On any given weekday, the population of Secaucus swells from its sleepy nighttime census figure of about 15,000 residents to as many as 50,000 occupants during the day. With nearly 20 hotels and more than 50 national corporations – not to mention the malls, the outlets and a variety of other offices and retail establishments – mornings in Secaucus see an amazing rush of traffic: cars and buses rolling into town via Route 3, The New Jersey Turnpike and back roads like County Avenue.
Many of the town’s professional population comes east into Secaucus via Route 3 and the Route 3 East service road, and thousands make their way off the exit that leads to Harmon Meadow Mall, Plaza Drive, the Mall at Mill Creek and the dozens of office buildings and hotels situated on the northern side of the highway.
For most of those who roll into Secaucus via this route, the first face they meet each morning is not the mayor or even the clerk who serves them breakfast at one of the main mall eateries, but an employee of the development company Hartz Mountain Industries, whose morning assignment is to sweep the curbs of the ramp leading to Hartz property.
Dressed in his blue work shirt and his company hat, Mark Federinco, 43, of Hoboken, has become such a familiar face to many of the people who travel this route that the commuters are often prepared to wave back. Kids who are headed for the daycare center located in a portion of the vast Hartz-owned property open their windows and shout to him, many calling him "Mr. Sweep."
"I think the kids stay awake just to wave at me," he said during his usual morning ritual recently, waving his whisk broom at the familiar people – hundreds of drivers in business attire waving as they drove past.
"I don’t know how it started," the 43-year-old Federinco said. "I guess with me working here every morning it was natural for people to smile after a while."
The Hoboken resident has worked for Hartz for six years. Each morning, as part of his assignment, he dons his orange safety vest (one with reflective strips that allow him to be seen at a distance in the dim morning hours), grabs his broom, and makes his way here.
Many people know him by the cigar he smokes while working.
Formerly employed by Applied Housing in Hoboken, Federinco came to Hartz six years ago. His wife and sister were already working here and he figured it would be a good company to work for. Although not a veteran, he is passionately patriotic, and wishes he could enlist for service to fight back at the terrorists that attacked the World Trade Center.
Federinco usually gets to the curbside about 8 a.m. each weekday morning, and – depending upon on much litter has been dumped on the street – he takes about an hour to finish up before moving onto his other duties.
"Some people don’t smile or wave," he said. "But I still smile at them. I figure sooner or later they’ll break down and smile back. That’s pretty much what happens."