Orange You Glad You're on Main Street?

We got off to a quick start when Zach burst into UofO HQ and said, “I’m ready for action.”

In spite of the HOT HOT HOT weather (96 degrees but felt like 115), our intrepid Orange Main Street crew surveyed 75 Main Street businesses between Scotland Road and Center Street. We were all impressed by the range of businesses we encountered in so few blocks including: awesome clothing store (shout out to the Vault), an eye doctor, a photo studio (they’ll give you a makeover so you look good in your pics), lots of good food (of course), an old school pharmacy, a travel agent, a hair braiding shop in a basement (also a nursery) and a bookkeeping business (that has a lot more to it than meets the eye).

Doesn't this sign just suck you right in? (haha)




Who says you can't have your music, phone, disco ball, and jewelry all in one store?!
















We caught up with old friends (Loi at Golden Krust) and made some new ones (Manny at the Vault gave Bette some Miami fashion tips).

Now we are tallying our results and about to head out for ice cream stop #2. The first was J. F. Kennedy fried chicken where Iana and Michele sampled cherry vanilla and cookies and cream flavors. The action doesn’t stop here. Our team is ready to take on the rest of Main Street in the very near future.

Restoring a City, 9 Elements At a Time

What makes New York City so different from Norwich? What makes Chicago so different Collinsville? What makes San Diego so different Vernon? (hint: it isn't the traffic)

8 days from now, the University of Orange will begin unraveling the answers.

               THIS?                 

or THAT?

American cities are fractured physically and socially by policies that enforce segregation and development that tears apart neighborhoods. We can end this cycle by re-knitting our social ties and creating wonderful urban landscapes. Based around Dr. Mindy Fullilove's new book "The Elements of Urban Restoration: Repairing American Cities After Blight, Flight and Disinvestment," the Summer Session urbanism seminar promises to expose unsustainable city practices and enlighten participants on the solutions through Fullilove's theory. The detailed seminar will review the necessary steps to healing, repairing and preparing cities for bright futures.

From what we learn in this seminar, we will start to revitalize Orange. One element at a time.

The Seminar starts at 9:30 a.m. on July 20th at IronWorks.
Please REGISTER for free at www.universityoforange.org before July 20th to attend this urbanism seminar and all other Summer Session events!

For more information on Summer Session, call 973-678-3110 ext.35

10th Annual Valley Arts Music and Poetry (VAMP) Festival this weekend!

The Valley Arts District lives up to its name with the 10th Annual VAMP Festival this weekend.  With all kinds of vendors, local artists, musical acts, spoken word, and some good food, its sure to be a great time.
Two specific activities you should make sure to stop by are:
A "yarn bomb" installation by Jody Leight for International Yarn Bomb Day and frisbee decorating at the
U of O table for our Ultimate Frisbee Tournament on Sunday. 
Event Details:
This Saturday, June 11th, from 11am-5pm at the Valley Triangle Park (intersection of Valley St and Forest Ave in front of Hat City Kitchen).
 See you there!

Join Us and Compete To Be Hat City's Ultimate Frisbee Champion!

    Tired of looking for a place to play your favorite sport? Tired of having to wait for available courts and fields? Tired of carrying so much equipment that you're tired before even playing?
    All these issues are resolved as long as you have a tiny flying disc.
    Every major sport can be a hassle to play; basketball and tennis need courts, football and soccer need fields, hockey and skating need rinks. The simplistic joy of playing sports is missing, EXCEPT when it comes to the game of Ultimate, originally known as Ultimate Frisbee.
    Not many sports can call themselves "ultimate" but with a small flying disc and a group of friends, you can play a fun sport unlike all others.

    Ultimate is for the spontaneous athlete who disregards the playing field. In regions where courts are destroyed, fields are torn apart, and rinks are ... nonexistent, the sport of Ultimate remains a permanent go-to option. All that's required is a disc and competition.
There is no prototype Ultimate player. The wide array of players allows for unpredictable competition and never-ending excitement.
    To prove how exhilarating Ultimate can be, we will be hosting a Ultimate Frisbee Hat Tournament between 6 teams ready to duke it out at Central Playground for the title of Hat City's Ultimate Frisbee Champions!

    Join us on Sunday, June 12th to witness the ultimate in competition on 400 Central Avenue from 12:00pm to 3:00pm.
    All players are welcome! There will be a FREE beginner's clinic from 12:00pm to 1:00pm with experts Emilio Panasci and Paul Lacy.
    All participants will be leaving with a keepsake frisbee to continue their Ultimate experience wherever they go.
    Register Here! individually or with a team!

Join us for Placemaking 3: the River, the Bench, and the Tree this Friday & Saturday!

We would like to invite you to join us for Placemaking 3: The River, The Bench, and The Tree.  Placemaking is an annual event held by the University of Orange to bring people together to envision the future of our city.  This year’s theme is how to improve public spaces in the city.  Placemaking will take place over three days, all of which you are welcome to attend:

·         Friday, April 8^th from 4:30-5:30 we will be planting a tree in Monte Irvin Orange Park.  Trees contribute to beautification of the landscape, increased property values, and health of people and the environment. This tree will be dedicated to Kelli Copeland, a dear friend of ours who worked at HANDS, Inc., and who passed away suddenly earlier this year.  Our long term goal is to plant many more trees throughout the city.  A reception will follow at the Harmony Bar.

