A note from the publisher and editor

Dear readers:

We know the Laguna Beach community is probably wondering just who is

this new kid on the block bringing them local news. But really, we are

less of a new kid than an old friend just back in town to get

reacquainted. Thus the new name for the paper, the Laguna Beach Coastline

Pilot.

About a decade ago, the Daily Pilot newspaper was forced to retreat

and scale back its operations. The reason? Because the Pilot’s focus then

was to be a regional paper for the Orange Coast area, an area that

spanned numerous beach-side communities. But the fierce competition

forced the newspaper to recreate itself and refocus.

Community news became the ticket to success and the Pilot, now the

award-winning flagship paper for the Los Angeles Times community news

division, is the major source of news for its readers in Newport Beach

and Costa Mesa.

Now, with our focus squarely on local news, events, people and issues,

we feel confident that we can bring this successful model into Laguna

Beach.

We realize it’s important to keep the flavor and charm of this paper

intact. That’s why you’ll still find many of your favorite features and

writers, like longtime City Hall veteran Barbara Diamond, have not gone

away.

We are excited about the prospect of bringing you top-notch City Hall,

schools, sports and entertainment coverage. We will offer you a community

forum for ideas. We will stand beside you and be your watchdog. We’ll be

the community record for achievements and milestones and be the community

cheerleader when things are going well.

Our pledge to Laguna Beach is that we will listen to your concerns and

your suggestions. We will not stray from our vow to be the community

newspaper that is both written for and by the residents of Laguna Beach.

So enjoy your community paper, produced by an old friend who is just

happy to be back here in this great town.

Tom Johnson, Publisher

Tony Dodero, Editor