YEAR IN REVIEW| A month of increases, snow, flu and business announcements

Also in July, the future of the old La Porchetta site in Peisley Street was announced, Cadia announced it was banning smoking on site and Orange City Council increased its drive for electric vehicles.

On July 4, it was announced Orange would have its first specialist officer assigned to investigate elder abuse as one of seven new police allocated to the Central West Police District.

On July 5, the man who runs the Mr Lim eatery in Summer Street, Sammy Jeon confirmed he had taken over the lease at the old La Porchetta site - to run an Italian restaurant.

On July 8, The Millthorpe Little Learning Centre punched well above its weight to claim the main gong, the Outstanding Business award, as well as taking home the Excellence in Education and Best New Recruit at the 2019 Orange Business Awards.

Orange plugged into the future of driving with the activation of an $80,000 electric vehicle fast-charging station in the council car park outside the Civic Theatre on July 10.

With about 1000 touch footballers and their families heading to Orange from across NSW for the Junior Regional Championships, it was forecast on July 11 that it would provide a $1 million-plus boost to the city's economy. The event was held in freezing conditions with flurries of snow but families vowed to return.

On July 12, Spendmapp data showed Orange residents online shopping between January and March rose between $2 million and $3.5 million on the same time last year.

On July 13, A spokeswoman from Western NSW Local Health District said in the year to date there were 237 reported flu cases in the Orange Local Government Area up from three cases in the same period last year.

On July 13, Cadia Mine confirmed it would be a smoke free worksite from January 1, 2020. Newcrest was taking steps to ban cigarettes at the mine site, offering smokers therapy to help them beat their addictions.

On July 15, snow on Mount Canobolas attracted visitors and residents alike.

Also on July 15, an outdoor musical playground park, a shared mountain bike and walking trail to the Federal Falls on Mount Canobolas and a community space for children to play in Glenroi were among 41 projects pitched for Orange. They were seeking to share about $260,000 of funding under the state government's My Community Project scheme.

On July 17, figures from the NSW Valuer General showed that William Maker Drive had become the key selling street. It had 20 (house, land and commercial) property sales for 2018-19.

On July 18, with streamers, balloons and cake it was party time at the Orange campus as Charles Sturt University celebrated its 30th birthday. Staff looked forward to a bright future for the campus with the impending opening of its first medical school for doctors in 2021 being a key part of its health services focus.

Also on July 18, almost a quarter of all male deaths in Orange could be avoided, according to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. The data, based on deaths in the Orange Local Government Area in 2017, said 22 per cent of males met an avoidable cause of death, with the likes of falls, exposure to animate mechanical forces, over exertion and contact with venomous animals and plants on the list.

On July 19, Lone Star was announced as one of the businesses that woulc open within Orange City Centre's redeveloped Myer building after lodging a development application.

On July 20, two months after police and Family and Community Services met, community groups were still asking questions about the derelict housing in Glenroi where there were at least 10 houses vacant and boarded up, with some remaining in that condition for a year or more.

On July 22, Police were examining CCTV footage and the results of forensic investigations in the hunt for an armed intruder who raided the Victoria Hotel early on Saturday morning. A male cleaner was confronted and tied up by the intruder who was armed with a knife and a firearm.

On July 23, a mass auction of 29 houses, farms and parcels of land was be held by Cabonne Council to recoup about $380,000 in unpaid rates.

On July 24, The Salvation Army was forced to stop receiving donations of everything except furniture in Orange after being overwhelmed. A storeroom at the rear of the Thrifty Store on Summer Street was overflowing with piles of clothing and more than 30 large containers of donations received since January that staff had yet to process and put on sale.

On July 25, five Orange region orchards complete with houses, packing sheds and dams were sold within 45 minutes for $8.15 million at a major auction. The jewel of the sale was the extensive 37-hectare Caernarvon property on Canobolas Road which sold for $2.4 million to an agent for orchardists Bernard and Fiona Hall.

On July 26, according to quarterly figures from property site Domain median house prices in Orange increased by 2.7 per cent to $415,000 from the same June quarter last year.

On July 27, Orange City Council unveiled its new electric car, a Hyundai OSEV, which is part of the council's push towards electric vehicles.

On July 29, Rachel Campbell gave birth to her fifth child, Dusty, in the back of an ambulance parked in her driveway at home.

Also on July 29, Orange was close to quadrupling other Central West councils in income from parking fines, with revenue in the previous financial year topping $1.1 million. According to figures released by Revenue NSW, Orange City Council issued 7791 parking fines, worth $1,154,561 during the 2018- 19 financial year, up from 2017-18 financial year when the council issued 6128 parking fines, worth $793,050.