Are we 'best'? Not in this ranking.Byline: Mark Baker The Register-Guard CORRECTION (ran June 9, 2007): An article on Page C1 in Friday's Register-Guard incorrectly described the air quality factors that hurt Eugene-Springfield's ranking in the latest edition of Cities Ranked & Rated. The health and health care category of the book includes an air quality score for metro areas that is "a complex composite measure of several air pollutants, including particulates, ozone, volatile organic compounds volatile organic compound Environment Any toxic cabon-based (organic) substance that easily become vapors or gases–eg, solvents–paint thinners, lacquer thinner, degreasers, dry cleaning fluids , and various combustion byproducts." It does not specify grass seed field burning as contributing to Eugene-Springfield's score. What do Corvallis, Portland-Beaverton, Medford and Bend all have in common? They're all ranked ahead of Eugene-Springfield in the second edition of "Cities Ranked & Rated." This latest "Best Places" list compiled by Portland's Bert Sperling and Peter Sander of Granite Bay, Calif., is a compendium that ranks 373 U.S. metropolitan areas on everything from the economy to crime to arts and culture. Our neck of the woods is a perennial favorite among such national "best-places-to-live" lists, but now we rank fifth in our own state? Blame our drop to 68th from 21st, when these rankings first came out in 2004, on field burning and the fact that Sacred Heart Medical Center Sacred Heart Medical Center may refer to: In the United States:
Out of the 10 categories examined - economy and jobs, cost of living, climate, education, health and health care, crime, transportation, leisure, arts and culture, and quality of life - where did we score the lowest? Health and health care, that's where. We got a measly measly said of beef, pork and mutton because infected meat has a speckled appearance thought to resemble measles (1) in humans. See also cysticercus. 7.5 out of 100. We have fewer physicians per capita [Latin, By the heads or polls.] A term used in the Descent and Distribution of the estate of one who dies without a will. It means to share and share alike according to the number of individuals. (218.1) than the national average (244.2); fewer hospital beds per capita (203.4 vs. 420); no teaching hospitals when the national average is three; and our costs per doctor ($105 vs. $77) and dental ($79 vs. $70) visits are more than the national average. Toss in an air quality score of 15 when the national average is 37, and we ranked 345 out of 373 in the health and health care category. Ouch. Take that to the emergency room, Eugene-Spring- field. Our overall score was 73.7 out of 100. We scored highest in the quality-of-life category (83 out of 100), a subjective composite of "physical attractiveness Physical attractiveness is the perception of the physical traits of an individual human person as pleasing or beautiful. It can include various implications, such as sexual attractiveness, cuteness, and physique. ," "heritage" and "overall ease of living." Our second-lowest score came in the "economy & jobs" category (39), and the rest of our scores were as follows: cost of living (51), climate (65), education (68), crime (65), transportation (70), leisure (67) and "arts & culture" (49). The Portland area scored highest on quality of life (96) and also scored low (22) on health and health care despite a No. 3 national ranking and overall score of 95. Corvallis ranked 14th with an 87.3 overall score - after landing at No. 10 on Sperling's 2005 "Best Places to Live" list - and scored highest on education (96) and lowest on arts and culture (28). Medford is ranked 34th with an 82.3 overall score. Medford? Ranked twice as high as us? "Well, I think that includes Ashland, and that's a very appealing spot," Sperling says by telephone. Compared with Eugene-Springfield, the Medford area has a better economy, a better cost of living, more affordable health care and less crime, according to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. the rankings. However, Medford scored a 56 on quality of life to our 83. So even though the quality of life is much better here, Medford's a better place to live? Must be some of that new math new math n. Mathematics taught in elementary and secondary schools that constructs mathematical relationships from set theory. Also called new mathematics. . About 50 criteria per category were analyzed to come up with the numbers, Sperling says. Data was analyzed from many sources, including the U.S. Census Bureau Noun 1. Census Bureau - the bureau of the Commerce Department responsible for taking the census; provides demographic information and analyses about the population of the United States Bureau of the Census , the Bureau of Labor Statistics Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) A research agency of the U.S. Department of Labor; it compiles statistics on hours of work, average hourly earnings, employment and unemployment, consumer prices and many other variables. , the National Climatic Data Center, the Department of Education, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), agency of the U.S. Public Health Service since 1973, with headquarters in Atlanta; it was established in 1946 as the Communicable Disease Center. and Claritas, a private market data services provider. Gainesville, Fla., of all places, topped the list with a perfect overall score of 100, hitting the highest marks for education, quality of life and climate. Oddly enough, under Gainesville's detailed entry, "summer heat" and a "violent crime rate" are listed as "cons" to living there. The worst place to live in the United States United States, officially United States of America, republic (2005 est. pop. 295,734,000), 3,539,227 sq mi (9,166,598 sq km), North America. The United States is the world's third largest country in population and the fourth largest country in area. , according to the rankings, is Modesto, Calif., which hit rock bottom with an overall score of a big fat zero. The hometown of Star Wars creator George Lucas Noun 1. George Lucas - United States screenwriter and filmmaker (born in 1944) Lucas , and the inspiration for his 1973 film "American Graffiti," has high crime and unemployment and "low educational attainment Educational attainment is a term commonly used by statisticans to refer to the highest degree of education an individual has completed.[1] The US Census Bureau Glossary defines educational attainment as "the highest level of education completed in terms of the ," according to the rankings. These "strong negatives combined with the high costs create little appeal for prospective residents," says Modesto's entry, even if www.visitmodesto.com says it's the city of "Water, Wealth, Contentment, Health." Eugene-Springfield's entry says we've got recent unemployment, wet winters and a high property-crime rate going against us, and a "college-town" feel, nearby mountains and an attractive downtown on the "pro" side. Attractive downtown? "By Oregon standards, it might not be a great downtown like Portland, but compared to a lot of places that you wouldn't feel safe driving through, it's pretty nice," Sperling says. His final analysis of Eugene-Springfield? "I think it's on the verge On the Verge (or The Geography of Yearning) is a play written by Eric Overmyer. It makes extensive use of esoteric language and pop culture references from the late nineteenth century to 1955. of being discovered." Medford, here we come. THE RANKINGS The top 10 U.S. metro areas, and others of note, according to "Cities Ranked & Rated" (go to www.bestplaces.net). 1: Gainesville, Fla. 2: Bellingham, Wash. 3: Portland-Beaverton- Vancouver, Wash. 4: Colorado Springs, Colo. 5: Ann Arbor, Mich. 6: Ogden-Clearfield, Utah 7: Asheville, N.C. 8: Fort Collins-Loveland, Colo. 9: San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles Robles is a common surname in the Spanish language meaning oaks, and may refer to:
10: Boise-Nampa, Idaho 14: Corvallis 34: Medford 37: Spokane 56: Bend 68: Eugene-Springfield 69: Lewiston, Idaho 73: San Francisco-San Mateo-Redwood City, Calif. 82: Salem 93: Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale, Calif. 129: Seattle-Bellevue-Everett, Wash. 251: New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of City-White Plains, N.Y. 272: Tacoma 277: Yakima, Wash. 373: Modesto, Calif. |
|
||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion