Bringing FiberLync to Orange
In our 2022 survey of town residents, 88.7% of respondents said they wanted more high speed Internet options in the Town. In response to this, Jeremiah championed getting an agreement between the town and FiberLync, which had stalled due to disagreements over the proposed contract. After almost two years of numerous meetings and phone calls with the FiberLync board toward that end, an agreement was finally reached last fall. Now the challenging work can begin to install the necessary lines and access points to give the Town the amazing speed and convenience that fiber optic Internet service can bring. 

Designing a New Town Logo & Slogan
You may have noticed that the Town got a new logo design last year. Public Works is still going through the process of updating all the signage, etc., but everything should reflect the new design as that work is completed in the coming months. Because of his experience as a graphic designer over the last few decades, Jeremiah offered to update the Town’s logo and presented the new design to the Council for its approval. His proposed design passed unanimously. It incorporates the historic courthouse on Main Street as well as the green rolling hills that surround the town and the Blue Ridge Mountains in the background.

As part of this process, we also proposed a new slogan for the town that would focus attention on the historical significance of the area and our location at the crossroads of these historical events. Our proposed (and unanimously approved) slogan “Crossroads of the Constitution” is featured on the new logo.

Designing a New Town Website
Last year, Town Clerk Wendy Chewning told the Council we needed an update to the Town’s website. This caught our attention because one of our commitments was to improve the way the Town communicates with its residents. Since Jeremiah had significant experience in website design and building, he volunteered to help where needed in the redesign of the site. Wendy Chewning, Deputy Town Clerk Kim Strawser, and Jeremiah worked as a team with contractor Civic Plus to redesign the site to coordinate with the newly designed logo and slogan. You can see the beautiful results of that team effort here.

Helping Bring the Farmer’s Market Back 
Two other commitments we made when we campaigned were trying to bring new grocery options to the town and also encouraging connections to our surrounding rural community. When interest was expressed by some citizens to reintroduce a farmer’s market to the Town, we championed that project with the Council. After discussion, the Council decided to allow the Orange Downtown Alliance to oversee the new Orange Farmer’s Market on Short Street every weekend during the growing season. The market just finished its second year, which was a great success, with hundreds of people participating in the market each weekend. Not only does this give residents of the town a wonderful new source of fresh, local food options, it has also given our local restaurants new sources for local ingredients as well. We’re encouraged with the progress of the market thus far and excited to see its continued development this year.

Improving Our Relationship With the County
This past summer, Jason proposed the Town Council host the County Board of Supervisors for a dinner in order to improve the relationship and communication between the two governing bodies. The goal was simply to get to know each other better personally so that we could understand our unique backgrounds, experiences, and foster greater camaraderie. The evening was a great success as we learned meaningful things about each member and had the opportunity to enjoy a meal together and engage in casual conversation.

We were greatly encouraged when the Board of Supervisors invited us to another such gathering that they hosted last fall. We enjoyed the hospitality of the County and furthered our mutually desired efforts to gain a better and more understanding working relationship. We hope for more opportunities for continued team building functions this year.

Conclusion
We’ve made some encouraging progress toward our stated goals and the expressed desires of residents over the last two years. We desire to express our heartfelt thank you to all of you who have encouraged such efforts. We’re excited about working with Harrison Cluff and Delmer Seale, the two new Council Members who won seats last fall. Our hope is that the coming year would bring a new sense of teamwork and shared goals amongst the whole council as we take our seats on January 21. Here’s to a great 2025!

Attract more shopping and dining options
The changes we desire to see in Orange are largely centered on preservation-based economic vitality. Orange can maintain a historic, small-town charm while simultaneously cultivating quality restaurants and shopping options. The vacancies up and down Main Street and in other areas of town are a testament to the need for much more action in this area. While we have the architectural appeal and crossroads location that should help foster economic vitality, we need the ability to think creatively and the commitment to find new ways to draw in good businesses that could thrive with our demographics. 

Attract more grocery options
The number one thing our survey respondents wanted to see improved in Orange was more grocery options. We shouldn’t stop this effort with the excuse, “We don’t have the demographics to attract them.” There are other creative ways to attract grocery anchors to an area or improve what we already have. There are roughly 40,000 people within 20 miles of Orange, and many of them look elsewhere for their primary grocery needs. If our grocery options were improved, we would attract many of those shoppers to Orange, not only for their grocery shopping but to spend money at other local businesses as well. 

Create better walkability and green spaces
Some townspeople in our survey observed that Orange is surrounded by beautiful countryside and has some areas with attractive architectural potential, but we lack a cohesive and executable plan to improve the look and feel of the town itself. The town needs connected sidewalks that make it safely walkable and bikeable from all neighborhoods. In addition, we need more well-tended green spaces that create gathering places for people to enjoy natural settings within the town. 

Offer more high-speed internet options such as FiberLync
88% of our survey respondents wanted to see services such as FiberLync made available in the town. Since FiberLync is available in the county, is based in the town, and we are already paying county taxes as town residents, it makes sense to us that this service should be available to us in Orange. 

Encourage our rural community
The second most common thing residents liked about the town in our survey was its rural setting. But what are we doing to support the rural community around us? Towns such as Madison and Culpeper feature local farmers’ markets, but Orange is in a prime location to serve the rural community around us in this way. We’d like to bring back the farmer’s market as a first step to serving the townspeople, our rural neighbors, and our weekend visitors. 

Build better relationships with the broader community
Though Orange has some good things to offer, it has not achieved the status of a “destination town” at this point. In some ways, that’s probably a good thing. Traffic, crowds, etc., can be downsides to being a destination. However, Orange is uniquely situated to be an ideal supporting town for our local destinations. From historical attractions like Montpelier and Civil War battlefields to agritourist attractions like our local vineyards and wedding venues, Orange has tremendous potential to serve visitors and townspeople alike with quality lodging, food, and shopping experiences. 

To do that well, the town needs to maintain healthy relationships with the surrounding governments and institutions we support. From our interaction and communication with local county governments to our relationships with local tourist destinations, we believe more can be done to foster better working relationships amongst these groups. Doing so can help create better economic vitality in the near future and more economic opportunities for townspeople in the long run.

Foster better town communication with residents
The fact that we took the time and expense to create, analyze, and respond to the results of a survey from the residents of Orange is a testament to our desired approach to better government. As council candidates, we have our own thoughts on what the town needs, but we want those thoughts to be influenced and tempered by the residents of the town. If elected, we would encourage the council to communicate more often with the townspeople regarding their vision, agenda, priorities, etc. We live in a time when most people don’t trust those in government. One way that can be improved is with better communication. Improving the town’s website and communication through that site is one thing that could help toward that end.

Create a healthier sense of community amongst our various groups
Our country is in desperate need for its competing groups to spend more time in discussions that promote understanding rather than battles with yelled messages and accusations from each pole. The irresponsible use of social media has fueled this already critical fire. While the national stage can seem to be past any hope of solutions on any given day, we believe Orange could be a model for the rest of the nation for how differing opinions and voices can patiently work to interact with each other for good. This doesn’t mean we’ll all agree on everything. Instead, the investment we spend in conversation with those different from us can help create patience and understanding that fosters civil discourse. We can still show courtesy as friends and neighbors rather than cutting off those who differ from us ideologically. This is hard work, but we believe it’s vital to Orange and the rest of the nation at this critical time.

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