[0:05] Hello, I'm Gina Marie Rodriguez and this is Meeting Mountainside. Today we're

[0:10] here with Councilman Steve Matatics and I cannot wait to speak to him about all

[0:14] things Mountainside. So hi Steve, how you doing?

[0:16] » Hi, welcome. >> Oh, thank you.

[0:18] » [laughter] >> I'm here in your town now so you tell me

[0:21] all about it. >> Yes, thanks for coming out to see us.

[0:24] It's a pleasure to have you. >> I mean it's fun being here for me. I'm

[0:29] still learning. This is what I think I said it's my third third time with

[0:34] Meeting Mountainside so there's a lot you still need to teach me

[0:37] about the area. I don't know much. I come from Rahway so there's much to

[0:41] learn. Thank you, that's your job. But we just kind of want to learn a little

[0:45] bit about you if that's okay. So talk to me about your background and you grew up

[0:50] here? >> Yes, I grew up in Mountainside. My

[0:52] parents moved here in 1976. So when I was 3 years old

[0:58] so I had the pleasure of having a Mountainside childhood and went through

[1:03] the programs and the schools that we have here.

[1:06] I attended day camps at the local churches,

[1:12] Our Lady of Lords CPC

[1:17] which is Presbyterian Church I attended >> it's full title CPC or does that stand

[1:22] for something? >> It stands for

[1:24] Community Presbyterian Church.

[1:28] » That makes sense. >> I think.

[1:29] » Okay. >> Yeah, they all just refer to it as CPC

[1:32] and they're very active in the community.

[1:33] » Well now if I say it I'll pretend I'm a local CPC.

[1:36] » Great. I attended the schools here which are

[1:40] Beechwood and then I attended Deerfield and I went on to at the time

[1:46] Mountainside sent our students to Jonathan Dayton in Springfield. So I

[1:50] attended all of those schools, went through all of the um

[1:53] the schools. >> Yeah, that's fun.

[1:55] So that last one was high school then. >> Correct.

[1:58] » Right. Okay. All right. I'm learning learning the names.

[2:01] Beachwood, Deerfield, and >> At the time it was Jonathan Dayton. Now

[2:06] it's in Berk- well, that school is still there, but we send our students to

[2:10] Berkeley Heights, Governor Livingston. >> Oh, okay. Wow. See, there's so much that

[2:14] I don't know. Cuz Mountainside is a small community, correct?

[2:18] » small town, so we don't have our own high school. Once upon a time we did. Uh

[2:22] and now the school is uh Borough Hall. >> Oh, okay. Well, that's good for me to

[2:26] know, too. >> The town has grown and expanded, and we

[2:29] have more schools and more students. >> I love that. So tell me a little bit

[2:33] about Borough Hall, too. Is this Is this where you work out of?

[2:37] » Yes. Uh the council meetings are in Borough Hall. The committee meetings,

[2:42] all of the town business uh happens in Borough Hall. We have our business uh

[2:47] administrator, the different departments, engineering, uh recreation,

[2:52] the police department is there. Uh Department of Public Works. Uh used

[2:57] to be fully um based out of there. Uh there's still an

[3:01] administrative office, but we built a separate uh DPW facility uh not far.

[3:06] » Okay. Well, that's nice. Are any of the meetings public?

[3:10] » All of the meetings are public. >> All of them. Okay.

[3:12] » Yeah. Um there's two um public meetings a month. There's a work session, which

[3:18] is where we talk about the various things that are going to be on the um

[3:24] the council meeting agenda. So it's the uh the first and third Tuesday of every

[3:29] month. So we have a work session where we discuss various matters that are

[3:33] going to be on the agenda. And then we have the the council meeting where we

[3:37] conduct business in terms of voting. Um but those are those are public

[3:42] meetings. >> Okay. That's good to know. I mean, I

[3:45] think as somebody who doesn't follow local

[3:48] politics as closely as she should, I do want to reiterate that they are public

[3:52] meetings. So, if you guys want to get involved, you should be doing that.

[3:56] Uh do as I say, not as I do. So, I want to learn a little bit more

[4:00] about what it is that you're working on now, and then we'll talk about the fact

[4:04] that you are running for re-election soon. But, tell me what it is that

[4:07] you're you are working on now and what you've been working on during your term.

