This month I was reminded of two things we have learned since we began publishing this newspaper seven years ago: Taxes, transportation and education are important to us, and we can never have too many updates on what is happening in those areas.

Our team has reported on the O'Connor extension at RM 620 since March 2008 when Williamson County Commissioner Lisa Birkman was working with transportation officials to make it a priority project. Some development projects can take many years to come together, and there are hurdles and changes that need to be communicated along the way.

As our school districts look at their own hurdles of tighter budgets and changing state performance expectations, we continue to provide the most thorough and relevant coverage. We have two important education stories in this issue that can have long- and short-term effects on every taxpayer: tax rates and how our students are educated for their (and our) future.

Although you can always count on our printed newspaper to have updated stories on things that matter to you, also know that we have seven years of useful information and updates plus news from surrounding communities at impactnews.com.

I found the history of the O'Connor story through a simple search on the site. At the end of our O'Connor story, we have added a new feature to show the depth of our local archives and help you better understand the issues that impact you. Use these suggested keywords online atimpactnews.com. I hope you find the site as useful as I do.

John P. Garrett, Publisher, [email protected]