Matteson

Matteson /ˌmætɪsən/ is a village in Cook and Will counties, Illinois, United States. The population was 12,928 at the 2000 census and 19,009 in 2010

HISTORY

The area encompassed by modern Matteson was settled in the late 1800s, primarily by people of German descent. Platted in 1855, Matteson had nearly 500 residents when it incorporated as a village in 1889. The village's namesake is Joel Aldrich Matteson, who served as Illinois' tenth governor from 1853 to 1857. The 20th century saw improvements in plumbing, the electrification of the Illinois Central Railroad, and the construction of today's school district, resulting in significant population growth to more than 3,000 residents by the end of the 1960s. By 2000, Matteson was home to Lincoln Mall (opened 1973) and annexed 195 acres of land for the village.

GEOGRAPHY

Matteson is located at 41°30′35″N 87°44′21″W (41.509832, -87.739267).

According to the 2010 census, Matteson has a total area of 9.354 square miles (24.23 km²), of which 9.32 square miles (24.14 km²) (or 99.64%) is land and 0.034 square miles (0.09 km²) (or 0.36%) is water. The village's topography is mostly flat.

Matteson is bordered by Park Forest and Olympia Fields to the east, Country Club Hills and Tinley Park to the north, Frankfort to the west, and Richton Park to the south.

ECONOMY

Matteson was home to Lincoln Mall, which was located at Cicero Avenue and US Highway 30. Once one of the Chicago Southland's major regional shopping centers, Lincoln Mall experienced a protracted decline beginning in the 1990s and closed on January 7, 2015. Demolition of the mall site commenced in May 2017. Several big-box retailers, including Target and JCPenney, are located in close proximity to the former mall, as are hotels and low/midrise office buildings.

The 110-acre (0.45 km²) Matteson Auto Mall, just west of Interstate 57 along US Highway 30, is the largest agglomeration of automobile dealerships in Illinois. The Matteson Auto Mall was originally developed by David Miller in 2001. Valspar operates a paint manufacturing facility in Matteson.

EDUCATION

Matteson is home to two school districts including Elementary School District 159 and Matteson School District 162. 

Rich Township High School District 227, which has its headquarters in Matteson, operates public high schools serving Matteson. Different portions of Matteson are zoned to each of the three Rich Township district schools: Rich Central High School in Olympia Fields, Rich East High School in Park Forest, and Rich South High School in Richton Park. Residents of the village may also attend Southland College Preparatory Charter High School.

The Matteson Area Public Library District serves the community

Find out more about the housing market trends in Matteson, IL