[4:11] » Uh during my time on council, I've had several assignments. Um I was on the

[4:16] planning board. We rotate on and off some of these different assignments.

[4:21] I've since rotated off. I was on fire for a while, for a couple years. Very

[4:26] proud of my work on fire. It's uh a volunteer firehouse, and they're very

[4:32] well trained, and they do an excellent job for the community.

[4:36] They're all volunteers doing this tremendous work.

[4:39] Uh >> So, what does that mean?

[4:42] What were you volunteering as a firefighter? What do you mean that you

[4:44] were on the fire department?

[4:46] » Yeah, so uh as part of the fire committee, we do things like decide on

[4:50] policy. Um think of it as a a corporation. And

[4:57] you know, if you want to think about it in a private terms, kind of like a board

[5:01] that makes decisions, uh mostly policy-wise.

[5:04] » Okay, that does help cuz it kind of gives me the hierarchy to understand.

[5:08] So, okay. >> They have their own They have their own

[5:10] managers within the department. And and the firefighters.

[5:14] » Okay, that's awesome. So, what kinds of policy were implemented when you were or

[5:19] while you've been in term? >> Yeah, uh we went through the bylaws. We

[5:23] updated those. Uh making sure that they have all of the

[5:27] equipment that they need to be up to standards.

[5:30] A volunteer fire uh department is uh run a lot like a paid firehouse. They go

[5:36] through all the same training, uh the fire school, the equipment has to

[5:41] meet all the same requirements. Uh so, running a firehouse is uh pretty

[5:47] pretty complicated. >> I'm sure. I mean, I have never had the

[5:51] pleasure or the honor, uh but I can imagine that there's a lot of not only

[5:55] responsibility, but just so much pressure, right? You are responsible for

[5:59] people's lives and safety. So, that's that's a lot to consider. But, I I feel

[6:03] like I interrupted you before you were going to say that you worked on fire and

[6:06] you were continuing before I interrupted you.

[6:08] » Right. Um I'm also on the um committee for the

[6:13] Department of Public Works >> Okay.

[6:15] » uh and police. During my time on uh Department of

[6:19] Public Works, we've uh we built a new facility.

[6:23] Uh once upon a time, we didn't have our own

[6:26] salt dome. We used to use this Yeah, this

[6:29] » Big words for me. >> We uh we used the the state's salt dome.

[6:33] But, unfortunately, we had to uh get our own

[6:37] uh and build a new building. Uh which in the end, it actually it was a

[6:41] very good investment. Uh the uh the town has a very good

[6:46] Department of Public Works in coordination with outside contractors.

[6:50] Our roads are cleared uh very well and very soon after a storm

[6:56] so that we can get emergency services to uh respond uh or people getting to their

[7:02] livelihoods. >> I'm starting to see how those things are

[7:05] tied now, how those committees are tied. The fire

[7:09] » Yes, absolutely. I mean, it's not an easy job that you've tackled here. But,

[7:15] what is it that that made you want to become a council person?

[7:20] » You know, growing up in town, uh I I really have a lot uh invested in the

[7:25] town. And as I became older, I gained a lot of experience in in private

[7:29] practice. Uh have a financial background and a

[7:34] seat became available, and I decided to run, and I wanted to lend my expertise

[7:39] to the community. Uh um it's a good way to participate and

[7:44] give back and uh maintain our our town's uh character.

[7:50] » Absolutely. You just said that you had a financial background. What is your

[7:53] background? >> Uh accounting,

[7:55] uh CPA, worked at various uh companies whether they were domestic or or

[8:01] international, uh largely uh real estate.

[8:05] » Oh, okay. All right, I know nothing about taxes. Like don't ask me. That's I

[8:09] usually hire an accountant because I don't know what I'm doing. That's the

[8:11] right move. >> Yeah.

[8:13] Says the accountant. Um, but yeah, I'd like to learn a little bit more. I want

[8:18] to go back in time, right back to your childhood here.

