MONEY
MAGAZINE
Sarasota
wins title 'best little city' in U.S.
posted
11/13/00
By
Margaret Ann Miille
STAFF
WRITER from NEWSCOAST
Money magazine has named Sarasota
the best little city in the nation.
In
its December issue of best places to live, the monthly publication touts Sarasota
for more than its sun-drenched beaches and balmy weather.
Money
noted the city has its own symphony, ballet and opera companies, is home to the
Ringling Museum of Art and is within an hour of Tampa Bay and its Buccaneers professional
football team.
Though
the article never mentions Manatee County, it is clear from the statistics cited
by Money writers that Sarasota's northern neighbor is included.
The
quoted numbers, such as a population of 530,900, describe the Sarasota-Bradenton
Metropolitan Statistical Area -- statistician jargon for the area that includes
population centers surrounding Bradenton and Sarasota.
Regardless
of what the statistics describe, economic developers in Sarasota plan to make
the most of the designation, which reaches a large national audience.
Kathy
Baylis, vice president of the Sarasota County Committee for Economic Development,
said making the Money list will help the city overcome its reputation as a destination
solely for retirees and tourists.
"This
is just another thing to help us build an image outside the community," she said.
Baylis also expects employers
recruiting in a tight labor market to use it as a marketing tool.
Money
writers described the lifestyle in the Sarasota area, where the median home price
is $126,000, as affordable. The magazine mentioned that the area's job growth
last year reached 5 percent and is projected to increase by 30.5 percent during
the next decade.
In
focus groups led by economic development experts in Sarasota and Manatee counties,
technologists said they chose to move to the area because it was an ideal place
to raise families.
"They
are looking for smaller, quaint, and not so crowded places," Baylis said.
A diversification of business
sectors beyond retail and services is also attracting younger workers and creating
higher-paying jobs, she added.
Alan
Mirabella, assistant managing editor at Money, said Sarasota won its designation
by topping about 24 other cities with populations less than 250,000.
Criteria
included job growth, quality of life, education, economy and home Rates.
"This year we focused on cities
that are managing their growth very well," he said. "We looked at cities that
are not yet overcrowded, that are not spoiled by things like gridlock. We talked
to dozens of people in each of the cities, and we got the sense that people who
live in Sarasota really like it."
Mirabella
acknowledged that the Money rankings can be controversial, recalling the ire raised
last year when New York and San Francisco were named the best places to live.
Others have quibbled with
the magazine's methodologies, which it has admitted are not necessarily meant
to be a scientific or statistical approach.
This
year, the No. 1 choice among 300 of the country's largest metropolitan areas is
Portland, Ore.
Regional
winners are Providence, R.I., in the Northeast; Chicago, in the Midwest; Raleigh/Durham/Chapel
Hill, in the South; and Salt Lake City, in the West.
Other
rankings include lowest violent crime rates, highest home Rates, and most single
people -- a list on which Gainesville was named No. 2.
Besides
the national and regional winners, the magazine named seven other five-star cities:
Austin, Texas; Bloomington, Ind.; New York City; Phoenix; Rochester, Minn.; San
Diego, and San Francisco.
