Portland, Maine, Ranked 8th Best City by U.S. News & World Report
Portland Ranked Top-10 City
Congratulations are in order for our beloved Portland, Maine. It was named the 8th best place to live in the United States by US News & World Report. Maine's largest city fared well in the annual report that rates the largest 150 municipalities in the country. This is some of what US News & World Report had to say.
Artful living and farm-to-table dining are not just trends in Portland – they have been a way of life for years. A "do it yourself" spirit resonates throughout the region, so don't be surprised if a neighbor offers you extra produce from a community garden, home-brewed beer or knitting tips. All around Portland, you'll find dozens of local entrepreneurs offering homegrown or homemade products, from mittens to coffee.
The rankings are based on a methodology created by the periodical to try and best represent each municipality. Categories that are graded included quality of life, job market index, housing affordability, desirability index, and net migration.
Portland Ranks High in Quality of Life
Maine scored highest in quality of life, which is no surprise to anyone who lives here. It's clearly one of the state's best qualities (no pun intended). The second highest score came in job market, followed by value, desirability, and net migration. The entire score card can be seen here.
So, what are the eight cities that finished ahead of Portland? Well, a mix of cities that, let's be honest, shouldn't even be in the same sentence with the crown jewel of New England. Let's take a closer look.
1. Huntsville, AL - The only good thing about Alabama is Tide football, and that is over two hours away.
2. Colorado Springs - Incredible mountains and the Air Force Academy won't convince me. Looks pretty cold to me. I bet there's rattlesnakes.
3. Green Bay, WI - Imagine having to cheer for Aaron Rodgers? That should drop them at least 20 spots.
4. Boulder, CO - Incredible mountains and the University of Colorado won't convince me. Looks pretty cold to me. I bet there's grizzly bears.
5. San Jose, CA - And we think the cost of living is bad here. What could it possibly be in the Bay Area?
6. Raleigh & Durham, NC - "We are the home of Duke, we are special." Oh, yeah? So special you have to share your ranking with another town?
7. Fayetteville, AR - It's literally close to nothing.
I'm glad we sorted that out. A big congratulations for Portland being the true number 1 on this year's list. Simply great work by all.
New England Represented Well
Other New England cities represented include Boston coming in at 18th, Hartford (47), Manchester, NH (60), Worcester, MA (69), Providence, RI (105), New Haven, CT (114), and Springfield, MA (117).
The entire list can be found here. Where is your favorite town?