If 2020 was the year our lives turned upside down, 2021 could be seen as the continuing rollercoaster of pandemic life. This year presented a whirlwind of transitions as we stood in line for COVID-19 tests and vaccines, adapted to shifting protocols at public places and went back and forth between in-person and virtual meetings.
In this graphic, we compare how different aspects of the community have changed over the past 12 months.
Palo Alto Online is taking one last look at 2021 all this week. If you missed any parts of our series, see the links below:
• In a year marked by rapid adjustments, Palo Alto advanced some key goals but fell short on others
Despite COVID-19, Palo Alto made significant progress this year on numerous goals that preceded the pandemic. We review some of the trends that have defined City Hall in 2021.
• Local education leaders look back on 2021
Leaders are looking forward to moving ahead with issues beyond the pandemic, while not forgetting what they've learned over the past two years.
• A peek back at the top 10 most-read stories in Palo Alto over the past 12 months
It's no surprise that a fair number of articles on our list of most-read stories of the year are related to COVID-19 and its fallout. But that wasn't the only topic readers were interested in.
• Can you ace this 21-question quiz about 2021 local news?
Test your knowledge through our year-end quiz and see if you can count yourself among Palo Alto's true Know-It-Alls.
• A year of hope and resilience, in photos
Our chief visual journalist shares images that illustrate how our community has come back together over the last 12 months to celebrate, learn, protest, mourn and innovate.
Comments
Registered user
Los Altos
on Dec 31, 2021 at 10:51 am
Registered user
on Dec 31, 2021 at 10:51 am
One way of greeting 2022 would be for Palo Alto residents to start off with a simple New Year's resolution and that is...by contributing & subscribing to Palo Alto Online.
The PA Weekly/Online is devoted to the entire interests of the Palo Alto community via its timely and unbiased reportage of current city-wide events.
Its online presence allows all Palo Alto residents to openly air their concerns & grievances and unlike Facebook/Meta, PA Online is governed by respectful and responsible moderator censorship.
Being a very wealthy & upscale community, there is absolutely no reason for any Palo Alto resident not to consider supporting this superb & insightful journalistic endeavor.
Registered user
another community
on Dec 31, 2021 at 11:35 am
Registered user
on Dec 31, 2021 at 11:35 am
As a former Palo Alto resident now residing in Florida, I occasionally Google Palo Alto Online to catch-up on what's going on in our old home town.
A lot has changed since we resided there back in the 1970s, much of it for for the worse but this is oftentimes the price tag current residents must pay for any semblance of progress whether it be technologically related or pertaining to perceived quality of life issues.
Affordable housing will always be an issue as the city's population and economy has grown substantially over the past several decades.
And though Palo Alto has lost much of its small town allure, the community remains vibrant and socially aware due to the ongoing efforts of the Palo Alto Online publishing team and its visionary publisher.
Life is change and though one can never return to yesteryear, Palo Alto Online continually strives to keep its readership informed of the pertinent changes and conflicts that impact Palo Alto everyday life.
Kudos to Palo Alto Online and its commitment to journalistic integrity.
Registered user
another community
on Dec 31, 2021 at 1:21 pm
Registered user
on Dec 31, 2021 at 1:21 pm
One less trip to a sushi bar can keep PA Online flourishing!
In our community, residents are relegated (by personal choice) to trivial, uncensored, and oftentimes uniformed Next Door postings.
Perhaps it comes with the territory as Palo Alto along with its more enlightened and educated residents are a far cry above and beyond where we currently reside (Bakersfield/Kern County).
A open society is an educated and illuminated one, free from the constraints of one-sided bigotry and the narrow-mindedness of unfounded conservative perspectives.
Palo Alto Online has set the benchmark for online community participation and should be commended by all of those who truly care about maintaining a free and democratic society where all lives (regardless of one's background) and pertinent community issues truly matter.
Palo Altans as a whole tend to embrace the beauty of a BLUE sky rather than the ominous turbulence of a RED one and the best way to promote this mindset is by openly supporting Palo Alto Online via recurrent subscription and/or contribution.
Registered user
another community
on Dec 31, 2021 at 1:49 pm
Registered user
on Dec 31, 2021 at 1:49 pm
I am currently stationed in Berlin but was raised in Palo Alto and enjoy reading the blogs, especially those written by Ms. Diamond and Ms. Listgarten.
2021 is coming to a close and 2022 will hopefully emerge with an end to the coronavirus, less political strife, and a heightened prosperity for all.
Registered user
Menlo Park
on Dec 31, 2021 at 4:02 pm
Registered user
on Dec 31, 2021 at 4:02 pm
Palo Alto Online has raised the bar as a local online publication and gets an A for its content and focus.
As noted earlier in a preceding post, the intrepid local reportage as envisioned by a truly enlightened and astute publisher has made Palo Alto Online what it is today.
Keep up the good work!
Registered user
Woodland Ave. area (East Palo Alto)
on Jan 3, 2022 at 12:12 pm
Registered user
on Jan 3, 2022 at 12:12 pm
The PA Weekly-Online should consider offering discounts to low-income subscribers.
That said, Palo Alto Online is a media gem and its publisher deserves much of the credit for creating a local online forum where interested parties can share their community-related concerns and perspectives.