Best Places to Live

Money Magazine's Best Places to Live for 2007 was a surprise to me. While I know that large cities have their challenges, they are exciting and vibrant places nonetheless. Why then were no cities that we would consider as mid-size or large on the list? Among the top ten were very small places with Middleton, Wisconsin (pop. 17,500) as number one. No doubt that Middleton is a wonderful place to live. People commute to Madison for interesting, well-paying jobs; they have a high-tech presence right in the community; and it is very family-oriented. What's not to like? What bothers me about lists like these is that big cities are penalized for being what they are: an amalgam of all socio-economic groups and the challenges and responsibilities that go with that. Their public schools are too often at risk, their streets not quite as safe, and their traffic heavy. But they also are the hubs for healthcare, financial institutions, government services, and big-time arts and sports. In other words, we couldn't do without them. Big cities make it possible for smaller cities to be on the top ten list often times. While I don't agree with the methodology of the "Cities Rated" book altogether, I think that it gets closer to a more accurate picture of American cities with its differentiation in size. Even in these rankings there are favorites that continue to do well.

However, this discussion does not excuse the problems faced by big cities but rather argues that lists like these should be a wake-up call for all of us who value cities. We need to advocate even harder for our largest cities to be places where people want to live and bring up their children. Guess what? That is when some of the challenges will become solutions.