South Orange looking to change name

South Orange is governed under a special charter dating back to 1869 that requires it to be reviewed every 12 years.

The current governing body, the Village Board of Trustees, has taken steps to make several changes to the charter, including the name of the township, the title of its top election position, and paying a stipend to certain elected officials.

The proposed changes include:

The name “Township of South Orange Village” would be changed to “South Orange Village.”

The name of the governing body would be “council” instead of “board of trustees.”

The titles of members of the governing body would be “council member” rather than “trustee.”

The “village president,” who is head of the current “board of trustees,” would be called “mayor.”

The village treasurer, which is not an elected position, would become chief financial officer.

Also proposed are technical changes to conform with state law, including options for election dates and compensation for elected officials, and to use the term “individuals” instead of male pronouns.

The state legislature must approve these changes and has rejected efforts by South Orange to make changes in the past.

“We have submitted (ordinance number) 2009 to make changes,” Village Trustee Summer Jones said. “They were not approved by the legislature.”

With some tweaks, changes were resubmitted. Jones, along with Trustee Karen Hartshorn Hilton, took the lead and worked with town lawyer, Steven C. Rother from Post Polak, to review the proposed charter revisions from 2009 and updated them to align with what they felt the community needed.

On June 26, the Board unanimously passed Ordinance 2023-09 on the first reading. Trustee Lewis Chang was absent.

A public meeting will be held on July 19 at 7 p.m. at the South Orange Performing Arts Center (SOPAC) loft for the public.

On Monday, July 24, there will be a second reading of the ordinance and a public hearing. If the proposed changes pass a vote after that reading, then all necessary documents and affidavits will be submitted to the Office of Legislative Services, state Sen. Richard Codey, Assemblywoman Mila M. Jasey, and Assemblyman John F. McKeon. Senate and Assembly committees may hold hearings and request testimony regarding the submission.

If the legislature adopts this special act, it requires the governor’s signature.

“The hope is to have this reviewed by the current government,” Jones said. “Anyone who wants to come and talk about the changes, should come to the public hearing and have a discussion.”

Regarding the name change, Jones doesn’t think people will notice. “It’s just dropping the township portion of it,” she said.

However, it’s the titles that make it harder. “It’s hard to describe what a Village Trustee is,” Jones said. “When you look at organizations, trustees, for some people, they don’t realize it’s local government. Change is important to us so we’re in line with our peers.”

Changing the male pronouns in the old charter from 2004 to “individual” would mean “we are inclusive,” Jones said.

Currently, South Orange has local elections in May, but not November. The proposed changes would make it possible to move the elections to November to align with other elections which would likely increase participation.

Members of the Board of Trustees do not currently receive any compensation for the work they do so the proposed changes would make it possible for them to receive a stipend.

“Even though we’re saying ‘a stipend’ there has to be discussion on what that stipend would look like,” Jones said. “Some people in the community don’t realize it’s an unpaid position. We’re all volunteers and we love volunteering. We volunteer for everything. The issue we found, without any stipend, the money is coming out of your pocket, if a mother or father needed to pay for babysitting if they attended a meeting. Those positions receive no compensation whatsoever. A lot of people want you to attend events. That money comes out of your pocket as well. We’re looking for the opportunity to provide a stipend.”

For additional information on South Orange, visit: https://www.southorange.org/

  South Orange, South Orange Chamber of Commerce