Congratulations, Melanie! Protected Bike Lanes Story a Finalist for Major Award.

We just got word from California State University's Center for California Studies that Melanie Curry is one of three finalists in the "blog category" in their 20th Annual Journalism Awards.

Curry is earning recognition for "Protected Bike Lanes Grow in CA as Cities Face Down Old Concerns." Published in July during the midst of hearings on now-passed legislation that makes it easier for municipalities to create protected bike lanes, it explained the history of this street treatment in California. The legislation passed both houses of the legislature, and will hopefully be signed into law by Governor Jerry Brown in the near future.

We'll find out where Melanie places on October 2, but feel free to congratulate her in the comments section right now. In addition to everyone else in the state, this piece beat out works by writers at three Streetsblogs, Santa Monica Next, and LongBeachIze.

Of course, award-winning journalism isn't free. You can also congratulate Melanie by making a donation to Streetsblog at http://la.streetsblog.org/donate.