Recent Awards and Honors Presented to the City of Anaheim

The City of Anaheim Planning Department has recently been honored with two awards from the Orange Section of the American Planning Association (OCAPA).The Anaheim Stadium Master Land Use Plan and Sports Entertainment Overlay Zone was recognized with a Comprehensive Planning Award, and The Anaheim Resort(tm) Signage Program garnered the Planning Implementation Award. In granting these prestigious awards, OCAPA recognized these efforts as two of the most outstanding public or private planning projects in all of Orange County. (7/00)

The Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada (GFOA) has awarded their Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting to the City of anaheim for its Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR). The Certificate of Achievement is the highest form of recognition in the area of governmental accounting and financial reporting. The GFOA is a nonprofit professional association that serves 14,000 finance professionals in government. (5/00)

PRO Awards Competition conducted by the Public Communicators of Los Angeles - The City of Anaheim website was a finalist with Honorable mention in the category of New Media where it competed with Unite Way of Great Los Angeles and Celebrity Virtual Tour which promotes stars such as Julio Iglesias and Whoopi Goldberg. (5/00)

California Association of Public Information Officers (CAPIO) recognized the City of Anaheim website as the best municipal resource in the state. (4/00)

California Municipal Utilities Association Annual Conference Anaheim's City Facilities Water Audit Program captured the 2000 California Municipal Utilities Resource Efficiency Award for Best Management Practices for its outstanding efforts in water conservation. (3/00)

Business Development Outlook Magazine ranked Anaheim as one of the top 25 cities in the United States for manufacturing businesses among cities that have a population of at least 100,000 people. BDO Magazine then evaluated the cities using a variety of data including education levels of workforce, public transportation, housing, crime, and sales and production labor demographics. (12/99)

Business Facilities' Magazine 7th Annual Economic Development Achievement Awards bestowed an honorable mention to Anaheim in the Partnership Program category. The City earned the award based on innovation, effectiveness and pro-business impact in the development of Anaheim's Technology Center which created more than 1,700 jobs and retained an additional 2,400 jobs as a strategic response to defense industry downsizing (12/99).

Anaheim Transportation Network and the City of Anaheim Commuter Services Office have won the 1999 Clean Air Award in the category of Innovative Transportation Projects from the South Coast Air Quality Management District. The award is for the Imagination Speedway special event train service that runs to events at the Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim and Edison International Field. Over 9,000 passengers have boarded the Imagination Speedway trains, reducing traffic congestion and improving air quality while enjoying Anaheim. (9/99)

Anaheim has been named one of America's Top 10 Cities for Hispanics by Hispanic Magazine. The publication evaluates a number of factors, including: cost of living, transportation, education, climate, crime, arts, health care, recreation and overall comfort a Hispanic family might feel living in the city. Anaheim was noted for outranking 98 percent of U.S. metropolitan cities with its exceptional variety of work opportunities, which range from blue-collar to professional-level jobs. (8/99)

The Anaheim Convention Center has been awarded the 1999 Inner Circle Award from Association Meetings magazine. The award was made by the readers of the publication in an annual poll to recognize leaders in the hospitality industry. Also recognized was the Anaheim Hilton Hotel and Towers, one of only three hotels on the West Coast that were chosen. The Hilton was recognized for their high level of service, flexible meeting space, quality of food and beverage, and good value on room rates. (8/99)

The City of Anaheim website has been recognized for the quality of its design and information value by the Quatec Website Design Award and the Medaille d'Or (4/99)

For the third year in a row, City employees have been recognized by the Los Angeles Chapter of the National Safety Council. The City's disabling injury incident rate is 46% below the average rate for government agencies in California, and 34% below the average rate for general government agencies nationwide. The safety records have resulted in cost savings which are then returned to residents in increased city services. (5/99)

The 1999 Energy Innovator Award has been presented to Anaheim Public Utilities by the American Public Power Association. The prestigious award was given to recognize the agencies' retrofit of 3,753 traffic signals across the City. Red lights have been replaced with energy-conserving, light-emitting diodes (LEDs).

Anaheim Public Utilities is also the recipient of 1999 E.F. Scattergood System Achievement Award for providing superior service to Anaheim customers. With the achievement, Anaheim becomes one of only six utilities nationwide to twice receive the honor.

The Anaheim Fire Department's Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) received national recognition for its significant achievement in enhancing public safety. The award was presented by the National Conference of the American Society for Public Administration. (2/99)

Anaheim's Director of Public Works/City Engineer, Gary Johnson, was named Leader of the Year by the Southern California Chapter of the American Public Works Association. (1/99)

Anaheim was ranked as the second best city in California to expand or relocate a business according to a 1998 poll by Outlook magazine.

The AQMD Clean Air Award for Model Community Achievement was presented to Anaheim's Commuter Services Department for its Commuter Connection Program promoting rail ridership.

The American Lung Association Outstanding Leadership Award was presented to Commuter Services for a student education program on air quality.

The California Municipal Utilities Association presented two awards to the Anaheim Public Utilities Department for it Bowling for Dollars hotel and motel water efficiency program and for the community input process for the Public Benefit Program.

The Public Risk Management Association named Anaheim's Risk Manager, Thomas L. Vance, as the recipient of the National 1998 Public Entity Risk Manager of the Year Award.

For the second year, Anaheim's safety program performance was awarded first place in it division by the Greater Los Angeles Chapter of the National Safety Council.

The Orange County Section of the American Planning Association (OCAPA) recognized the Balsam Neighborhood Improvement Project with an Outstanding Planning Implementation Award.

THE OCAPA presented an Outstanding Planning Innovative Use of Technology Award to Anaheim's Planning Department for the Community Planning web page at www.anaheim.net/planning.

The OCAPA also presented former Planning Commissioner Robert Meese with a well-deserved award for Distinguished Leadership.

The California Park and Recreation Society honored the Community Services Department's Park Ranger Program with an Award of Excellence in the Public Safety Category.

The Anaheim Convention Center was the recipient of the Planners Choice Award, as selected by Meeting News Magazine, for the fifth consecutive year.

The Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting was awarded to the Finance Department by the Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada.

Anaheim's Finance Department received a Certificate of Award for Outstanding Financial Reporting from the California Society of Municipal Finance Officers.

The Public Information Office was honored with an Award of Merit from the City Hall Communications Association for the public service announcement promoting the Fall Festival.