Welcome to Noozhawk, Santa Barbara’s community newspaper — without the paper.

Each day, Noozhawk will be delivering writing worth reading for the South Coast, with our staff of professional journalists providing original reporting on local news, business, real estate, sports, schools and nonprofit organizations. While we’re certainly interested in the bigger picture, like you, we get that news from respected national sources and global Web services. It’s the local stuff we can’t seem to find anywhere — and neither can you.

Until now. Until Noozhawk.

But while Noozhawk exists to deliver mainstream news and information about our community, we need you to help us expand our coverage. Each one of us is part of a network of connections, and those connections make up the unique fabric of life on the South Coast. There are more of you than there are of us, so we’re asking you to contribute your stories, photos and video clips about your own community within the community. We’re interested in what you do, and we think others will be, too.

What we’re not interested in is an attitude of superiority, which is why Noozhawk won’t be making endorsements or taking editorial positions. On issues of importance, we want Noozhawk to be the place to have a true and open community debate — a free and free-wheeling discussion on the challenges that even Paradise must face.

We’ve adopted as our platform one written by the late T.M. Storke, the legendary Santa Barbaran and Pulitzer Prize-winning newspaper publisher. It contains seven core principles that we enthusiastically support:

1. Keep the news clean and fair.

2. Play no favorites, and never mix business and editorial policy.

3. Do not let the news columns reflect editorial comment.

4. Publish the news that is public property without fear or favor of friend or foe.

5. Accept no charity and ask no favors.

6. Give “value received” for every dollar taken in.

7. Make the publication profitable if possible, but above profit keep it clean, fearless and fair.

So, what’s our agenda? We don’t have one. We promise you accessibility, credibility and reliability while delivering you fair and comprehensive reporting on the community we respect and appreciate as much as you do.

And speaking of appreciation, Noozhawk has been a long time in development, and we’re grateful for all of the support and encouragement from family, friends, acquaintances and a surprisingly large number of random people on the street. Jim Farr, Andrea Huebner and Edgar Oliveira share a huge amount of credit for taking my fuzzy, stream-of-consciousness ideas and actually making a few of them work. Josh Ross and his team at up2speed computer solutions also bore a big part of that responsibility.

My children — Will, Colin and Kirsten — all had some input, fed me feedback and provided sardonic wisecracks when I needed them. But my biggest thanks of all go to my beautiful wife, Missy, whose patience I’ve tested time and time again during the circuitous — she might say curious — course of this venture. I promise, honey, I’ve finally gotten myself a job. One day I may even get paid.

Meanwhile, take a look around Noozhawk. If you like what you see, tell a friend. Just as important, tell an advertiser. And do let me know what you think. You can reach me at wmacfadyen@noozhawk.com.

On behalf of our entire Noozhawk team, thank you for reading us and thank you for your support.

We’re Noozhawk. News you use. Information you trust.