[8:23] Not that you necessarily knew better, but what is it that you loved? What is a

[8:27] memory that pulls you back to your childhood all the time that could only

[8:30] have happened in Mountainside? >> Uh I love the ability to just in the

[8:34] summer hop on my bike, travel all around town,

[8:38] didn't worry about safety. Um, you know, when it was dusk, it was time

[8:43] to come home. There was no cell phones. Uh

[8:47] meet up meet up with your friends, bike around the schools, uh lots of

[8:53] tennis, uh swim team, uh I participated in the recreation

[8:59] department and all that they had to offer whether it was uh skiing in the

[9:02] winter, they used uh um roller skating outings, uh there's a

[9:10] day camp right next to the pool. So, a lot of um youth go to these day camps.

[9:16] They can go to the pool when they're done.

[9:18] » Is it the same day camp that has that was around since you were a child?

[9:22] Is it still there? >> Oh, yeah.

[9:23] » Oh, wow. It's All right, good. That longevity, I really appreciate. That's

[9:26] awesome. >> Yeah.

[9:28] » Okay. I I'm sorry, I'm getting stuck for a

[9:31] second because I there's so many things that I want to talk to you about and I'm

[9:34] like trying to keep in line. You mentioned the pool cuz I think we were

[9:38] talking about the day camping by the pool and I know you had told me

[9:42] previously before we got on camera that there is a renovation planned for the

[9:47] pool. So, can you talk to me a little bit about the renovation?

[9:49] » Well, it's under discussion right now what's to be done. So, it's not exactly

[9:54] determined. What we did is we went out to the public.

[9:58] The surveys were done that went out to the public to get

[10:01] feedback. We had multiple town hall meetings.

[10:05] The pool's 60 years old and has a lifespan.

[10:08] And I would say through good management management and maintenance, we've gotten

[10:13] a pool to exceed its expected lifespan.

[10:18] » Absolutely. >> But at some point

[10:20] um it needs

[10:22] some care. Um

[10:25] whereas a lot of communities in the surrounding areas have closed their

[10:29] pool. We think from the feedback we received,

[10:34] the community loves the pool. It's it's it's a mountainside institution.

[10:40] And we don't want to take that away from the current or future residents.

[10:45] » Especially if we continue getting heat waves like we've been having this last

[10:49] week. >> That's right.

[10:49] » It's crazy. I can't imagine life without a pool. But did you say that there's a

[10:55] measure that's being proposed? Are people going to be able to vote on this

[10:58] or this is something that's happening internally?

[11:00] » Well, what we've done is gone out to the public to share information. We actually

[11:04] had an on-site town hall. If you go to the pool, it still looks

[11:08] beautiful. So, it's a little bit deceiving. But then when you understand,

[11:11] okay, this part of the pavement is sinking, the grass has sinkholes.

[11:16] There's there's rust building up in the filter room because

[11:20] the pipes at the time were built out of iron. They're deteriorating.

[11:25] And then you learn from the pool managers that almost 5,000 gallons a day

[11:30] of the pool is leaking. And it has to be constantly filled every every day.

[11:36] Um and some of these things aren't simple repairs.

[11:40] » No, not at all. But, I'm glad that we're discussing them because I wouldn't have

[11:43] known any of that to consider. So, I I hope folks are paying attention.

[11:47] » Yeah, that's why we got people out on site

[11:50] with experts to show them around and and educate people, ask them all the they

[11:55] can ask all the questions they want, give all the feedback that they want.

[11:59] And uh and we've got a lot of uh feedback and uh a lot of optimism

[12:04] about uh what we've done and and the path forward.

[12:08] » I think that's amazing, and we're going to end on an optimistic note for now,

[12:11] and we'll be right back after this.

[12:31] » [screaming]

[12:34] [panting]

[12:42] » Eyes forward. Don't drive distracted. >> Welcome back to Meeting Mountainside.

[12:48] Like I said before, we are still here with Steve Matichak, and we are talking

[12:52] about your re-election campaign because you are running for councilperson again.

[12:56] So, talk to me about that. First, let us know when is election day.

[13:00] » Yes, uh I am running. Uh running for uh Borough Council. The

[13:05] general election is November 3rd. It's the first Tuesday in November.

[13:10] » Okay. That's great. So, tell us what Well, I'm I don't live here, so I

[13:14] can't vote for you, but tell the folks why they should vote for you.

