| Seattle #3 - America's Coolest Cities |
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Follow us on Twitter: @NW_Journal - Follow us on Facebook: Northwest Journal America's Coolest Cities To compile the list, market research company Harris Interactive conducted an exclusive poll for Forbes. In July Harris asked 2,104 adults from across the U.S. which of the 40 largest imetropolitan statistical areas in the country were "the coolest." New York wins with singles It turns out that what you think is cool may be influenced by whether there's a ring on your finger. Of the single people polled, the largest percentage thought New York was the coolest city, but married people gave the title to Vegas. Vegas bucks the trend Las Vegas has a reputation for attracting pensioners who come to while the day away at slot machines. But in fact, respondents between 18 and 34 years old thought Las Vegas was cooler than New York. A full 11% of that age group gave Sin City the "coolest" badge. Still, while they might imagine it to be a happening place, trendy young folks don't account for the majority of visitors to the city. According to the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, the average age of vacationers in 2009 was 50. by Beth Braverman, Veronica Crews, Anne C. Lee, Jessica Levine, Ismat Sarah Mangla, Vanessa Richardson, Donna Rosato, and Pieter van Noordennen, CNNMoney.com
At 5.1%, its unemployment rate is nearly one percentage point below the county rate and more than four points below the national average. It helps when you've got 50,000 jobs right in town. Major employers include Fortune 500 trucking company C.H. Robinson, hearing-aid maker Starkey Labs, and the Minnesota Vikings, whose practice facility and front office are here. As for fiscal strength, Moody's gives the town a perfect AAA bond rating.
While it doesn't have much of a downtown, there's plenty of outer beauty: from gently rolling hills to 17 lakes that residents flock to year-round for swimming and ice skating. Town parks are laced with 125 miles of running, hiking, and biking trails.
The nearby National Security Agency and the Fort Meade Army base together account for more than 8,000 jobs, and the government plans to move thousands more positions there by next year. Baltimore and D.C. are within commuting distance (30 and 60 minutes, respectively). As for housing, the foreclosure rate is one of the lowest in Maryland, yet homes are affordable -- by Northeast standards, anyway. Factor in excellent schools and a diverse population (17% of residents are black, 14% Asian), and you can see why this place has become a magnet for families.
Less than 45 minutes from downtown Boston via train, subway, or express bus, Newton is divided into 13 "villages" loaded with classic New England charm. Most have pedestrian-friendly shopping districts, parks, and playgrounds. The town weathered the economic downturn fairly well, thanks to such stable local employers as Boston College and Newton-Wellesley Hospital. And Greater Boston, of course, offers a wealth of health care, education, and government jobs. Residents rave about the top-ranked schools, and parents are excited for the new high school opening this fall. "It's absolutely beautiful," says Claudia Wu, 51, an attorney with three school-age kids who has lived in Newton for 20 years. It should be: The school cost $197 million, an amount that sparked plenty of local outrage.
If forested cityscapes are your thing, this is your kind of place. Bellevue's compact downtown bristles with new skyscrapers that seem to hover above Lake Washington -- and when the clouds part, mountain views loom. Real estate isn't a bargain, but the town's jobless rate is more than two points below that of the Seattle metro area, thanks to a recent influx of jobs from such employers as Microsoft (which has moved 6,500 positions here), T-Mobile, Verizon, and Expedia. In fact, Bellevue has more jobs than it does residents. And the population is diverse: Nearly a quarter of residents are Asian, and nearly a third are foreign born.
McKinney's employment opportunities are robust, sparing many residents a rush-hour drive of up to an hour to Dallas. Defense contractor Raytheon has a 3,700-person division here, and a mix of businesses in financial services, medical technology, and eco-friendly manufacturing are moving in.
Though McKinney has grown like mad over the past decade, you'd never suspect it when driving through its tree-filled communities surrounded by ponds, parks, and hiking trails. Residents say the town has handled the influx well, building plenty of new schools and hospitals. And the relatively low real-estate prices thrill transplants from more expensive locales: A five-bedroom house, with a pool, set on a golf course might go for $440,000, and you can find homes for a third as much.
