SAUGUS — After six years on the Board of Selectman, Corinne Riley has chosen not to run in 2025.
When asked when she knew she wouldn’t run, she said: “Probably last year. I just felt that six years is good. It’s three terms.”
Riley felt that she got done what she wanted to as a board member, and she believes they did a good job as a group, but it was time for new faces.
“New faces, new voices, new ideas. It just makes it a better thing to run for a political office. I never planned to be a career politician, and I came into it later in life, so that was never my focus as a young person, but as you have children and you want to get involved in the schools, it just progressed to wanting to help the whole community,” she said.
Riley said that out of the six years she was on the board, something that was important was what they accomplished through votes and licensing. However, something she was very proud of was getting through Covid.
“We had to go through Covid, and it was a really horrible time for the world. As a board, we knew what we could do. The chairman at the time was Anthony Cogliano, and he had gotten a lot of the restaurants involved, and we were delivering meals and taking food to the first responders. Those are the things that, as a community, we came together,” she said.
Riley emphasized that though times were hard, it showed the strength of Saugus when everyone came together for a cause.
“We lost a lot, sadly. We lost our clerk at the time. But, I think that’s what I’m proud of as far as the board overall because we really did try to help the community with all that was going on,” she said.
With 2025 being her final year, there are still things Riley is looking to support and continue making progress on as a selectman, including the new public safety building.
“When I began running at the time, I wanted a third fire station. I wanted to push for that, so seeing the conversation really beginning… It’s been a long haul waiting for it, but I think that is something I will keep supporting,” Riley said.
She also wants to continue pushing for greater communication in the town, something that the Selectmen have continued to support, and Town Manager Scott Crabtree has been focused on to help get information to residents.
“Getting out the SMS and text messaging and all that’s going on in town will be big… It will bring better communication, and he (Crabtree) has done a good job with that,” she said.
Riley also mentioned revamping the Golden Hills Playground as part of her goals.
It was also clear that though Riley would not be serving on the board anymore, she was nowhere near done with her work in Saugus.
“There’s no chance that I’m not going to continue (being involved),” she said.
Riley will continue her work with the Saugus Lion’s Club and her Saugus 4-1-1 event. She stated that she was looking into new ideas, but she emphasized remaining involved with veterans.
“I still do the Brick Program. My dad was a World War II vet, so I know what the importance of veterans is; they’re the real heroes always,” she said.
When asked what she will miss about the board, she said that she’s enjoyed helping people and answering the phone for those needing assistance.
“If you have the voice to be able to get that done and you accomplish that for them, it’s great because sometimes they have nowhere else to turn or they’ve given up… When they ask for your help and you get it done, it’s very rewarding,” Riley said.
She continued that she would miss her fellow board members and that even though they didn’t always agree, the differences they had helped them find what was best for the community.
Finally, when asked what her vision is for the future of Saugus, Riley was firm and clear in her response: “My biggest hope is that we go back to civility, that the inhouse fighting stops. Everyone has opinions, and they should be welcomed and not chastised. In the end, we’re all Saugonians, and this is our town… I also want to see the young people of today reaching out and being volunteers.”
She again harkened back to Covid times when members of the community pulled through together and showed respect to one another. She also addressed that social media has caused a major rift not just in the town but around the world.
“I want to thank the people for the last six years for believing in me, and I really want to see people come forward with their ideas and run for political office because it does mean a lot to the community to get involved. You might have something that’s going to change the world, so think about taking out nomination papers and making a difference,” Riley said.
