Local Motion 2024: Your guide to living local

The Winter Garden Ricochet — the original name for the West Orange Times & Observer — published its first edition on Sept. 13, 1905. 

In that first edition, Editor A.B. Newton wrote: "We hope to be some service to our section, county and state, and invite the patronage and friendly consideration of our readers."

Nearly 120 years later, Newton's passion continues to fuel the Observer Media Group as we serve as the newspapers of record for West Orange, Southwest Orange, and its cities and surrounding communities.

And it is with that same passion that I am delighted to present to you our 2024-25 edition of Local Motion: An Insider’s Guide to Living in West Orange County. 

Whether you're new to our area or have lived here for your entire life, I am quite certain you will learn something new about our community in these pages.

Inside, you'll find complete guides to Winter Garden, Horizon West, Ocoee, Windermere, Oakland, Dr. Phillips and Gotha. You'll meet local leaders, learn about hidden gems, discover the best places to eat and fill your calendar with many of our awesome community events. We also have round-ups of local civic organizations and nonprofits, and our 2024-25 Back to School guide.

This year, we're pleased to introduce four ideas for date nights — featuring local food and entertainment — all at varying price points. And yes, we even have one for families!

Our cover photo was taken by local photographer Kassondra Gustafson, of Black + Bay Photography, captured this photo on horseback. View more of her work at blackandbay.mypixieset.com.

We hope you find Local Motion informative and helpful. To stay connected, make sure to grab copies of our West Orange Times & Observer and Southwest Orange Observer newspapers; bookmark OrangeObserver.com; and follow us on Facebook, Instagram and X.