"The top rated areas have had rapid, consistent growth in both size and quality for an extended period of time," stated William H. Fruth, President of POLICOM. POLICOM, located in Palm City, FL, specializes in analyzing local and state economies. "The rankings do not reflect the latest 'hotspot' or boom town, but the areas which have the best economic foundation," Fruth continued. "While most communities have slowed or declined during this recession, the strongest areas have been able to weather the storm." POLICOM annually ranks the 366 Metropolitan Statistical Areas and 576 Micropolitan Statistical Areas in the United States so POLICOM can study the characteristics of strong and weak economies in the country. "Economic strength is the long-term tendency for an area to consistently grow in both size and quality," stated Fruth. The study measures 23 different economic factors over a twenty-year period to create the rankings. The formulas determine how an economy has behaved over an extended period of time. Data stretching from 1989 to 2008 was used for this study. Metropolitan areas must have a city of at least 50,000 people and are typically more than one county. Micropolitan areas are smaller economies and do not have a city with a population greater than 50,000 people. They are typically one county and, according to William Fruth, their economies fluctuate much more than the larger Metropolitan areas. For the economic strength rankings for all areas, go to http://www.policom.com. The following are the 10 strongest Metropolitan and Micropolitan areas. 2010 Ten Strongest Among 366 Metropolitan Areas SOURCE POLICOM Corporation Copyright (C) 2010 PR Newswire. All rights reserved
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We live in challenging times. Unemployment remains high, and the U.S. lead in technology and science is slipping as many foreign countries gain ground. But some U.S. cities, though slowed by the Great Recession, still thrive by lifting good old American innovation to new levels. And that will help put more Americans back to work and keep our international edge.
In Kiplinger's latest search for top cities, we focused on places that specialize in out-of-the-box thinking. "New ideas generate new businesses," says Kevin Stolarick, our numbers guru, who this year evaluated U.S. cities for growth and growth potential. Stolarick is research director at the Martin Prosperity Institute, a think tank that studies economic prosperity. "In the places where innovation works, it really works," he says.
After researching and visiting our 2010 Best Cities, it became clear that the innovation factor has three elements. Mark Emmert, president of the University of Washington in Seattle, put his finger on two of them: smart people and great ideas. But we'd argue that it's the third element -- collaboration -- that really supercharges a city's economic engine. When governments, universities and business communities work together, the economic vitality is impressive.
And it's no coincidence that economic vitality and livability go hand in hand. Creativity in music, arts and culture, plus neighborhoods and recreational facilities that rank high for "coolness," attract like-minded professionals who go on to cultivate a region's business scene. All of which make our 2010 Best Cities not just great places to live but also great places to start a business or find a job.
1. Austin, Tex.Austin is arguably the the country's best crucible for small business, offering a dozen community programs that form a neural network of business brainpower to help entrepreneurs. Now overlay that net with a dozen venture-capital funds and 20 or so business associations, plus incubators, educational opportunities and networking events. Mix all these elements in what many call a classless society, where hippie communalism coexists with no-nonsense capitalism, and you've got a breeding ground for start-ups. Don't discount the fun factor: In the self-proclaimed live-music capital of the world, music and business creativity riff off one another. The city's famous South by Southwest festival, where concerts, independent film screenings and emerging technology overlap, is a prime example.
2. Seattle, Wash.Rain City? We'd say Brain City. Home to a well-educated workforce, a world-class research university, über innovators Microsoft, Amazon and Boeing, and a host of risk-taking, garage-tinkering entrepreneurs, Seattle crackles with creative energy. "We only have two products here: smart people and great ideas," says Mark Emmert, president of the University of Washington. Seattle is revising its tax, zoning and permit policies to make them more business-friendly. Meanwhile, this sophisticated Pacific Rim city has other qualities to recommend it, including great food, a glorious setting, an outdoorsy culture, and, yes, enough rain to keep the locals' complexions looking dewy.
