ORANGE — The seasonal Third Thursday Street Fairs are under new management and gearing up for the second 2024 event on July 18. The Orange Revitalization Partnership recently took over the downtown series from the Orange Merchants Group and held an event on June 20, with fair-goers undeterred by the heat. The fair included live street music performed by singer Franco O’Malley and the typical shopping, dining and socializing.
The events run from 5 to 8 p.m. Orange Revitalization Partnership President Denise Andrews said her organization took control of the series on May 16 and had four weeks to get all necessary permits and recruit bands and vendors.
“It didn’t rain till the last half-hour. It was fun,” she said. The Third Thursday Street Fairs were first held in 2018 to allow small businesses the opportunity to make themselves more visible and to engage the public about the importance of shopping locally.
Andrews explained the Orange Merchants Group, a voluntary collection of local businesses, let go of the Third Thursday series to focus on Orange Solstice RiverFest, which is now planned for Sept. 14 after being postponed this month due to inclement weather, and Return to Hogwarts from July 24 to 28. She said the Orange Revitalization Partnership accepted the responsibility based on its mission statement, which mentions leading through the cooperative effort of the business community, the municipal government and private individuals.
She also said the series is a gr.