Dear residents, business owners, friends and visitors:

It is my pleasure to welcome you to the official website of the City of East Orange. Our goal is to provide you with a website that is easy to navigate and functions as a valuable gateway to discovering information about City resources and services, recreational and cultural activities and events, job openings and training opportunities, public safety announcements, business tools and more.

We are building a service-oriented Administration that is more open, accessible and responsive to our citizens and stakeholders. Our website and various digital platforms, such as social media, can be powerful tools in fulfilling these goals. We are already hard at work, looking at ways to enhance these platforms. I welcome and encourage your ideas and suggestions as well.

Additionally, I am excited to announce the opening of the Mayor’s Office of Constituent Services. We are here to help, so ask us your questions, share your ideas, report a problem or request support. Our Constituent Services staff is trained to connect you with the information and services that you need. Our team takes a hands-on approach to make sure that your issue is addressed and you receive a timely response.

Mayor Lester E. Taylor III

Lester E. Taylor, III was sworn into office on January 1, 2014 as the thirteenth mayor of the City of East Orange. At the age of 39, he is one of the youngest mayors in the history of the city.

Mayor Taylor and his wife Bibi are proud residents of the First Ward, where they are raising three children, Amani, Lester IV and Lena.

Active in the community, Mayor Taylor has served as a Board Member of the East Orange YMCA, the East Orange Historical Society and as a Director of the East Orange Chamber of Commerce. Mayor Taylor often volunteers his time speaking with students on the importance of education and developing leadership skills. Mayor Taylor has been recognized for his professional accomplishments and community service by civic organizations including the State Conference of the NAACP.

As an attorney, Mayor Taylor has built a statewide reputation helping to rehabilitate communities, cities and schools. A member of the New Jersey State Bar Association, Mayor Taylor also serves as a Trustee for the New Jersey School Boards Association - Northern Region Association of School Attorneys. In 2010, he was recognized by New Jersey Law Journal as one of the state’s “Top 40 Lawyers Under 40.”

Mayor Taylor earned his undergraduate degree in political science from Montclair State University and a Juris Doctorate from Howard University School of Law.

East Orange, New Jersey, nicknamed “The Crossroads of New Jersey,” is conveniently located at the intersection of the Garden State Parkway and Interstate 280, just several miles from Newark Liberty International Airport and less than 30 minutes from New York City. Originally founded as a township in 1863, East Orange became incorporated as a city on Jan. 1, 1909. With approximately 65,000 residents, the four square miles of East Orange are adjacent to the municipalities of Orange, West Orange, South Orange, Montclair, Glen Ridge, Bloomfield and Newark.

By the close of the 19th century, East Orange was an agriculturally rich area populated by oil tycoons and Newark industrialists. Post World War II, it became a growing destination for the migration of black middle class from the South, as well as southern parts of the state.

Known for its spacious homes and wide tree-lined streets, East Orange experienced a huge population surge between 1940-1950, paving the way for the addition of luxury high-rise buildings and a boom of commercial businesses along Main Street and Central Avenue. Once called the “Fifth Avenue of New Jersey,” Central Avenue attracted shoppers from around the state. In 1945, East Orange was ranked the 20th best place to live in the country among cities of a similar size and named the “Cleanest City in America” three times before 1970.