[13:17] » Well, I've been on uh Council for 6 years, and during my time, we've

[13:21] accomplished quite a lot. Uh we have maintained and even improved things like

[13:27] our uh fire department, our police department. We've maintained

[13:32] the character of our town.

[13:36] We've always fought against high-density

[13:39] housing. It puts such a strain on the community.

[13:43] Bringing high-density housing into the community puts a strain on the schools,

[13:49] classroom sizes, emergency services.

[13:55] It doesn't help the tax base at the rate in which the services are consumed.

[14:02] We have a lovely town that doesn't have over abundance of traffic. And people

[14:10] moved here for what it is. So, we'd like to maintain what we have

[14:16] while also developing the town in various ways.

[14:21] Adding parks and recreation for sports, general quality of life, and

[14:28] various activities. >> Now, can you clarify for me when you say

[14:31] high-density housing, do you mean high-rises like apartment complexes? Is

[14:35] that what we're talking about? >> Well, I'm sure some developers would

[14:38] like to do that, but you generally will see um

[14:41] developments that are several stories high.

[14:45] Not not towers, but several stories high. Uh with

[14:50] uh buildings that are not stand-alone. Our town side is mostly stand-alone

[14:55] homes, single residence properties.

[15:01] Whereas the high-density housing really cramps a lot of people into a small

[15:04] location. >> Okay. All right, that's good to know.

[15:08] And you were saying that that This is I hope it doesn't sound silly,

[15:11] but can you explain to me how that affects taxes?

[15:14] » Sure. Well, um

[15:17] as you bring in more people, you have to provide more services. You have to hire

[15:20] more police. There's more fire events.

[15:24] It doesn't necessarily need to be a fire. It could be a carbon monoxide

[15:28] alarm. They They respond. >> Okay.

[15:30] » Uh so, all of the things that uh the bureau hall provides for its

[15:36] residents just have to increase. And And the tax

[15:40] base that you get out of high-density housing uh comes in at at a reduced rate

[15:45] versus homes that

[15:49] are at the at the current

[15:52] tax rate. >> Okay. All right. Well, see, I just had a

[15:56] huge lesson there because I didn't know any of that. So, thank you for

[15:58] explaining it to me. Maybe that's what I need, just an

[16:01] accountant on speed dial explaining things to

[16:04] » we have a very low taxes in Mountainside. Our Our tax rate is

[16:09] amongst the lowest in the county. >> I did not know that.

[16:12] » It's It's almost half of the state average.

[16:16] » I didn't know that, either. >> Yeah. So, we're we're we're doing that

[16:20] by continuing with what we're doing, maintaining fiscal responsibility,

[16:25] um and making sure that residents, when they come here for all that it is, don't

[16:31] necessarily get priced out of their own home when they retire. So, we have a

[16:35] very robust senior population. >> Okay.

[16:38] » And when they retire, they can continue to live here.

[16:42] » And for that senior population, what opportunities exist for them? Is there a

[16:47] senior center? Like, what kind of activities are offered?

[16:50] » Quite a bit. So, within our recreation department, we have a senior coordinator

[16:55] who runs all sorts of programs. We have a There's a great organization called

[17:01] Mountainside Active Retirees. >> Okay.

[17:03] » Uh our seniors are active and they're smart. Uh and

[17:09] And they're a great part of the community.

[17:11] » I feel like what I'm hearing is I should retire in Mountainside.

[17:14] » If you can, please. >> I I I've got time, I hope.

[17:17] » [laughter] >> But I want to know I want to hear more

[17:20] about what you're planning. Let's say you are lucky enough to get reelected,

[17:24] what do you foresee in the future? >> There's a lot of great things on the

[17:28] horizon that we're working on now. We're in the process of building a park in the

[17:33] center of town. Uh we acquired some land with grants, so there was no um impact

[17:40] on taxpayers. We are building a soccer field behind

[17:45] one of the schools, a regulation soccer field. As we've seen the

[17:51] the the desire from

[17:55] you know, kind of transition from some other sports to soccer becoming very

[17:59] popular. >> Well, the World Cup is going on right

[18:01] now, so >> that, but even before that,

[18:03] um uh

[18:05] we we have a soccer league, and we need a proper soccer field. So, we we have

[18:11] one, but we need we need another one. >> Okay. I want to hear more about the

[18:14] park. That's what I'm excited about. So, how big is the plan for this park?

