It’s my turn again. The dreaded blog is due. What to write always seems to drive the “dreaded” part of a “blog is due.” So, I fired up Google News and started reading away. There was definitely much to write about, but I wanted something local. Clicking on the News Near You section didn’t highlight any particularly interesting articles, but it did remind me to take a peek at the Reno Gazette-Journal’s website (yes, sometimes there is more than just pictures of events). Since I don’t actually have an RGJ subscription, I was limited by the number of articles I could read. So, I proceeded carefully and looked for an article about something local to click on. I was intrigued when I stumbled across the title “Reno Rebirth: Could downtown Reno be a home for students?” I clicked away and was happy to discover a blog filled with all things Reno. (Oh, and the blog isn’t limited by having a subscription or not.)

Reno Rebirth is a blog “devoted to Reno’s economic recovery.” Reading that tagline would make one primarily think about business, but economic recovery relates to all aspects of life and Reno Rebirth makes that clear. Blogs are posted a few times a week from a variety of writers with topics ranging from Reno being a city where people are active and exercise to the number of arrests made at the 2012 Santa Crawl. The blog does allow for comments via Facebook login, so people are adding their opinions to the blog as well. There is also a Twitter feed on the main page where you can catch some additional local information. Here are a couple of blog posts I found interesting:

•  Abbi Whitaker: Think Reno wants your ideas; will it produce results?: The City of Reno is looking to local residents to start conversations of how Reno can be improved. The site, thinkreno.org, is a forum where residents can propose, support, and share ideas. It is great to see the potential for these kind of discussions available in Reno, NV, and blog writer Abbi Whitaker takes a critical look at this latest effort by the City of Reno.

• Downtown Reno: A Home for Students?: Student housing around UNR has often been hit or miss, so why not expand the availability of housing options? This blog post by Molly J. Moser explores the possibilities of expanding student housing in the Reno downtown area. With food, nightlife and easy access to campus, downtown living looks like it could be a nice addition to student housing options.

So, if you have some time, take a peek at the Reno Rebirth blog and don’t forget to keep an eye out for Barnard Vogler’s weekly blog, too.