3. Washington, D.C.Every tourist knows postcard D.C., the city that is home to the White House, the Capitol and all those free Smithsonian museums. But those who live in D.C. know better. The region is chock-full of job prospects, entertainment venues and great neighborhoods, and it is booming. Eleven of the 25 richest counties in the U.S. are located in the region, which also boasts a low unemployment rate.
4. Boulder, Colo.Boulder is a wealthy, intellectual hot spot where environmental and scientific ideas blossom into businesses. Three economic drivers power Boulder: the University of Colorado, federal research laboratories and more than 6,600 small businesses and corporations, all woven into an entrepreneurial fabric. The city is also a mecca for those seeking healthy, active lifestyles. Outdoors enthusiasts can grab a lunch-hour workout on the city's 150 miles of hiking and biking trails located throughout the 45,000 acres of open-space land surrounding the city.
5. Salt Lake City, UtahYou can't beat the cost of living and doing business in Salt Lake City. Utah has relatively low wages, taxes and operating costs. Plus, it doesn't hurt that "our offices are 15 minutes away from four ski resorts," says one local employer. The Salt Lake valley offers a variety of distinctive neighborhoods that boast walking-friendly centers. They provide a small-town feel within steps of the heart of the city. For those who crave a busier setting, downtown living is about to get a lot more popular.
6. Rochester, Minn.Rochester is built on the world-renowned Mayo Clinic's rock-solid foundation, and, in return, the community serves as great hosts and hostesses to 2.7 million visitors each year (many of them Mayo patients).
7. Des Moines, IowaThere's more to Des Moines than agricultural jobs. A likely worker shortage sparked by retiring baby-boomers has lit a fire under Des Moines's civic leaders. The city is working to lure back young Iowans and attracting global talent by developing its downtown and promoting the jobs available in the many industries that flourish there. Other big draws: low-cost housing, plus the city's long-touted reputation for family-friendliness and a "19-minute commute."
8. Burlington, Vt.Burlington's local-food movement perhaps best tells the story of how environmentalism drives much of the city's economic growth. Many shops and restaurants along Burlington's Church Street Marketplace, the famous pedestrian mall, serve up local goodies. A couple blocks over, the City Market/Onion River Co-Op, a community-owned grocery store, offers more than 1,000 Vermont products. (And atop the supermarket, generating 3% of the Co-Op's energy needs -- enough electricity to power six Burlington homes -- are 136 solar panels from groSolar, another Vermont-based company.) And the crown jewel for locavores: The Intervale Center is a nonprofit organization that has managed 350 acres of family-owned farmland in Burlington since 1988 and provides 10% of the town's food. "We're 30 years ahead of the country with the local-food movement."
9. West Hartford, Conn.Community is key in West Hartford, a place where you actually know your neighbors. But this once-sleepy suburb of Connecticut's capital is not content to be merely an idyllic place to live and raise a family (it is, by the way). West Hartford made our list because it is transforming itself from a suburb into a destination -- in this case, a regional destination for shopping and dining. Small business is the new game in town, and everyone is playing.
10. Topeka, Kan.In its reserved, midwestern way, Topeka has engineered a prosperity that most cities of similar size would envy. As the capital city of Kansas, nearly 25% of Topeka's workforce is employed by the government, providing a stable job market where unemployment has stayed around 7%. The city boasts quality schools, friendly people, good hospitals, a university and -- one of its biggest selling points -- low housing costs.
By the Editors of Kiplinger's Personal Finance Magazine
Predicting cities that will emerge as post-recession meccas for the young is easy to argue about, but impossible to forecast empirically. Whether you prefer hip, casual Austin, Texas, over the cosmopolitan allure of New York City is partly a matter of personal taste. Still, we asked six experts which 10 cities will emerge as the hottest, hippest destinations for highly mobile, educated workers in their 20s when the U.S. economy gets moving again.