[18:20] » Well, it's it's a little walking park. It's

[18:23] downtown. It's not um

[18:25] very expansive, but it's a nice addition to our downtown.

[18:29] Whereas, some downtowns might have something like a Starbucks that'll have

[18:32] a lot of traffic, this is a an open space where people can gather. There'll

[18:37] be park benches. Uh there'll be tree-lined paths. It'll

[18:41] be a nice gathering place for the community.

[18:43] » Okay, so when I heard park, I was thinking swing sets and slides. So, not

[18:48] that kind of park. >> No, we have that, and we're uh nestled

[18:52] next to the Watching Reservation. We have all sorts of uh natural trails and

[18:56] and things like that. So, it it's a little bit different than what we have.

[19:00] It's a nice addition to what we have. >> I like that. So, this is more of like a

[19:04] walking path as opposed to a bike path type

[19:06] » Correct. Yes. >> Okay.

[19:08] Not not that I bike, but I'm, you know, thinking about maybe changing my

[19:13] activities. >> So, open spaces that

[19:16] let people gather >> Yeah.

[19:18] » play sports and generally >> Yeah, and generally have a better

[19:22] quality of life. Whereas other towns are taking spaces and putting in

[19:26] high-density housing. >> Right. We're right on top of that.

[19:29] » going the opposite direction. >> Okay. I I think that's that's really

[19:33] important. I wanted to ask you we had Valerie Walsh on the same show a

[19:39] little while back. I've lost track of time, but

[19:42] you're you've been working with her and she's a co-candidate. You're both

[19:45] running at the same time. So, tell me what it's like to collaborate with your

[19:50] fellow council people. >> Yeah, working with Valerie and the other

[19:54] members of the governing body is fantastic. There is so much intellectual

[19:59] diversity. We have attorneys, accountants, we have parents and

[20:04] grandparents and single parents and

[20:08] everyone comes with their own perspective, their own set of skills and

[20:13] we all come together really selflessly for the betterment of

[20:17] the community. Everyone goes in thinking about the community as a whole, not

[20:22] necessarily, okay, how how's this affect me and my street?

[20:26] » Right. >> How does it affect the community as a

[20:28] whole? >> Right. Well, I think that's an important

[20:30] way of thinking cuz we should be community focused. I think that

[20:34] in my experience at least we're living in a time where people tend to insulate

[20:39] themselves and individualism has, I don't know,

[20:44] it's on the rise to a degree and maybe if we're lucky Mountainside has kind of

[20:49] avoided that fate, but I do want to hear more about what programming exists to

[20:56] encourage people to leave the house, to to come and meet new people as opposed

[21:00] to just, you know, we've created this park for you and it's, you know,

[21:04] available. But, how are you encouraging people to to leave the house?

[21:08] » There's something for everyone, whether you want to go off and do something

[21:11] independently, like the parks, uh the trails in the reservation.

[21:15] There's a lot of organized things as well. We have a a great scouting program

[21:20] from uh Cub Scouts to Boy Scouts and a lot of

[21:25] fantastic volunteers in that organization and others. Uh there's a

[21:30] Mountainside uh Newcomers organization. People come into town and you want to

[21:34] meet people and network. You can join this organization. I've met a lot of

[21:38] friends there. Uh as you become a senior, again, the Mountainside Active

[21:43] Retirees. >> Already planning on it.

[21:45] » Yeah. Uh there's programs at Borough Hall. Uh

[21:49] there's chair yoga if that's your your skill level. Uh there's

[21:54] » my skill level. >> That's great.

[21:57] Uh there's all sorts of activities at the pool. There's a a swim team. Uh

[22:02] there's there's tennis lessons. We have great tennis courts. So, we just

[22:05] resurface those and and and invested a lot into our infrastructure. So, there

[22:11] there is something for everyone. >> Yeah. Well, I've heard that pickleball

[22:14] is on the rise. I know nothing about it. Do you have a pickleball court or is it

[22:18] the same as a tennis court? I genuinely don't know the answer.

[22:20] » Oh, yeah. So, the tennis courts become the pickleball

[22:23] court. You take half of a tennis court and you turn it into a pickleball court.

