Daily Named Mayor in Camarillo : Government: The council acts early so that he can lead hearings on the controversial Sammis mall proposal.

The Camarillo City Council chose a new mayor one week early Wednesday, picking former Mayor Stanley J. Daily to succeed David M. Smith, who stepped down after completing a one-year term.

Daily was chosen a week before the scheduled expiration of Smith’s term so the new mayor can chair the hearings on the Sammis factory outlet center, which begin Wednesday.

Daily, described as a “hands-on leader” by City Manager J. William Little, was the only council member nominated for mayor. After his selection, he promised to recruit a broad section of the community to assist the city.

“I’m going to make sure when we look at the General Plan that the people who are involved come from all segments of the community,” Daily said.

The 56-year-old Daily was elected to the council last year after a 14-year absence. He previously served three four-year terms after first being elected at age 28 in 1964 when the city incorporated.

During his prior tenure, he was named to two-year mayoral terms in 1970 and 1974.

A fourth-generation Camarillo resident, Daily has worked for 31 years at Hueneme High School, where he is the chairman of the social science department and director of activities. Daily earned a master’s degree in history from UC Santa Barbara.

Daily is also president of the Oxnard Harbor Commission, which he was first elected to in 1977. The commission oversees the operations of the Port of Hueneme.

And Daily belongs to the family for which Daily Drive was named. His grandfather and two great-uncles were among the first to farm in the Camarillo area.

Daily replaces Smith, a first-term councilman elected in 1988.

Little said Smith, a 46-year-old financial consultant, brought “quiet but forceful leadership” to the council.

His financial expertise helped the city recover from $25 million in investment losses in 1988, Little said.

After handing over the gavel, Smith said the city’s support for the troops returning from the Persian Gulf War was the highlight of his term.

During his year as mayor, he said, the council continued to focus on public issues and avoid personality conflicts.

“This is a town where the mayor has no special power,” Smith said. “That tends to foster cooperation.”

Calling his term as mayor “the most important accomplishment of my life,” Smith said he would continue to push for traffic improvements and a new police station, and that he intended to speak out against hate crimes in Ventura County.

Charlotte Craven, a two-term councilwoman and former mayor who was first elected in 1986, was named to succeed Daily as the council’s vice mayor.