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is a city located in southwestern Los Angeles County, California, USA. The population was 33,852 at the 2000 census. The city is on the Pacific Ocean coast, to the south of El Segundo, and to the north of Hermosa Beach. Manhattan Beach is the home of volleyball and surfing. During the winter the waves can reach to about 9 to 12 feet. To the east are the cities of Hawthorne and Redondo Beach. It is one of the three Beach Cities in the South Bay. The city is a very upscale beach town within commuting distance of Los Angeles, making it one of the most expensive coastal towns in which to live in America, according to the most recent
rankings. The town regularly smashes Los Angeles County real estate sales records, with the median price of a single family dwelling with an ocean view approaching 2.1 million dollars.
The city has a total area of 26.8 km² (10.4 mi²), which includes 10.2 km² (3.9 mi²) as land and 16.7 km² (6.4 mi²) (62.07%) as water.
Manhattan Beach features 2.1 miles (3.4 km) of ocean frontage, 40 acres (162,000 m²) of recreational beach, and a total of 59 acres (239,000 m²) of parkland in 10 parks, 1 municipal golf course, and 1 parkway, the Valley/Ardmore "Greenbelt".
Residents divide the city into several distinct neighborhoods, including the Village, Sand Section, Hill Section, Tree Section, Gas Lamp Section, Manhattan Heights, East Manhattan Beach, Liberty Village, and North Manhattan Beach (formally known as El Porto until December 2007).
The Hill Section includes higher priced homes where many of the residences are remodeled and situated on steep hills allowing panoramic ocean and city views. The nearby Sand Section is notable for its dense development and higher rate of condominiums and multi-family properties. Most commercial activity whose clientele are beach-oriented position their establishments here, sometimes within meters of private homes. One of its most highly trafficked pedestrian streets, The Strand, features high-end Oceanfront homes. Desired by families for its close knit structure and with a substantially healthy financial background, the Tree Section is essentially a smaller Hill Section, minus the hills, of course, and with slightly smaller lots and narrower streets. Liberty Village is located at the north-easternmost section of Manhattan Beach; it is undergoing rapid change as the original World War II era housing for the employees of the then dominant local defense contractors such as Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman and Hughes is replaced by new, larger homes.