MATTHEWS, N.C. — On a Thursday night in May, Jim Taylor is surrounded by the current and former fire chiefs of the Town of Matthews.

 

What You Need To Know

  • Jim Taylor served as the 17th mayor of Matthews for eight years

  • He launched his new podcast "Inside Matthews" in early April

  • His podcasts highlights the town and its growth through people who live there

 

They’re all sharing the department’s rich history that’s being recorded for Taylor’s new podcast called Inside Matthews.

“We could never repay them for the contributions that they gave over the years, of their time, their sweat, their tears,” Taylor said. “I don’t want people to forget about that.” 

Taylor’s podcast is all about the Town of Matthews, told through the people who live there.

But Taylor isn’t just a regular guy; in fact those who grew up in town know exactly who he is. 

“To be honest, I never really anticipated being mayor,” he said. 

For eight years Taylor served as the town’s 17th mayor. 

“I retired in 2018,” he said. “I got my life back, my dinners back with my wife. I’m amazed at what’s on TV between 8 and 11 on Monday nights.” 

He’s spent the last three decades loving this small town even though he’s not even from there. 

“(I was) born in the Bronx ... moved to Miami, Florida when I was about 7 or 8 years old,” Taylor said. “My father was transferred out of Manhattan to Coral Gables, Florida so I grew up in Miami.”

A job brought Taylor to Matthews in the late 1990s, and he’s never left. 

“I can look at this setting right now and see what was there before,” he said. “I can see over here it was a dance studio that my daughter used to go to when she was very very small.” 

Growth has slowly crept in though and changed a town Taylor said many newcomers don’t even know. 

“They don’t have any recollection of Matthews without I-485, without the hospital, Novant Hospital,” he said. 

Most of the development, like town hall, are projects that began in the early 2000s and wouldn’t be here had past leaders not prepared for future growth. 

“The town council and the mayor could not have pulled the trigger on building that town hall had it not been for the foresight of prior councils and prior mayors to put the town in position to do it,” Taylor said. 

Back at the fire station, it might just look like a few men talking about a town’s fire department. 

But deep down, this conversation is Taylor’s way of sharing Matthews' growing history through the people who helped make it all happen. 

Taylor’s goal is to get every former mayor from Matthews on his podcast. 

He was recently notified that he won the “best local podcast” award from the town’s newspaper. 

He releases episodes every two weeks, so you can check out his latest one here.