By Garrison Frost

Frequent visitors to The Aesthetic have commented that the posts reflect a marked degree of hostility when the subject is the city of Manhattan Beach. Indeed, I have been quick to note the foibles of the town, its leadership and its residents on this site since its inception. Nonetheless, readers should know that I am not blind to the city's many good qualities.

I grew up in Manhattan Beach. My parents lived there when I was born. I went to preschool at the Little Red School House on Manhattan Beach Boulevard, attended kindergarten at Robinson Elementary and went to American Martyrs and Mira Costa for middle school and high school, respectively. When my family did move to another city, it was to Hermosa Beach, so our connection to Manhattan Beach was never severed. My first real job out of college was for the city of Manhattan Beach, and I spent eight years working at The Beach Reporter newspaper (most of that time as editor), widely considered the city's voice in print.

So, although I have other loyalties, when I criticize Manhattan Beach, it is not as some outsider, but rather as a member of the family.

But this article is not the one for my criticisms. My goal here is merely to list as many of the city's good points as I can think of in one sitting. No doubt I will miss a few, but rather than allow my omissions to create confusion, at the end of this piece I will list a few items that I considered for inclusion but nonetheless decided against.

So don't let it be said that I never say anything nice. Here goes:

The beach. Very few coastlines feature beaches as wide and clean as Manhattan's. Even the sand is pleasant: deep, not too coarse. Sure, some of the public restrooms are disgusting, but not substantially worse than one would find elsewhere. Good surfing and volleyball scenes make the beaches even more hospitable.

News. Plenty of bigger cities in California aren't served by any newspapers. Manhattan Beach is served by three: The Daily Breeze, The Beach Reporter and the Easy Reader. While none of these publications are producing anything close to cutting edge journalism they do provide residents with an amazing amount of information about their town. Moreover, they help foster a unified sense of community. If you want to see what a town with poor news coverage looks like, just take a gander at Hawthorne.

Responsiveness: While some might call Manhattan Beach officials' demonstrated timidity when it comes to confronting residents massively inefficient, you can't beat Manhattan Beach City Hall for responsiveness. Where some cities will flat-out ignore residents, Manhattan Beach goes the other way and gives them incredible deference.

Crime. Manhattan Beach really has no crime, which makes it all the more comical when people make such a big deal out of what little the city has.

Traffic. See crime.

Downtown. Find another small town downtown in the South Bay that is nearly as successful as Manhattan Beach's.

Tax base. So many other cities in Los Angeles County, and California in general, have had to sell their souls to big box retail and industry to generate a tax base large enough to pay for basic services to residents. With Target, the movie studios, the Manhattan Mall, the Rosecrans corridor and a few car dealerships, Manhattan Beach has managed to build up an enviable tax base without totally gutting the cities character.

Ercoles. There are a few other local dive bars remaining in the gentrifying city, but none quite as cool as this old monster in the heart of downtown.

El Porto. Even though time and yuppies have worn off the edges of this once-unincorporated bohemian enclave, El Porto still manages to surprise with a down-to-earth core that never seems to forget what's great about California living.

El Sombrero. The prices continue to rocket skyward with what the traffic will bear, but many take great comfort in knowing that a booth is always waiting, and that the words "Number 2 with chicken instead of beef" will always ring sentimental.

Old Hometown Fair. Sure. it still includes a beer garden that is more like a prison camp, but compared to other city fairs in the South Bay, this is by far the best. Moreover, this fair is clearly for the community, by the community. None of the cheap swap meet quality here that one finds elsewhere – in case there's any confusion about what I mean by that, I'm talking to you, Fiesta Hermosa.

Sloopy's and Beach Hut. See El Porto.

The Strand. Manhattan Beach Boulevard may center the city's downtown, but The Strand is clearly its Main Street. And just because Hermosa Beach's functions a little better as a community gathering place doesn't mean that Manhattan Beach's isn't cool too.

Veteran's Parkway. Or at least that's what I think they're calling it these days. Even though it threw the city into financial doubt for years, the decision to set aside this giant swath of property that slices through the western side of the city was an opportunistic stroke of genius. One could never set aside so much open space today. As the city grows ever more built-up and dense, this ground serves as a sanctuary and escape valve, almost as much as the beach.

Good schools. It slays me that parents are actually considering paying in for a private school in Manhattan Beach when their children already enjoy one of the best learning opportunities in the state, if not the nation. Sure, the School District has been run by a bunch of idiots for the last few years, but even they haven't been able to ruin this incredible asset.

Cultural Arts. While Manhattan Beach residents have a long way to go in terms of their appreciation and support for the arts, we have to tip our hat to the city's efforts to try and bring some vestige of culture to its community. The art fair, the arts center, the Cultural Affairs Department, the public art program – very few other cities have accomplished as much as Manhattan Beach has in this area.

Not on the list. Let it just be said that I considered but did not include on my list, for a variety of reasons large and small, the following: the Kettle, the Hyperion Outfall Serenaders, high property values, Good Stuff, Uncle Bill's, the Manhattan Beach Open, Concerts in the Park, the Manhattan Country Club, the Manhattan Beach pier, Skechers, the City Council, the bike path, the Realtors, demographics, Junior Lifeguards, architecture, history, the Historical Society and a few others which I decline to mention because, after all, we?re trying to be positive here.

(July 6, 2004)

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