A new year means time for reflection, as well as time for looking ahead.

Between the Dec. 25 edition of The Times and the one on newsstands (in driveways and mailboxes) this week, we’ve done plenty of the former. The Times ended 2019 with a rundown of the top 10 stories from the previous 12 months, including everything from an historic snow storm and the implementation of a new sales tax to a couple of local events that managed to make national headlines, namely the early-January officer-involved shooting and the detainment of a Fountain Hills resident in China.

We also took a closer look at the past year with stories digging deeper into activity around Town Hall, plenty of development planning and an unusually busy year for the Fountain Hills Sanitary District. That trend continues this week, with stories taking a closer look at everything from the wacky weather to the early evolution of a major project, the proposed International Dark Sky Discovery Center planned for Fountain Hills.

As you may have heard, the celebration of the past will continue throughout the next year as the community takes part in a “30/50” anniversary. The 30 is for the number of years since the town’s incorporation (celebrated Dec. 2019) and the 50 is for the number of years it will have been since the iconic Fountain was first turned on (celebrated Dec. 2020).

In the midst of all of that, we’ll of course be making new headlines. While nobody can guess the future, we at least have a road map guiding us to some of the upcoming destinations. From a trio of elections throughout 2020 to continued development and beyond, The Times’ staff expects the next year to stay pretty busy. We look forward to having our readers join us on this journey. Attend Town Council meetings, take part in local activities, enjoy your community and feel free to share your thoughts through letters to the editor.

Happy New Year!