About This Website.
A Message from Mayor Eldridge Hawkins, Jr.

We redesigned the Orange website to make it easier to use and to provide a wide range of useful information.

Our goal is to make this a community hub, a place where you can come to find information about government in Orange, community meetings and events, our history and culture, the latest news, and much more. The site is highly interactive. It gives you many opportunities to express your opinion about issues affecting our city, and it enables you to ask questions or make requests and get the answers and help you need.

Combined with our new email newsletters, the new website will enable us to make a significant improvement in communications with citizens and businesses while reducing the cost to taxpayers. By using the internet, we will reduce the number of City mailings and save money on printing and postage.

I invite you to take the time to explore this website. Here are just some of the features you will find:

Video on Demand
Now you can view videos here. Our first use of this feature lets you watch City Council meetings and the Mayor’s Monthly Forums on the website whenever you wish. You may still watch them live on Channel 35.

Other videos now available include messages from the Mayor, Descriptions of our Departments by Department Directors, and TV news coverage of Orange. Over the next month, we will be adding video messages from City Council Members and walking tours of our neighborhoods.

Then, we expect to add videos of local events and celebrations, speeches, and visits to Orange landmarks. With help from the National League of Cities, we will be producing seven videos designed to attract new residents and businesses to Orange.

Community Calendar
A comprehensive community calendar lets you know what’s happening in Orange: meetings of the City Council and government boards; events in the library, schools, community organizations, churches etc; recreation, cultural and sports events; and more.

The Latest News
On the homepage, you’ll find the latest news about Orange. News releases from City Hall are posted at the same time that they are sent out to the news media. You’ll also find an archive of news releases dating back to when the Hawkins Administration took office on July 1, 2008. On the homepage you’ll also find links to news coverage of Orange. The latest articles from the Orange Transcript, Star-Ledger, Local Talk, and other publications will be posted.

Make Your Voice Heard
You can now use the website to communicate with YOUR city government. If you click on the Contact Us tab on the homepage, you will find a form to contact the City about any issue whatsoever. For example, you might write about a problem affecting you or your family, request information about a City program, express your opinion about a matter before the City Council, report a dangerous condition, etc. Your message will be sent to the official with the responsibility to help you.

Also on the Contact Us page, you will find a link to phone numbers of City departments and officials. A second link on that page takes you to the email addresses of City officials. Throughout the website, when you read about a particular department or service, you will find links to the email addresses of the related City officials.

You can now voice your opinion on specific issues and services through a mini-poll on the home page. This month, you can let us know what you enjoy most about our parks.

Email Newsletters
We will be launching a regular email newsletter to keep residents informed about local news and events. It will be a very useful supplement to the website. To sign up to receive these newsletters, visit the website and click on “Register for Orange Updates” on the right side of the home page.

Translations
Orange is a diverse city with residents of many nationalities including immigrants who do not speak English as their native language. A button on the homepage translates the site into 32 different languages including Spanish and French.

More Features
Among other features you’ll find information about Orange history, development initiatives, businesses, recreation, a community photo gallery, an interactive Google map of Orange including the view from a satellite, a list of city contracts you can bid on, forms and applications, the Municipal Budget and much more. Our next website redesign will include the ability to transact specific services and pay specific bills such as water, sewer, and tax bills directly online.

Please take the time to become familiar with this. I want to know what you think about it and how you think it can be improved. Please send me your suggestions through the “Contact Us” form.