Based on metrics like school performance, green space, and cultural amenities, Raleigh, N.C., ranks No. 1 in Businessweek.com's first Best Cities ranking
READ MORE->The recession spared few U.S. cities, wiping out 9.4 million jobs between November 2007 and August 2009. Many will never return, and those that do you probably won't find on the East or West Coast. For the most active areas of job creation (and lower costs of doing business) you have to go to the heartland, home to 80% of the top 25 regions on our list of Best Places for Business.
READ MORE->Southern Living magazine lists Raleigh among its top 10 "Tastiest Towns in the South." The magazine's editors specifically mentioned Raleigh's "fantastic farmers markets and chefs devoted to their culinary heritage" as reasons for the Capital City's lofty placement.
READ MORE->The financial services company USAA and the veterans' membership organization Military.com has placed Raleigh on its list of the 10 best metropolitan areas for military retirees to launch new careers. Raleigh came in eighth on the list.
Newly released figures from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis revealed that some of the metro areas are beginning to distance themselves from the pack in their economic recovery from the recession, according to the Urban Land Institute magazine. Raleigh took fifth place among metropolitan areas posting the highest total economic growth. From 2007 through 2010, Raleigh posed 10.5 percent growth in its gross domestic product.
Businessweek.com dubbed Raleigh "the best American city." The publication based its rankings on 16 criteria, including the number of recreational amenities, strength of the local economy and the education level of the population. The magazine mentioned the Research Triangle Park, Duke University, North Carolina State University and UNC Chapel Hill, good air quality and a great State Farmers Market as highlights of the area.
Newsweek magazine ranks Raleigh fifth on its "Can-Do Cities" list. The rankings were the result of an evaluation of 300 American cities in the categories of sustainability, transportation and infrastructure, livability and business development.
A report from the Brookings Institution's Public Policy Research found that there are two Americas emerging on the population landscape; areas that are gaining residents under the age of 15 and those losing this demographic. The center's report found that Raleigh's percentage of residents under the age of 15 increased by 45 percent between 2000 and 2010. That is the second highest rate of increase for this demographic in the nation, trailing only Provo, Utah, at 48 percent.
A report by the Brookings Institution, "Education, Demand and Unemployment in Metropolitan America" found that U.S. employers need a more educated labor force. In response to these findings, "24/7 Wall St." evaluated the level of education among America's metropolitan regions. It found the Triangle to have the nation's fifth most educated work force.
RelocateAmerica placed Raleigh on its list of "America's Top 10 Places to Live in 2011. " Raleigh demonstrated the enthusiasm and attributes that make a community great," said Steve Nickerson, RelocateAmerica president and CEO. Raleigh was fourth on the list. It was sixth on the list in 2009.
Forbes magazine restored Raleigh to its familiar position atop its list of Best Places for Business in the nation.
Raleigh Garnered Two "Twos" in One Week as Forbes Names Raleigh One of the Next Big Boom Towns and Among the Best Cities for Young Professionals.
Raleigh is situated to be among America's 10 largest population gainers in the coming decade, according to data analysis firm ProximityOne. The firm's estimates take into account results from the 2010 U.S. Census, as well as historical birth, death, migration and economic data.
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce lauded Raleigh with its 2011 Siemens Sustainable Community award for "a range of factors including its commitment to developing a 'green economy."' Specifically cited was the City of Raleigh's work-force development program to retrain workers with the sills needed to make them more employable in the green economy. Also noted was Raleigh's leadership in creating the blueprint for infrastructure to accommodate plug-in electric vehicles. Raleigh won the award for mid-sized communities: population range 50,000 to 500,000.
Builder magazine named the Raleigh-Cary area the healthiest of the 100 largest U.S. housing markets.
Forbes.com ranked Raleigh as America's third Cleanest City. The survey explored the environmental health of the United States' 80 largest metropolitan statistical areas. Raleigh claimed the top spot nationally for water quality.
The Triangle is the nation's number two brain magnet, according to Forbes magazine. Forbes found that Raleigh-Durham rates way up there in terms of the number of college graduates gained in recent years, when compared to the region's population age 25 and older. The top brain magnet, according to Forbes, was the New Orleans area which has rapidly gained college graduates as professionals return to the city depopulated by Hurricane Katrina. Forbes said that college graduates are increasingly looking for affordable, suburban environments where they can find a job.
Newsweek placed Raleigh-Durham at the front of the line among U.S. technology hubs in a feature entitled, "Greetings from Recoveryland," which lists the 10 American cities it evaluated as best situated for economic recovery. The article reads, "The population of Raleigh-Durham grew faster than any major U.S. metropolitan area during the recession, and the city ranked third on Newsweek's list in terms of job growth over the last decade."
Public Workshop Coming Up, and This Time It's Not About High-Speed RailREAD MORE->