·         Saturday, April 9^th is the main Placemaking event.  It will be 10am-4pm at the Family Success Center, 170 Scotland Rd.  Participants can attend morning workshops including: Great Plaza-Vibrant City, Youth Urbanism, Rent Control, and Green Homeownership 101.  In the afternoon will be Battle of the Benches.  Benches made by local citizens will be displayed and winners will be chosen by both a panel of judges and the votes of Placemaking participants.  We hope this temporary installation will show the potential the plaza has to be a vibrant public space and start a conversation about what the residents of Orange would like to see in the plaza. Free lunch and childcare will be provided for this event.

·         Saturday, April 23^rd will be a cleanup the Rahway River in honor of Earth Day.  We will also create art with found objects and clear out the lot behind the Harvard Printing Site.  Since many people don’t even realize there is a river here, the main goal of this event is to raise awareness and get people involved.  The cleanup will be from 10am-12 noon.  Meet in the Krauszer’s parking lot at the corner of Central Ave and Scotland Rd. 

We hope that you can join us for some or all of these events to help envision the future of Orange!  We want it to belong to everyone, and everyone should have a part in shaping it.  

Please REGISTER here: http://www.universityoforange.org/placemakingreg.html

If you have any questions please email universityoforange@gmail.com or call (973)678-3110 ext.35

Meet UofO's 2011 Urbanists-in-Residence: Tim Delorm and Lourdes Hernandez-Cordero

The University of Orange is please to announce our 2011 Urbanists-in-Residence Tim Delorm and Lourdes Hernandez-Cordero.

Join us in welcoming them and learning from them at Placemaking 3: The River, The Bench and The Tree. Saturday April 9 at the Family Success Center, 170 Scotland Road, Orange, NJ.

Timothy N. Delorm, L.L.A., P.P.
President, TerraNoble Design

Tim Delorm founded TerraNoble Design with the aspiration of creating symbiotic relationships between people, place, and nature, thereby achieving truly sustainable solutions to the world’s pressing problems. He believes it is not sufficient to make things less unsustainable, rather we must strive to create regenerative projects that establish an intricate web of interrelationships between natural, socio-economic and man-made systems. Tim has practiced for three decades as an urban designer and landscape architect with two of the globe's most prominent design offices, Hellmuth, Obata & Kassabaum, PC and EDAW, Inc.

He has a broad range of project experience ranging from regenerating urban neighborhoods to the creation of new conservation community master plans to public parks and gardens. In each of these areas of practice Tim is known as an active listener, committed collaborator, accomplished facilitator and presenter, principled creative designer and technically accomplished professional.

He appears regularly before state and municipal agencies and boards to provide expert testimony in the securing of entitlements. His attention to detail in understanding and addressing regulatory requirements and potential community impacts within the context of local policy enable him to address key concerns early in project development.

Lourdes J. Hernández-Cordero, DrPH

Assistant Professor of Clinical Sociomedical Sciences, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University

Dr. Hernández-Cordero came to the U.S. in 1996 after completing her undergraduate work in Industrial Biotechnology - a degree combining Chemical Engineering and Microbiology. Born and raised in Puerto Rico, she moved to the United States to attend graduate school. She joined the faculty at SMS upon completing her doctorate in 2004. Her dissertation focused on the role of organizations in community mobilization for trauma recovery post the 9/11 disaster. She conducted her postdoctoral studies at the Conservatoire Nationale des Arts et Metiers in Paris, under the guidance of Michel Cantal Dupart. As part of the Community Research Group at Columbia, she has been able to combine her interest in community mobilization and the application of research. The relationships built with local organizations as a Program Coordinator for the Northern Manhattan Community Voices Collaborative has served as the foundation for her work and are the topic of the book she coedited with Dr. Allan Formicola - Mobilizing the Community for Better Health. She is currently leading the community mobilization efforts of the Columbia Center for Youth Violence Prevention. In addition, she is spearheading the CLIMB (City Life is Moving Bodies) project, a concerted effort in collaboration with northern Manhattan based organizations to promote physical activity. Lourdes lives in northern Manhattan with her husband Rojelio Rodriguez and their three little birds Diego, Alma and Elisa.

Welcome Lourdes and Tim and thank you for being with us this year!

New for 2011: University of Orange launches January Term Certificate Program

University of Orange is pleased to announce its first program of 2011 and its first certificate program: Jan Term. 

UofO Jan Term is a two-week moderately intensive UofO urbanism immersion experience.  This program is ideal for students on winter break or those with a flexible schedule that enables them to take courses during the day. Students will deepen their understanding of urbanism and gain hands-on experience.

Requirements:

Urbanism Seminar: Youth Urbanism

Professor: Mindy Fullilove, MD

This course will review the theory and practices of youth urbanism through film, guest lectures, and short readings.  The three-part series will culminate in the completion of a poster for presentation at a scientific meeting.  All students will be co-authors of the posters.

i8inorange

Students are required to familiarize themselves with the content on i8inorange.blogspot.com and in Two Tons of Yum and to complete at least one piece of culinary writing to be published.

Placemaking Volunteering

Help UofO prepare for our annual Placemaking event.  Our theme is Placemaking 3: the River the Bench and the Tree.

Where and When

Urbanism Seminar: Wednesday Jan. 5^th, 11am-1pm; Friday Jan. 7^th, 11am-1pm; Wednesday Jan.12^th, 10am-12 noon at Dr. Fullilove’s studio, The Bakery, 501 Central Ave Orange, NJ

I8inOrange and Placemaking Volunteering: scheduled according to individual student, at HANDS  Inc, 15 S. Essex Ave, Orange NJ.

To Register:

Contact universityoforange@gmail.com or 973 678-3110 ext: 24