My name is Natasha Lindstrom, and I joined the Daily Press just seven weeks ago. I haven’t been here long, but I have already witnessed many exciting changes taking shape in Hesperia.

Most recently, the city approved the Main Street and Freeway Corridor Specific Plan, the most comprehensive effort to revitalize growth in Hesperia since its incorporation 20 years ago. The plan, which has been in the works for the past three years, reorganizes the zoning of the city’s main commercial corridors in an attempt to transform “the mostly vacant freeway corridor into a thriving regional commercial and entertainment center,” according to the plan’s proposal. It didn’t get passed without a public hearing that extended over two City Council meetings and included more than two dozen complaints from unhappy property owners.

The city is also finally beginning to buy right-of-way for the long-awaited Ranchero Road underpass, a project in the works for the past five years. The city received federal environmental final approval on Aug. 27, and the city should begin construction by this time next year.

The Hesperia Unified School District board has also kept me busy.

Bruce Minton’s resignation became official Sept. 1, nearly a month after he surprised his colleagues and community members when he made several accusations against fellow board members in the process.

The new busing policy implemented at the beginning of the school year sparked so many complaints from parents concerned about their children’s safety — about 300 phone calls in a four-day period alone — that the district reversed the changes at the end of August.

In case you want to know more about me, I am new to the area, without any family or friends within 100 miles, other than the ones I’ve made in the last few weeks. Born and raised in Phoenix, Ariz. — an even hotter desert — I lived in the San Francisco Bay Area for the past four years studying at Santa Clara University, a Jesuit college nestled in the heart of Silicon Valley. I graduated in June with a bachelor of arts in communication and a bachelor of science in political science. After perusing the somewhat grim print journalism job market, I was thrilled to land the staff writer position here at the Daily Press.

I hope to update this blog frequently to provide you, the readers, with extra insights on the stories I’m covering and perhaps extended versions that don’t make it to the print edition. Most importantly, I want to provide a space for concerned residents or observers to open fruitful dialogues on any topic that interests them.

Ask me questions, pose questions to one another, tell me what you think I’ve missed or what upcoming relevant and compelling news you think should be covered.

Use the blog comments to suggest new topics or e-mail me with “blog” in the subject at nlindstrom@vvdailypress.com.

See you soon.

I have heard quite a few people asking for Trader Joe’s and maybe a TGI Fridays, but what will that do to the community? Some believe that trying to attract these kinds of businesses will ruin the rural way of life. Others welcome the change and convenience.

What do you think?

I hope you can find this blog as a way to express your feelings not just about topics that affect only Hesperia, but all people.

 Tomorrow is the City’s clean-up day and there will be a wide variety of activities.

How important is it to you to live in a green community?