Dublin Wins All-America City Award

The residents of Dublin have a lot to celebrate after being selected as an All-America City in Kansas City Friday night.

"Words can't express the appreciation of the National Civic League for this wonderful honor. We've known we were an All-American city in our hearts and we were validated by the story we told here," said City Manager Jodi Pattillo who was in attendance when the award was given in Kansas City.

In Dublin, news spread fast throughout the city Friday night.

"I'm honored for the city to have this type of recognition and it just validates a lot of the great programs and services that we've been doing, said Mayor Tim Sbranti.

"It's great to see a prestigious organize recognize the great things that are happening in Dublin," he added.

Of the 23 cities competing, 10 were awarded All-America City status in Friday night’s closing ceremony. The All-America City Awards are sponsored by the National Civic League. Dublin competed as a finalist for the second straight year and was the only city in California to receive the award.

Dublin’s , a takeoff on the Wizard of Oz that included all 31 members of the delegation, went off without a hitch Thursday and received great feedback from the judges, event organizers and other city delegations.

The presentation was followed by a question-and-answer session with the judging panel.

Cities receive finalist status after submitting an application. In this year’s application, Dublin touted its commitment to affordable housing, the Heritage Center project and the city’s involvement with School of Imagination. Winners are chosen based on “community-based problem solving, grassroots civic engagement and joint efforts on the part of the public, private and nonprofit sectors,” according to the National Civic League website.

Click here to watch Thursday morning's Wizard of Oz performance.