National Sustainability Award Just Out of City's Reach

The city of Manhattan Beach lost out to Newton, Iowa, at the third annual Siemens Sustainable Community Awards on Thursday in the nation's capital.

"Though we didn't win the award, I am truly pleased that Manhattan Beach was selected as a finalist," said Sona Kalapura, environmental programs director for the city. She called Iowa's project description "truly inspiring."

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Business Civic Leadership Center (BCLC) and Siemens Corp. presented the awards, which were given out in three categories: large, mid-size and small communities.

Philadelphia won the large-community award, and Grand Rapids, MI, took the mid-size prize. Each of the winning communities was honored for having "improved the quality of life for residents by achieving vital economic, environmental and social goals."

Details about the three winners—as well as Manhattan Beach and the five other community honorees—are on the BCLC's website.

"Despite—or perhaps because of—the tough economic conditions we've been enduring, more communities across the country embraced public-private partnerships as a core strategy for promoting sustainable community development," Stephen Jordan, BCLC senior vice president and executive director, said in a news release. "All of the finalists for the awards made important contributions to their home towns this year."