Google Local, a service that allows you to search for websites and locations near you, has now made it to the Google front page in the United States. Google does this when they notice a search service having a certain amount of usage. When Google last redesigned their site, they removed Google Directory from their front page on the same issue: it wasn't popular enough to deserve the position. Clearly, Google users are interested in local search, and it is likely that Google in the future will work to develop more localized and personalized features to meet these demands.