Dave Riley Chairman
Dave is the youngest of Riley Construction founders Chuck and Betty Riley’s eight children. Dave grew up on a small farm, in a house built by his father and remodeled to accommodate the growing Riley crew. After selling the farm, Dave’s father worked at American Motors for only nine months before deciding to pursue construction, and soon got a job as a laborer. The rest is, quite literally, history. On June 17, 1965, Chuck Riley founded Riley Construction in the basement of the family home.
While Dave officially joined the family firm in 1992, he had already logged many hours on Riley job sites as a teenager and college student, learning the trades and gaining a personal appreciation for the skill and craftsmanship that goes into each Riley Construction project. He took time from the family business to earn his B.S. in construction management from Arizona State University, and served in a variety of operational roles before taking on his current role of Chairman in 2022.
“Growing up in a family business and listening to the conversations at the dinner table between my Mom and Dad gave me some insight, but it was not until I worked as a laborer in the field when I was 16 that I really became hooked,” Dave said. “Being able to see something in three dimensions that you helped create is very rewarding. I also thought that the closeness of the tradesman in the field was unique. The industry over the years has very much changed with new technology, but the passion of the team in the field and the office has remained.”
Dave and his wife Angie have three grown children: Maggie, Kelsey, and Charlie. “Raising kids and building the business have been all-consuming for the past 25+ years, but now that we are empty nesters, I am spending more time snowmobiling and have a desire to learn how to play the drums,” Dave said. “We also are traveling much more and want to take at least two major trips per year while our health allows.”
Fun Fact: “I have never broken a bone in my body.”