The Press Democrat’s website took a top award in a recent national competition for online publications.

The 2014 Best in Digital Media contest was sponsored by the Local Media Association, which includes more than 2,200 media outlets in North America.

Competing in the largest circulation group, the recently redesigned pressdemocrat.com received first place in the category of best community website. The contest was judged by BIA-Kelsey, a national media research agency.

The Press Democrat’s return to local ownership when it was purchased by Sonoma Media Investments in 2012 gave the newspaper’s online team an opportunity to rebuild and re-engineer pressdemocrat.com. The redesigned site debuted in July 2013 and moved again to a new platform earlier this month. Also launched this month are a new mobile site as well as updated apps for Apple and Android smartphone users.

“We’re committed to continuous improvement in our goal of delivering a compelling news report for our readers. It’s more important than ever that we keep pace with the technological changes that will help us achieve that goal,” said Greg Retsinas, the newspaper’s digital director.