Hello again, Renton!

Six months ago I wrote my introductory column as the new guy here at the Renton Reporter and I am very excited to be writing again today as the paper’s next editor.

It’s been a good, busy six months and I have learned a lot and I look forward to learning even more as we go.

Before anything else, I’d like to say thank you to Dean Radford, the paper’s previous editor. Not only is Dean a fine journalist with a lifetime of experience and a deep knowledge of Renton from his time at the helm of the Reporter, he is also an incredibly nice man, with a warm heart and nary a bad word to say about anyone.

Working with Dean these past six months and seeing his day-to-day commitment to the paper and the city has been a great learning experience, one most new editors never get. It gave me a great running start and his steady hand allowed me to spin out for the past few months, learning as much as I could.

Thankfully, Dean isn’t going too far. As the now full-time editor of the Tukwila Reporter, Dean and his experience and institutional knowledge of all things Renton will still be not only in our building but just across the room. He will also continue to be a regular contributor to the Renton Reporter.

That said, this is the beginning of something of a new era for the Renton Reporter, a fresh start if you will.

I view it as a “reboot,” to use the parlance of Hollywood.

Newspapers tell a city’s story. We are history books written in real time, with all the characters, plot twists and settings that make a city interesting and unique.

Renton is no exception.

The plan moving forward is simple: We are going to try and bring you the best newspaper we can, every week. We want to show you the best parts of our city, all while still making sure you get all the news and information you need to make decisions about its direction and future.

But like all re-boots, we will be trying some new things. This is a chance to almost re-invent what exactly this newspaper is and what it can be going forward.

And I am open to suggestion. What do you want to see in the paper?

While we are dedicated to bringing you the important news stories from around the city, we also want to bring you the fun and the exciting, the unique and the interesting. In essence, our goal is to try and show you what we love about Renton, what makes it a great place to live and work.

My philosophy is simple: We are going to be the biggest champions and cheerleaders for the city of Renton, while maintaining our vital function as watchdogs for the people.

A city of 94,000 people is a big city. Anywhere except in the shadow of two major metropolitan areas like Seattle and Bellevue, a city the size of Renton would be considered a large city. We will treat it as such.

We will have city government and crime issues to cover, along with business and school news, of course, but we also want to “localize” larger national, state and county stories by finding ways those issues relate to our everyday lives. Plus, we can’t ignore the arts, culture, sports, neighborhoods and communities that give Renton its character, its personality.

To that end, I plan on introducing several new features in the upcoming weeks, as well as lots of little, more subtle changes to the paper.

As you may have noticed, there are two new features in this week’s edition that we hope to make permanent. First, on page two is the new “At a glance” page. The idea for the page is simple: I want to provide a graphics-heavy page filled with just top-level information, so that with a single glance you can get a sense of what’s going on this week in Renton.

We are still working on the final formula for exactly what will go on that page every week – and we hope to hear from you about what you’d like to see there, from gas prices to puzzles, to photos to drawings from kids; you let us know and we will see what we can do.

The other new addition this week is our “Weekend” page. Reporter Tracey Compton and I were discussing ways to add a little more immediacy to the paper, a reason for folks to pick it up right away when they get home Friday night.

This new page is what we came up with. Again, the idea is pretty simple: Our paper comes out on Fridays, let’s tell our readers what is going on around the city this weekend.

Tracey has developed a series of ideas for this page and while once again, we are still working on the final mix, we hope it will become a trusted resource and go-to guide for all of the interesting and fun events for residents to get out and do, including a “cheap date” and  “family date” sections.

We are open to suggestions. What do you want to see on that page?

And like all re-boots, everything is back on the table. If we have covered a story in the past – or turned down doing a story in the past – now is an opportunity to revisit it. I can’t promise we will get to every suggestion, but I can promise we will consider it.

Like I said, we want to hear from you, the readers. We want your voice to come through. We want to see your families, your life in Renton.

Tell us why you love it here and what you want other people to love about your city. Write us letters to the editor, send us story ideas, email in photos of what you and your family do in Renton.

Though my wife and I live here in North Renton, we have only been residents for about 18 months and are still discovering the cool shops, bars, restaurants and parks scattered throughout the city.

And we would love some suggestions. Tell me your favorites and let’s share those hidden gems with the rest of the city.

We are also making a new push online at www.rentonreporter.com. Where I’m from, a city this size would have a daily paper. Our website is where we can provide those daily updates and breaking stories, so be sure to aim your internet machine in our direction to catch up on the latest local news.

We have also been more active on our official Facebook page, putting up photo albums, sharing stories and providing a place for you to give a little feedback. In fact, one of the new parts of the “At a Glance” page is the “You said it!” box, which will feature a Facebook or website comment from a reader, so share your thoughts.

And please feel free to call or email me anytime; my door is always open. I am dedicated to telling Renton’s story the best we can and the more we hear from you, the better we can do that.

We are, after all, a small staff and cannot be everywhere, but we do want to know about whatever you have going on. So do not hesitate to pick up the phone – my number is 425-255-3484 ext. 5050 – or drop me an email at bbeckley@rentonreporter.com.

We have a bright future ahead of us Renton, and I very much look forward to sharing it all with you.