SAME GREAT TASTE! It is time for the magazine you’re reading to get a bit of a facelift and an attitude adjustment. Let us fill you in.

Starting in 1968, The View newsletter was the way many Mt. Lebanon residents got their news—it was a combined effort from the municipality and the school district, a black-and-white printed product of about four pages. But taxpayers had a thirst for more information, and this town had too many stories to tell in four pages.

Mt. Lebanon Magazine’s first issue was in 1981 and included features on theater arts at the high school, recreation programs and library news. The magazine (and hairstyles) continued to grow throughout the ’80s. The ’90s brought more lively features and in 2003, Mt. Lebanon Magazine got an injection of color to its pages, with bright photography. By 2007, the magazine needed a makeover, and then-designer Helen m Worsing gave it a new look and a new name—mtl. For 13 years, that snappy moniker graced the pages of the print and online versions of the magazine.

But in recent years, something else started happening—we realized we live and read in a global environment. When we search for something online, a local name might get lost. Indeed, mtl magazine was a name that belonged to another entity, a religious publication based in Florida. Type #mtl on social media? That will likely get you connected with the city of Montreal instead of us. At the same time, several for-profit magazines popped up in the South Hills, leading to confusion about which magazine is the official one, published by the Municipality of Mt. Lebanon.

Wonder no more. mtl is going back to the future as we embrace our roots and head into our 40th year of publication. We are Mt. Lebanon Magazine, the dependable, accurate source of important information all residents and businesses need.

While we were at it, we took a look at the way the magazine looked and decided that, as busy as you are, you needed some clearer organization and design to pull you into the story. We tightened the content, so now stories will have clear connections to you, your life and the things you want to know.

Our entire staff has been part of this transformation, but a special shout-out goes to our designers, Judy Macoskey and Christopher Leeper. Their sense of style and aesthetics has resulted in a magazine that feels at once familiar and fresh. We hope you like it.

The magazine is just one part of the Mt. Lebanon Public Information Office’s efforts to inform you. Here are some other ways:

Websites: mtlebanon.org (main municipal site), lebomag.com (magazine site), mtlebanonlibrary.org (library site), mtlfd.org (fire department), mtlebanonpd.org (police department).

Sign up for: LeboEmergency (emergency alerts via cell, landline, email and text). Sign up: www.mtlebanon.org

LeboALERT (nonemergency alerts via email or text). Sign up: www.mtlebanon.org

Biweekly email newsletter called The Seven Ten, with information you need to know. Sign up.

Social media: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, NextDoor