Manhattan Loft Guy

Jul. 17, 2006 - Popularity contests / NYC just cracks list of best “big” cities [caution: parochial rant]

It has been a few years since I paid attention to the annual college rankings in US News & World Report, but I remember the head-scratching that the ranking process engendered. CNNMoney.com brought those memories back with its rankings of the 100 best places to live and the 10 best “big” cities.

The methodology is transparent to the extent that they cite the statistical categories that they rely on to make these rankings (including things such as median household income, median home price, crime stats, and air quality), but these rankings are always a bit surreal.

A national shortage of big cities?

I will not dwell on the minutiae any longer, as the strangest things that struck me about the 10 Best Big Cities is … how small they are. Six of the top ten have populations between three and four hundred thousand, two others are under 750,000. Then there’s San Diego at 1,255,500.

New York City squeaks in to the rankings at #10, right behind Wichita. What kind of list of BIG cities is that??

I guess they like their big cities small out there in America....

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Jul. 25, 2006 - re: Popularity contests / NYC just cracks list of best “big” cities [caution: parochial rant]

Posted by Bonnie Erickson

You were more gracious in your opinion of this list than I was. http://bonnieerickson.realtownblogs.com/personal-anecdotes/best-cities/ Eden Prairie, Minnesota, made the top ten and it's just a so-so suburb of Minneapolis and St. Paul. Minnetonka, Wayzata, Excelsior all have the lake and a central shopping downtown, a place to gather. Eden Prairie? It has a debilitated mall and lots of town houses. Who cares how much your neighbor makes or what level of education they have. Are they NICE people? Is there something to do in town? Frankly, I'd take the Big Apple over Eden Prairie anyday (As long as their garbage haulers keep working.)! I don't get the list. I just don't get it!

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Jul. 27, 2006 - re: Popularity contests / NYC just cracks list of best “big” cities [caution: parochial rant]

Posted by Sandy Mattingly

I guess I was too subtle Bonnie, as I did not intend to be gracious about it. (I used to hate those US News college rankings).

I commented at all because the Best Cities list got a lot of press, and the press typically treats this stuff as fact-based because there are formulae involved. But the measurements get … peculiar. As you pointed out by comparing Eden Prairie to other cool places in Minnesota, and as I implied in complaining about Wichita making the ‘big city’ list at #9, and New York as #10.

Why does this stuff get quoted at all???

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