beach News Journal - Omny.fm". omny.fm. Retrieved 2018-05-29.
  10. ^ Lancaster, Cory Jo (1995-11-26). "New Daytona Beach Mayor Tackles Improving City Image". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved 2013-07-30.
  11. ^ "Apathy Gives Burgman, Kelly Second Chance". tribunedigital-orlandosentinel. Retrieved 2018-05-29.
  12. ^ a b Quimby, Tom (June 3, 2015). "Florida spring break destinations tire of partyers' bad behavior, seek revenue elsewhere". The Washington Times. Retrieved 2018-05-29.
  13. ^ a b c Diaz, Johnny. "'Spring Broke' documentary on Fort Lauderdale-Daytona rivalry to air Friday". Sun-Sentinel.com. Retrieved 2018-05-29.
  14. ^ "A History of "MTV Spring Break," Part 1: The '80s". PAPER. 2012-03-28. Retrieved 2018-06-11.
  15. ^ "Daytona Beach May Kiss Spring Breakers Good-bye". tribunedigital-sunsentinel. Retrieved 2018-05-29.
  16. ^ "Daytona Debates Spring Break". tribunedigital-orlandosentinel. Retrieved 2018-05-29.
  17. ^ Roeper, Roger (21 March 1993). "Spring Orgy's Over". Chicago Sun - Times.
  18. ^ "Revelry Worries Daytona Beach". Boston Globe. AP. 23 December 1989.
  19. ^ "Spring Games USA competes with bacchanalian traditions for minds and bodies of college students". Los Angeles Times. 25 March 1989. ProQuest 1249381954.
  20. ^ "Mayor: Bill Hotels for Police Calls Report Says $60,000 Spent for Spring Break Patrols". Orlando Sentinel. 1 June 1989. ProQuest 277532149.
  21. ^ "A History of "MTV Spring Break," Part 2: The 90s". PAPER. 2012-03-29. Retrieved 2018-06-11.
  22. ^ Schumann, Bill (2015-08-02). "Remembering a true Daytona ambassador". The Daytona Beach News-Journal. Archived from the original on 2018-06-12. Retrieved 2018-06-12.
  23. ^ "Joan M. Kelly obituary". The Daytona Beach News-Journal. 2015-08-05. Archived from the original on 2018-06-12. Retrieved 2018-06-12.
  24. ^ Almenas, Jarleene (2017-08-23). "Remembering a true Daytona ambassador". Ormond Beach Observer. Archived from the original on 2018-05-29. Retrieved 2018-06-12.
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