Your connection to Oak Park and River Forest

It's the website for Oak Park and River Forest that only Wednesday Journal could build. Thirty years of covering these villages and connecting them in print, online and across the back fence helped us create OakPark.com and, also, RiverForest.com.

Here's what you'll find at these comprehensive community portals:

• Wednesday Journal news. Faster than ever, but still from the reporters - Terry Dean, Anna Lothson and Devin Rose- who you know and can count on. Each day you'll find new reporting on matters large and small, but always local. And you'll find lots more news about the people and events that make these villages so interesting.

• The complete community calendar. We've built the most robust calendar of local events ever. Sort it by date, sort it by topic. Annette Coffee, our calendar editor will pull it all together.

• A vibrant conversation. Wednesday Journal has fostered a stimulating discussion in our letters pages for decades that's continued on our website in recent years. But on OakPark.com and RiverForest.com, it will flower.

Reader comments on news stories, restaurants, sports, and all manner of local life will be front and center on every story. Plus, we've got bloggers covering topics from dining to shopping, from books to religion, from local history to local sports. On our Community page you'll find the full roster of bloggers. You'll also find specific bloggers on appropriate pages such as dining, shopping and the calendar. Make yourself an active part of the conversation.

More than two years in the making, OakPark.com and RiverForest.com are the work of many people across our company. From our Web department to editorial and advertising, we've been working hard to craft a site that meets your needs, helps you find information, keeps you in the loop and makes you part of the conversation about living in these great villages. Thanks to all of our colleagues for their hard work.

All the news. Just faster

For over 30 years Oak Park and River Forest have turned to Wednesday Journal to find the news. Every Wednesday, a snapshot in time. Our take on the news, delivered to you. When exceptional news occurred, and it wasn't convenient to a Wednesday, we'd publish an old-fashioned "Real All About It!" Extra!

For the past 12 years we've had websites, too. Some weren't bad. None were great. But they untethered us from Wednesday's and that's been a relief. In the last few years we've added nearly 5,000 local families to our e-mail list and we've blasted the news directly to you.

Our capable and connected reporters - Terry Dean, Anna Lothson and Devin Rose - will be delivering news every day. Look for fresh reporting throughout the week. And for even more immediate news and insights follow the Inside Report blog written by our staff and prominent featured on our News page. Multiple times a day you'll find something new and newsworthy in Inside Report.

Your take on the local news is also essential on OakPark.com. Post your comments on any news story. You'll see them in real time. Send us news tips, pictures and video, too.

And keep in mind that we're not nearly done: We've got a lengthy list of additions and expansions already planned. Now, we want to hear from you. What's missing? What could work better? Tell us. We want to know.

Go to the news page

Talk to us. And each other

For 30 years Wednesday Journal has been the hub of conversation in Oak Park and River Forest. Our expansive, opinionated, thoughtful, outrageous letters section - often running more than 10 pages in print - is the best read section in the paper. And we expect our new Community section to be at the top of the charts for online readers.

This is a Community hub only Wednesday Journal could build. We've got bloggers, fingers poised over keyboards, ready for a vibrant conversation about all things Oak Park and River Forest. And more bloggers are always welcome.

Some will be like general interest columnists in the paper (some are general interest columnists in the paper!). Others are ready to dive deep into a specific topic with a totally local take. Our conversation starters will cover dining, shopping, the arts, books, religion, the gay community, local sports, local history, nature (yes, these built-up villages have a natural world), health, photography, volunteering. And, as they say, "And more."

But the bloggers just start the discussion. We need you to jump in and talk, debate, discuss, cajole, persuade. Your comments will be live, so don't act like a dope.

Connect with the community

Moving forward

What you see today is just the start. We're not nearly done. There's a lengthy list of additions and expansions already planned. Now, we want to hear from you. What's missing? What could work better? Tell us. We want to know.

Send your critiques to Graham Johnston or Rosie Powers, our digital editors. They're at graham@oakpark.com and rosie@oakpark.com.