Fair Lawn Courted by Television Show

Fair Lawn, a self-proclaimed "great place to visit," may soon welcome a guest looking to highlight why it's an even "better place to live." 

Producers from the television series "Today in America," have been in touch with the borough about shooting a five-minute promotional video about Fair Lawn that would air 20 times nationwide on a variety of major networks.

The show, hosted by Hall of Fame quarterback and football analyst Terry Bradshaw, explores business, medical and lifestyle trends in communities considered to make up "the heart of mainstream America." 

Borough manager Tom Metzler said he believed Fair Lawn's business community, in particular Radburn, piqued the show's interest.

"I think Radburn actually had a big part to play in it because obviously everybody knows about Radburn," he said.

While Metzler acknowledged that the video would likely be a boon to Fair Lawn's business community, he advised against spending the $19,800 it would cost to finance the promotional spot, if the money came out of taxpayer funds.

"My recommendation," he said, "is if council is interested in pursuing this, that it be pursued through either the Chamber of Commerce or the soliciting of some of the businesses in town. We certainly do not have the money to be doing a promotional five-minute video on Fair Lawn."

Council unanimously agreed with Metzler that taxpayer funds should not be used to finance the video.

suggested reaching out to the Chamber of Commerce and the borough's special improvement districts to gauge interest and solicit funding. , a member of the Chamber of Commerce, said he would bring up the issue of funding the television spot at the group's next meeting.

Metzler's still unsure, however, if the show's producers will be willing to wait for the private funds to be raised. He informed them earlier this week that he could not commit public money to the project, but has yet to hear back on whether that is a dealbreaker.

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To see an example of the type of video that would be made about Fair Lawn, check out this piece done on Fayettesville, Ark.