I'm a journalist, so I'm going to ask you a question about your city.

Why is Solon such a great place to live? 

I think it's because Solon has a vibrant sense of place that most suburbs lack.

Solon residents are invested in their community. They pay attention to their government and the conduct of the people they put in elected office. 

Another reason is that Solon has some of the best schools in Ohio - not to mention the nation. Solon City Schools received the highest score in Ohio on the state-issued report card. Go see for yourself. Solon schools utterly demolish the standards.

Academics aside, Solon has some awesome athletes, notably a killer football team that competes for state glory every season. These Comets really fly.

What else? A vibrant arts community, with the Solon Center for the Arts as its centerpiece. 

Solon's forefathers were smart enough to develop a industrial and business district on the west side of town, a decision that is paying dividends today. The result is that Solon has a larger employment base than most suburbs.

You know that awesome Stouffer's Macaroni and Cheese? Solonites know they make it right here.

Who am I? My name is Chris Mazzolini, editor of Solon Patch. I am a native of Northeastern Ohio - I was born and raised in Wickliffe, one of Solon's foes in the old Chagrin Valley Conference. For the last six years I have worked as a newspaper reporter in North Carolina, covering everything from the U.S. Marine Corps to local politics to the crime beat.

But the lure of the ocean waned and was replaced by a desire to return home to Northeast Ohio - and help lead the journalism revolution that is Patch into Solon.

So what is Solon Patch?

In short, Solon Patch strives to be a digital community hub, a place where you can read the news around town, find out what's going on and what your neighbors are up to.

Most of all, Solon Patch is a news site. Government and politics. Schools and sports. Arts, business and crime. If it goes on in Solon, it goes on Solon Patch. If we miss anything, drop me an e-mail and we'll fix it.

A great feature on Solon Patch is the directory, where you can find an entry on every business, every school, every park, church and government building in Solon.

Want to know where the police station is? Visit the directory. Want to know the hours of the Solon Community Center? The directory. Trying to find the phone number of that pizza delivery place? That's right, the directory.

Again, if we are missing anything, let me know.

Solon Patch doesn't want you to be bored. So we made a community calendar where you can check out and post events, anything from a graduation to a yard sale. We also believe in giving back, so we created a volunteer board. 

Into social media? Follow us on Facebook and Twitter.

So check out the site and get to know us. I can't wait to get to know you.