Livability.com has just released its second-annual Top 100 Best Places to Live list. This edition features a new city atop the list, which is the culmination of months of exclusive research into what factors most influence the livability of America’s small to mid-sized cities. More than 30 states are represented, from coast to coast, and Grand Rapids made the list, coming in at number 96!

Livability.com editors have broad experience studying and writing about the factors that make a city a great place to live and work. But they wanted other perspectives as well. So they once again partnered with the research team at the Martin Prosperity Institute. The Institute, directed by Richard Florida, is part of the Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto and is the leading think-tank on the role of location, place and city-regions in global economic prosperity.

More than 2,000 cities were evaluated in this landmark study. They analyzed more than 40 data points that were then grouped into eight categories – economics, housing, amenities, infrastructure, demographics, social and civic capital, education and health care.  Every city with a population between 20,000 and 350,000 was considered. Sources included the best public and private data available from organizations like the U.S. Census Bureau, Walk Score, GreatSchools.com and Esri.

Experience Grand Rapids
Experience Grand Rapids
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Here is what Livability.com had to say about us:
"Nicknamed Furniture City, Grand Rapids still houses five of the largest office furniture companies in the world, and the city's economy features prominent sectors in aviation, IT, automotive and health care. It was named one of Livability's Top 10 Cities for Affordable Health Care in 2014. Spectrum Health is the largest employer with 17,000 staffers, and Grand Rapids has many colleges along with an award-winning microbrewery industry.
Facts about Grand Rapids."

Population:
189,340
Med. Household Income:
$39,070
Med. Home Price:
$113,900

The cities at the top of the list were often home to a major institution like a university, hospital or state capital, where Institutions like that help these smaller cities compete in terms of sports, culture, jobs and entertainment

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