METUCHEN — More exciting things will soon emanate from the basement of Metuchen Borough Hall.
Before he became mayor, Jonathan Busch said he did not know where METV broadcast from. He soon learned the local access channel is broadcast right out of the basement in the municipal building.
“Television and multimedia has changed so much even since this building was constructed” in the early 2000s, he said.
Busch said he, Borough Administrator Jay Muldoon and members of the Borough Council have been discussing different ways of delivering the borough’s television channel, which is seen on channel 15 on the Cablevision system in Metuchen.
“We have an advantage of having a low channel in channel 15,” the mayor said, adding that people are moving away from the “flipping channel” method when watching television.
Busch said at a council meeting on May 21 that borough officials are not ready to give out all the details; however, they would like to deliver content beyond council meetings, an occasional Middlesex County Board of Chosen Freeholders meeting, and a black and white movie.
“We are partnering with the Metuchen School District Board of Education as well as the Metuchen Downtown Alliance to bring you some great stuff,” he said. “It is our way of opening [Metuchen] more and making people feel they are part of something and making sure they know what is going on.”
Busch said that during the next few months, viewers will notice a substantial difference in respect to METV, whether through social media or channel 15.
Borough Council President Ronald Grayzel had said that in the last few years, Rich DeSimone, who recently announced his retirement, and Stephanie Gibson in the borough’s technology department have anticipated the development and popularity of alternative platforms that can deliver video services to the public.
In February, council meetings started to air on Facebook Live, which added another source through which members of the public could view public meetings, which also includes channel 15, YouTube, streaming live on Metuchen’s website, video on demand on the website, and Roku.
In January, Busch said it is incumbent upon officials in a small town to be open, clear and transparent in the ways they communicate with the public.