Our panelists—demographers, economists, geographers and authors on urban issues—picked their cities based on the criteria they deem most important, from economic diversity to lifestyle. First Place (Tie): Seattle Former Ohio residents Lane Kuhlman, 26, and her husband, Matt Mansbach, 32, mulled several cities, including New York and Chicago, as potential destinations last summer, after Ms. Kuhlman received her master's degree specializing in interactive media. In their eyes, none could match Seattle's combination of a diverse high-tech sector, cultural life, access to rugged natural terrain and a strong university presence. Ms. Kuhlman has since taken a post as a new-product researcher for Microsoft, and Mr. Mansbach is weighing attending one of the city's grad schools in his field, computer animation. Meanwhile, Ms. Kuhlman says, "we're only 15 minutes from a beautiful waterfall, and there are amazing places to hike." Anchor to a region of corporate innovators, from Amazon.com to Starbucks, Seattle is "a high-tech and lifestyle mecca," Dr. Florida says. Mr. DeVol says the city's high-tech sector, with 226,300 workers, is just slightly smaller than Silicon Valley's. Joblessness, at 7.7%, remains relatively low. City officials see rapid growth in biotech; Seattle also has tens of thousands of jobs in music and interactive media. And it enjoys a reputation as home to a lot of brainy people. Seattle #1 Destination City -The Wall Street Journal-
"The top rated areas have had rapid, consistent growth in both size and quality for an extended period of time," stated William H. Fruth, President of POLICOM. POLICOM, located in Palm City, FL, specializes in analyzing local and state economies. "The rankings do not reflect the latest 'hotspot' or boom town, but the areas which have the best economic foundation," Fruth continued. "While most communities have slowed or declined during this recession, the strongest areas have been able to weather the storm." POLICOM annually ranks the 366 Metropolitan Statistical Areas and 576 Micropolitan Statistical Areas in the United States so POLICOM can study the characteristics of strong and weak economies in the country. "Economic strength is the long-term tendency for an area to consistently grow in both size and quality," stated Fruth. The study measures 23 different economic factors over a twenty-year period to create the rankings. The formulas determine how an economy has behaved over an extended period of time. Data stretching from 1989 to 2008 was used for this study. Metropolitan areas must have a city of at least 50,000 people and are typically more than one county. Micropolitan areas are smaller economies and do not have a city with a population greater than 50,000 people. They are typically one county and, according to William Fruth, their economies fluctuate much more than the larger Metropolitan areas. For the economic strength rankings for all areas, go to http://www.policom.com. The following are the 10 strongest Metropolitan and Micropolitan areas. 2010 Ten Strongest Among 366 Metropolitan Areas SOURCE POLICOM Corporation Copyright (C) 2010 PR Newswire. All rights reserved
“We are looking to hire world-class software engineers to continue to build the best products to support our users, developers and advertisers,” said Mike Schroepfer, vice president of engineering for Facebook, in a statement. “Seattle has distinguished itself as a city with an extremely deep technical talent pool as well as a high quality of life, which makes it the ideal place for an engineering office.” Facebook plans to open the new office in July, and it is actively seeking office space to accommodate about 30 workers. (I am sure every real estate broker in town is now on the case). It will be interesting to see if the company chooses the Eastside -- closer to its partner and investor Microsoft -- or Seattle -- home to Amazon.com and a number of smaller startups. We're planning to talk to Schroepfer later this morning about the new office and we'll update TechFlash with more information when we have it. TechCrunch reports that the new office will be led by Aru Steinberg. Even more interesting, the company is tapping former MySpace executive Hadi Partovi -- who just left the Facebook rival last month -- as an adviser. (We'll certainly be asking about non-compete issues when we talk to Schroepfer). Interestingly, MySpace has its own engineering office in Seattle, and we've heard about some other departures at that office in recent days. The news of Facebook's new office was applauded by Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn, which would lead one to believe that Facebook will likely locate their offices somewhere in the city rather than the suburbs. “I am excited about Facebook’s decision to open a small office in Seattle,” said Mayor Mike McGinn. “This move means new jobs for those in our software development community and is a strong testament to the talent in our region.”
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