Politics & Government

New Mayor to Appoint Old Administrator

James Naples will return to his position as Bridgewater township administrator.

Just one year after he left to serve as public works and business administrator in Clinton Township, is returning to Bridgewater as township administrator, a post he held for seven years and vacated this year.

"At the Jan. 1 reorganization meeting, the mayor will recommend, and the council will undoubtedly approve, him to come back as administrator," Council President Howard Norgalis said.

This move will cause current township administrator , which he vacated when he was appointed as administrator at the beginning of this year. That position was filled by engineer .

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"In the classic sense, we can't say that everyone is moving down in position," Norgalis said. "They're both going to be in the township, and Mr. Bogart will return to his previous job."

According to Norgalis, Naples originally left when he was offered the job in Clinton, coupled with current Mayor Patricia Flannery's decision that she would not be running for re-election.

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But when councilman in November, he and Naples began discussing the new administration.

"I was contacted by Mr. Hayes, and I put out an offer to assist in his transition," Naples said. "We went back and forth talking, and he asked me if I would like to come back."

"I had great respect for him on the council, and think he has a great vision for Bridgewater," he added. "This seemed like a natural fit. In talking with Dan, he's assembling a really strong team moving forward, and I wanted to be part of that."

Naples said he will begin in the position Jan. 30, although the appointment will be made at Sunday's reorganization meeting.

"He needed to give Clinton a little time to find his replacement," Bogart said. "The resolution at the reorganization meeting will carry me forward in the administrative position until he gets here."

Naples said this change is not unusual when a new administration is coming in.

"When you have a change in leadership, they want to build their staff to reflect their vision," he said.

Bogart said the administrator position is a mayoral appointment, done with the advice and consent of the township council.

"This wasn't the case where people were not happy with my work," he said. "My attitude here is that everybody wins."

"I know whenever a new mayor comes in, there are appointments for him to make, and township administrator is one of them," he added.

When he was appointed to the position in January, Bogart said, he initially thought of it as temporary, and always preferred his engineering position anyway.

"When the new mayor came in and wanted to ask Jim back, it was natural for me to go back to my old position," he said. "I prefer my engineering position because that's my background, but this is not out of the blue."

"My career desires never included being a town administrator," he added. "I'm an engineer, that's all I've ever done and that's what I like."

Bogart said he will be returning to his position as director of municipal services at the same salary he had when he left it, slightly lower than his salary as township administrator. He declined to give actual numbers until the resolutions for the reorganization meeting are released.

Forsythe will drop down a little bit in position as well, Bogart said, but have enhanced duties in the township.

"He will be my direct assistant, and he's OK with this too, it's something he expected," Bogart said.

Forsythe's salary will remain the same, although it was always significantly less than what Bogart had received in the same position.

"Tom's salary will stay at what he gets today, but he will have increased duties over what he had [before being the director]," Bogart said. "He never got my salary. When I came up to be administrator, with the salary I left at, he was given substantially less."

Naples declined to release his new salary until it is approved at the reorganization meeting.

Bogart said he is looking forward to working with Naples again in the new administration, and is excited about moving back to his engineering job.

"I get to go back to what I love, and the township gets as good an administrator as it could ever have," he said. "I really like working with Jim, he's a great guy to work with, no nonsense, just business."

Naples said he is looking forward to returning to Bridgewater.

"It's not a job I'm unfamiliar, with having done it for seven years," he said. "I know all the staff and the issues. I think it will be a very smooth transition."

Hayes could not immediately be reached for comment.


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