Editor's Note: I Heart Old Towne Orange is a blog devoted to our favorite city. The following post is taken from an interview they hosted between two residents of Old Towne Orange. One is a college student who's been here for a couple years and the other has been here her entire life. You can read the original post here.
THESE ARE OUR NEIGHBORS
I Heart OTO: What is your name? How many years have you been living in Old Towne Orange?
Marshall: My name is Marshall. I moved to Old Towne Orange for college in 2016 and have been living here for two and a half years.
Suzanne: My name is Suzanne and I have been living here for 66 years!
I Heart OTO: What is your first memory of seeing Old Towne Orange?
Marshall: My first memory of seeing OTO was when I visited in late November during senior year of high school. After my Chapman tour, I looked up places to eat, which naturally brought me to the circle. I believe the holiday decorations were up and I couldn’t help but be in awe of how Glassell Street looked like Main Street USA in Disneyland. It was perfect. I think I Instagrammed a picture of Old Towne Orange with the caption, “It’s perfect.”
Suzanne: My first memory of Old Towne Orange is my father had a liquor store which was his first business. We would go down to Old Towne and visit him on the weekends. I don't remember if it was open on Sundays but I always liked to see my dad at work. And we lived in a big orange grove - we used to play there all the time.
I Heart OTO: What is your favorite thing about living in OTO?
Marshall: My favorite thing about living in Old Towne is the community. We all love living here and feel a great sense of pride in it. The town brings people together. It's for older people, college students, younger children, visitors, and first-timers, like I recently was. From the International Street Fair to Treats in the Streets, everything and everyone is working to bring the community together.
Suzanne: The thing I like about Orange is it's a community center. It's where everyone goes to meet. Also, it's becoming a lot more sophisticated with the college and everything Chapman is bringing. And it's diverse, ya know, it has the hills and the downtown.
I Heart OTO: What has changed the most since you have been living here?
Marshall: The biggest change I have noticed is the addition of amazing food establishments which are very popular and seem to be boosting the economy of Old Towne. I was so excited for T-Milk and Impact Juice Bar and am so excited for Urth Caffe and Snooze! YAY!
Suzanne: I think the number of people. When I grew up, it was all orange groves and Chapman Avenue was lined with walnut trees. It was mostly farms and much more rural. It has just built up so much.
I Heart OTO: What is your favorite OTO tradition?
Marshall: There are so many I love but to be honest, I love when the holiday decorations go up in late November! They are perfect for photos!
Suzanne: One of my favorite things ever was the May Festival. It was a big celebration and on the Wednesday before May Festival, the children got to do the kiddie parade and I participated in that. It was just a little hometown parade, but later band competitions started coming down. Oh, and they have the undie run at Chapman which is huge!
I Heart OTO: What is your hope for the future of Old Towne Orange?
Marshall: I hope Old Towne Orange stays charming, stays bright, and invites more people to explore its streets each year. I Heart Old Towne Orange.
Suzanne: I just hope that it doesn't lose the charm and it stays community-based. It's the center of Orange and you always have a place to go. The charm about it makes it so special. There's a lot of criticism about Chapman, but what comes with that is life. College towns bring life to the town! I like Chapman because they have been really great to my family. And they have fixed up properties and done a lot for the community.
