The City of Gardena is proud to announce that our City Manager Mitchell G. Lansdell was selected as “Municipal Leader of the Year” for 2007 by Penton Media’s American City & County^® magazine.* The magazine presents the award annually, in recognition of outstanding leadership in city government. Recipients of the annual award are selected by the editors of American City & County, based on nominations submitted by the magazine's audience, municipal leaders and associations.The award was presented on November 16, 2007 at the National League of Cities conference in New Orleans and was chronicled in the feature story of the November issue of the magazine and is online at www.americancityandcounty.com (search: Lansdell). "Mitch Lansdell, our Municipal Leader of the Year, saved his city," said Bill Wolpin, American City & County's editorial director and associate publisher. "He created a plan and communicated it well. More importantly his inner strength and endurance were transparent to everyone. For a decade, he kept the faith and, as a result, inspired confidence in the future. We couldn't think of a better definition of a leader."

Mr. Lansdell was recognized for his leadership in renegotiationg the City's $26 million debt that was strangling the City's fiscal stability.  At the direction of the City Council, Mr. Lansdell negotiated with bank debt holders and credit rating agencies, eventually restructuring the loans with fixed payments over 30 years. Following the award presentation, Mayor Paul Tanaka stated , "All city officials, employees, businesses and citizens should be proud of this award because everyone had a part in the City's financial recovery. Yet, it takes one person at the helm, and that person was City Manager Mitch Lansdell. " Nominated for the award by several City staff, Mitch was genuinely surprised and humbled when he learned of the nomination and the award. In June 1998, the City had more than a $5 million general fund deficit; by June 2006, the City had $8 million in reserve.

* Penton Media, Inc. is the largest independent business-to-business media company in the U.S., serving more than six million business professionals every month. The company’s market-leading brands are focused on 30 industries and include 113 trade magazines, 145 Web sites, 150 industry trade shows and conferences, and more than 500 information data products. Headquartered in New York City, the privately held company is owned by MidOcean Partners and U.S. Equity Partners II, an investment fund sponsored by Wasserstein & Co., LP, and its coinvestors.  For additional information on the company and its businesses, visit www.penton.com.  American City & County has been the voice of state and local government since 1909. The magazine serves a nationwide audience of city and county officials who are charged with developing and implementing local government policy, programs and projects. American City & County is published monthly by Penton Media. For more information about the magazine, visit www.americancityandcounty.com.