Known affectionately as “Sugar City” for its long-standing role as Belize’s top sugar producer, Orange Walk Town is now setting its sights on something even sweeter—city status. With rapid growth and development over the years, Mayor Ladrick Sheppard believes the town is well on its way to becoming Orange Walk City, possibly within the next decade. And if he has anything to say about it, he’ll be right there to help make it happen. Sheppard, who’s already serving as mayor, says he plans to run for three more terms, and if successful, he hopes to be part of the conversations that could officially elevate Orange Walk to city status.
Ladrick Sheppard, Mayor, Orange Walk Town
“This town would want turn into a city. For that to happen, we would need a little more amount of people and then the closest village that is adaptable and I think Hon. Munchies [Cervantes] has – I thing that’s his biggest area and it would adapt to Trial Farm. When that becomes a reality, I’m pretty sure Orange Walk is going to become a city. There is an east section of Trial Farm and there is a west section of Trial Farm, an area called Black Water. So eventually, like I said, I’ve been circling around there and I’ve been seeing it. Some of the people there would love to have the services of the town, but again, this is something that the village people – since they have a village council, there is a chairman there in charge of the village. This is something that they, the people would want and if they want this to say we are ready to pay property tax; we’re ready enough to go ahead and get the essential services that all people from the town are receiving, then that will be but I don’t know if I’m gonna be the Mayor then. I am preparing to stay as a five-term mayor. That’s my goal and my dream – to be mayor for five terms. So this is my second term, and I would have three more terms to go. I might be here.”