[22:28] And there's so many people out there and it's uh you know, it it it it it lets

[22:34] other people uh who might not be uh tennis players get into pickleball. It's

[22:39] it's um you know, you have tennis, pickleball. So, the two combined are

[22:43] very inclusive for for all sorts of people.

[22:45] » Okay. That's good to know. I think there's a movie coming out about

[22:48] pickleball and I'm going to have to watch it just so I understand what we're

[22:51] even talking about. I said the word just because I know it's a hot button topic,

[22:54] but >> [laughter]

[22:55] » That's very popular in town. >> That's I mean, that's good. I

[23:00] I guess I'm always fascinated when I speak to

[23:04] people from Mountainside because everyone here seems to really love their

[23:07] community as they should, right? But it depends on who you speak to and where

[23:11] they're coming from. Not everyone feels that way. So, I've been trying to get to

[23:15] the root of what is it about this town that that so many people just adore

[23:21] living here? Is it walkability? Is it that easy access to stores? What what

[23:26] are the important things for folks who are house hunting right now if they if

[23:30] you would like to encourage them to come to Mountainside?

[23:33] » Mountainside is a reprieve from everything else that's out there. To the

[23:37] east and west you have a lot of the same and Mountainside is a diversity to a lot

[23:41] of those other things. The community, the people gathering

[23:45] together whether it's formal or informal things.

[23:49] Like I mentioned the the formal programs through the recreation department can

[23:53] gather people. There's a lot of informal book clubs. Just people like to get

[23:59] together. And and enjoy the community. And we're we're community of volunteers.

[24:04] And these things tend to to feed on each other. You get involved in something and

[24:08] then something else and you meet people. And Mountainside is um

[24:13] uh lends itself to to being outdoors quite a bit.

[24:17] » Yeah. Well, I'd say that volunteers are a key to any functioning society. So, I

[24:22] think that that in and of itself is a sign that people really support this

[24:27] community. Um I I'm back to the house hunter

[24:30] question right now just cuz clearly that's on my mind.

[24:33] » The house on >> house hunting

[24:35] » Okay. >> for folks who might want to be uh

[24:37] considering Mountainside. For the kids who are attending school

[24:42] here, you mentioned that you don't have your own high school, right? So, we're

[24:44] sending the kids outside. Is there a choice between high schools or it's the

[24:48] the one option Berkeley Heights? >> Well, it's the one option for the public

[24:51] schools, but we also have a lot of excellent private high schools in the

[24:55] area and some people make that decision, that's up to them.

[24:58] » Okay. >> Uh

[24:59] Mountainside has a what's called a blue ribbon school. It's means it's a top

[25:05] five uh in the country. >> In the country?

[25:08] » only 11, I believe, in the state last year.

[25:11] » Wow. >> So, we have excellent school. Deerfield

[25:14] was a a blue ribbon school. And that is a testament to the teachers, the staff,

[25:19] the board of education, and of course the students and the parents of the

[25:23] students. Everyone has to come together uh to make an excellent school.

[25:27] » Absolutely. I think that's really important to know, and I I mean, I don't

[25:31] have children of my own, but I do know that when people are house hunting, they

[25:34] tend to want to know what the public school system is like. So, blue ribbon

[25:38] is important to know. >> Yep. All those things that I mentioned,

[25:41] the schools, the parks, the quality of life, have caused uh the home values in

[25:47] Mountainside to just soar. >> Yeah.

[25:50] » And people come into Mountainside and they invest in themselves and their

[25:54] home and a community, and they plan on staying here for a very long time. You

[25:58] see a lot of renovations um uh to homes in the community. So,

[26:02] people really get invested in into the community.

[26:06] » Yeah. Forgive me, I feel like there's there's a few flies buzzing by us and

[26:09] they're telling us that it's time to wrap.

[26:11] » Okay. >> [laughter]

[26:12] » I think we had a really excellent conversation. It's been a pleasure

[26:15] speaking to you. >> Likewise.

[26:16] » And I guess I will see you at the next meeting, Mountainside.

[26:21] » Thank you. >> watching.

[26:26] » [music]

Meeting Mountainside - Steve Matejek

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