I know we've only been around for less than a month, but in that short time Kent Patch has helped play an important role for the Kent community by giving you the scoop on some big news.

In less than three weeks, Kent Patch broke some big stories for 2010 that will continue to be important issues for the Kent community through 2011.

On day one, we had the story first about Kent Police Chief James Peach and his plans to retire effective Jan. 23. We followed that up today with a story on his successor, Kent Police Capt. Michelle Lee, who will be the department's first female chief.

Just days after launch, we broke the story that 2010 set a record for suicides in Portage County, and that the crisis hotlines, including the Help line at Townhall II, are seeing a record increase in calls for help.

Our streak of breaking news continued with coverage of PARTA and its court case over the Car Parts Warehouse property, which is needed for construction of the new Kent Central Gateway transit center. We also broke the news on Twitter and Facebook before posting on the site the story about PARTA's request for a delay in the court case.

We had the first story when demolition started for Acorn Alley II, including video of the deconstruction, and we followed that up with a second video once all the buildings were cleared.

We also took a look back at Kent State University's Centennial year through interviews with Kent State University President Lester Lefton and emeritus professor William Hildebrand, who wrote the book "A Most Noble Enterprise; The Story of Kent State University, 1910-2010."

I may seem link happy, but the point here is that Kent Patch had these, and many more, stories first. Giving you access to important Kent news first is our goal, and we'll continue to do just that through 2011 and beyond.

Remember, we're not just giving you the news. Kent Patch gives you new ways to interact by asking general questions about the community in our Q & A feature, asking for a follow-up on an important story and posting your own events and announcements on our calendar and announcements pages.

So if you want 2011 to be an informative year for you, be sure to bookmark Kent Patch and follow us on Facebook and Twitter for Kent news when it happens.