Gainesville- #1

There is a new book that ranks 400 metropolitan areas in the U.S. & Canada. From the Gainesville Sun:

Sander and Sperling's ranking is based on a mixture of hard statistics, personal observations and "bonuses" designed to reward or punish cities for particular achievements or problems.
Cities are rated based on statistics in nine categories: economy; cost of living; climate; education; health; crime; transportation; leisure; and arts and culture.These are then modified by a subjective score gleaned from the way people feel about the city and other less tangible factors. Gainesville scored an 87 on this "quality of life" rating.

Their final summation placed Gainesville as the #1 city. It's not the first for our little town:

Gainesville is no stranger to "best of" lists. The last time it ranked No. 1 on such a prominent list, however, was in 1995 when Money Magazine declared the city to be the "Best Place to Live in America," an honor the city still touts.
More recently, the city has ranked eighth among the "Top Ten Value Towns for Those Considering Retirement in 2007," was No. 11 on an AARP list of "Best Places to Reinvent Your Life," and was ranked the "Most Technologically Advanced City" in Florida by Popular Science magazine.
And last month, Gainesville ranked 12th on a list in Forbes Magazine of the best places to do business and have a career.

I didn't move back here because of Gainesville's rankings in these mostly subjective lists, but it is nice to see. It's not too late to move here!