In 1983, while still in high school, John Burns III started a small landscaping business in Emerson, New Jersey. What began as a side job steadily grew into High Sierra Landscape, a full-service property maintenance company now based in Park Ridge and serving clients throughout Bergen County.

While building the business, Burns III balanced entrepreneurship with a 35-year career in civil service. Over the years, the family expanded its footprint in the industry, opening Park Ave Landscape & Mason Supply in Park Ridge. The supply yard serves contractors and homeowners alike, offering landscape materials as well as winter essentials such as bulk road salt, bagged ice melt, shovels and other snow removal supplies.

Today, High Sierra Landscape remains firmly rooted as a family operation. John Burns III still meets with customers and HOA boards, while day-to-day operations are handled collectively by the next generation including his sons John IV and Collin alongside a dedicated team that has helped the company grow over the years.

Behind the scenes, however, the Burns family is quick to credit the person who keeps everything running.

“It might say president on my dad’s business card,” John IV says, “but he’d be the first one to tell you the real brains of this whole operation is my mom, Beverly. This business doesn’t run without the work she does behind the scenes in the office. She’s the single most important piece of not only our company, but our family.”

Across Bergen County, High Sierra Landscape provides landscaping services for both residential and commercial clients, along with snow and ice management for a wide range of commercial properties.

And when it comes to snow, it relies on KAGE.

Discovering a Better Way to Plow

The Burns family discovered KAGE more than 16 years ago — when John IV was still in high school. At the time, the company had just purchased a Snow Wolf Fast Tach plow when John III came across a video of the KAGE SnowFire system on YouTube.

The concept immediately caught their attention.

The following year, when it was time to purchase another plow, they decided to try the KAGE Innovation SnowFire 2-in-1 system, and they haven’t looked back.

“Once we like something, we stick with it,” John IV says. “It hasn’t failed us yet.”

Today, High Sierra runs more than a dozen SnowFire 2-in-1 systems on skid steers and compact wheel loaders, along with multiple SnowStorm 2-in-1 systems on its larger wheel loaders. Its fleet operates plows ranging from 8 feet up to 12 feet wide, allowing operators to match equipment to the wide variety of commercial sites it services across Bergen County.

That flexibility allows crews to adapt their approach depending on site layout, traffic patterns, and the type of snowfall they’re dealing with during a storm.

Why the 2-in-1 System Works

What first attracted High Sierra to KAGE was the flexibility of the 2-in-1 design.

The ability to detach the containment box instantly converts the system into a straight blade, giving operators multiple ways to approach a job depending on the layout of the property.

For the HOA and condominium communities that make up a large portion of its snow work, that flexibility is especially valuable. Tight roadways and parking areas often require more maneuverability than traditional truck plows can offer.

By dropping the containment box and switching to an 8- to 12-foot straight blade, operators can navigate tight areas far more efficiently while still having the option to reattach the box when containment becomes important.

Another advantage has been the polyurethane cutting edges used on the KAGE systems. Many of the communities High Sierra services feature decorative paver driveways, walkways, and hardscapes.

Steel cutting edges can be unforgiving in those environments. Polyurethane edges provide a level of protection for finished surfaces while still maintaining effective snow removal performance.

But what ultimately won the company over was durability.

“It’s a very good system,” John IV says.

In snow operations, equipment works hard every storm, and unexpected obstacles are simply part of winter work.

“Our equipment sees heavy use,” he explains. “No matter how much preventative maintenance you do, things happen in winter conditions. But we’ve never had a catastrophic failure where we had to pull equipment out of service during a storm. Mostly it’s just normal wear items like or the occasional blown hose.”

For a company that self-performs its snow operations and does not rely on subcontractors, that reliability is critical.

Parts When You Need Them

Performance is only part of the equation. Support matters just as much.

High Sierra operates a diverse equipment fleet that includes Bobcat, New Holland, Thomas, Hyundai, and JCB machines. In the company’s earlier years, the Burns family often sourced well-maintained used equipment that fit its needs. As the company grew, it transitioned toward purchasing primarily New Holland compact equipment along with Hyundai wheel loaders.

With a local Bobcat/KAGE dealer located about 20 minutes away, parts availability has never been a major concern.

“When trying to get parts for some other brands, shipping was the biggest issue,” John IV says. “They had to come from the Midwest or Canada. When something goes down in the middle of a storm… You need parts when you need them.”

Having local dealer support allows High Sierra to keep equipment running and crews moving throughout winter events.

“We haven’t broken too many things,” he adds. “Just normal wear and tear.”

A Family Operation in the Field

Despite the company’s growth, the Burns family still operates with the same hands-on approach that defined the business from the beginning.

During snowstorms, John Burns III, John IV, and Collin are all out in the field alongside their crews operating trucks and machines.

John III still considers himself a laborer first and foremost — a mindset that continues to shape the company culture.

Before crews wrap up after a storm, one of the Burns family members personally checks each property to ensure it meets High Sierra’s service standards before the team heads home.

Many of the company’s clients have been with High Sierra for a decade or more with some relationships extending back 40 years.   built on consistent service and reliability.

The Burns family is also quick to credit the experienced crew members who return season after season and play a key role in maintaining the company’s service standards. High Sierra’s operators run the equipment, navigate difficult storm conditions, and keep properties safe for residents, employees, and visitors across Bergen County.

“Our operators and shovel crews are incredibly important to what we do,” John IV says. “They’re the ones out there in the middle of the storm running the machines and getting the work done. We’re fortunate to have a great group of guys who take pride in doing the job right.”

“When you call the office, you get my mom. When you need to meet with someone, it’s me, my brother, or my dad,” John IV adds. “Someone with the last name Burns is answering the phone or showing up to your job site. And during storms we’re out there working alongside our guys to make sure the job gets done right.”

Their guiding philosophy has remained unchanged for decades.

“You can never buy back your reputation,” he says. “So you make sure the job gets done, and you make sure it gets done right.”

A Partnership That Performs

For High Sierra Landscape, KAGE isn’t just another attachment supplier. It’s a tool that allows them to maintain the standards its name represents.

From 8-foot plows navigating tight residential communities to 12-foot systems clearing larger commercial sites, the flexibility of the 2-in-1 design has become a cornerstone of its winter operations.

“I have nothing but good things to say,” John IV says of KAGE.

More than sixteen years after first discovering the system online, the Burns family continues to rely on the same equipment not because it’s trendy, but because it works.

And in a business built on reputation, reliability isn’t optional.

It’s everything.