Methuen Mayor Neil Perry Dies at 65 After ‘Health Battles’

Methuen Mayor Neil Perry died Saturday after “numerous health battles,” his office said in a statement.

Perry, a longtime Methuen resident, was 65 and battling kidney disease, TThe Eagle Tribune reported.

“Mayor Perry has fought many health battles over the past few years, but he has come away from each one with renewed vigor to tackle, in his words, the greatest job he has ever had: being the mayor of the great city of Methuen,” his office said in a statement.

City Councilman DJ Beauregard will serve as interim mayor until a special election can be held, according to a follow-up statement from the mayor’s office. Beauregard was chosen to be first in line of succession at a city council meeting in January.

The council will also hold an emergency meeting Monday night to discuss “the continuation of Methuen government following the untimely death of Mayor Perry.”

The special election must be held within 60 days to replace Perry.

“Mayor Perry was not only a close ally and mentor, he was my friend. I mourn the loss our community is facing and am saddened by the sudden loss of my dear friend,” Beauregard wrote on Facebook. “As interim mayor, I will use the lessons I learned from him to move our city forward over the next 60 days.”

Perry was a former teacher who fought for transparency in Methuen

Perry attended Lawrence Central Catholic High School and the University of Massachusetts Lowell, where he studied elementary education and Spanish. He worked as a transitional bilingual educator in Methuen Public Schools before beginning a decades-long career at Raytheon, according to his campaign website.

Perry, a Democrat, took office in 2020. He has focused in part on implementing “conservative fiscal oversight” and increasing government transparency, his website says. He ordered an audit of the Methuen Police Department after widespread fraud and corruption centered around the high-earning former chief became public.

“His final and perhaps greatest accomplishment was securing the city’s purchase of the Searles Estate from the Sisters of the Presentation of Mary, saving the city’s most iconic and historic property from an uncertain future,” the statement said.

In July, Perry announced plans to acquire the Searles Estate, the 19th-century estate of Edward Searles, a member of one of Methuen’s philanthropic families dating back to the industrial era, according to the city.

The property, which had an estimated value of more than $10 million, was sold to the city for $3.25 million.

“The City of Methuen has taken a major step forward to ensure that the most significant piece of Methuen’s wealthy Gilded Age, the grand estates, will not be lost to decay or unwanted development, but rather preserved and restored for the benefit of future generations of Methuen residents,” Perry said at the time.

Local, state and congressional leaders mourn Perry

Diana DiZoglio, state auditor and Methuen resident, said Perry “gave absolutely everything he had to our community.”

Gov. Maura Healey, Rep. Lori Trahan and Essex County District Attorney Paul Tucker also shared statements on social media.

“Everyone in the Commonwealth knew that no matter the situation, Neil would never back down from a fight if it was in the best interest of the hard-working families of Methuen,” Trahan wrote.