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The person who mentioned the 62nd ranking was referencing a resource who rated it that way - they weren't making the 62nd ranking up. I used to lived in Omaha - still own property there, still have friends and family there, still visit frequently, so I do look at the Omaha and Nebraska threads here. What I have noticed is that people will gladly pick up on the "Kiplinger's rated Omaha 3rd" and take that as the avowed truth, but when they see other stats or rankings from other publications that do not reflect so favorably, then they disagree with them. Each publication has its own criteria, so I doubt any of us would agree wholeheartedly with every magazine, group, etc. who ranks cities. If we did, then every publication would probably have the exact same ranking of cities, and what fun would that be?
I understand, but do you honestly think Omaha should be ranked 62nd? That used as the sole justification for ignoring our city for consideration? I don't think in needs to be ranked first, and third is often a suprise, but it just seems like the publication was using old information to make that decision. If Omaha was in the top thrity you'd not be hearing from me, top fourty I'd be groaning to myself, top fifty i'd pipe up, top sixty and I'd have a problem, but top seventy? I'm going off the deep end.
You've been there recently, and I trust you find it an enjoyable location. Maybe not a NEED TO GO THERE AS SOON AS POSSIBLE, but definately not a place to avoid if you don't need to.
to me 62nd says "avoid at all costs!" and that definately doesn't describe Omaha in terms of livablility.
That is another thing I feel is being ignored. We aren't looking at what is the best city to visit on vacation, or has the most skyscrapers, we're looking for where the best place to center your life is, make your home, and for people who are fresh out of college, obviously Texas is your place to be, for Young Adults, anywhere that doesn't give off a "dead city" vibe is probably best, for Families, a Large not MEGA city in the midwest like Omaha or Des Moines or Kansas City would probably fit you well. A MEGA city fits those who are wealthy enough to survive cost of living, or who need the urban reminder on a daily basis. Population varies from person to person, and is what I feel is too important on these boards when considering livability.
I'm trying not to hijack threads, so I apologize if that is how it appears here, but I had an argument to make. Thank you all for your patience.
I understand, but do you honestly think Omaha should be ranked 62nd? That used as the sole justification for ignoring our city for consideration? I don't think in needs to be ranked first, and third is often a suprise, but it just seems like the publication was using old information to make that decision. If Omaha was in the top thrity you'd not be hearing from me, top fourty I'd be groaning to myself, top fifty i'd pipe up, top sixty and I'd have a problem, but top seventy? I'm going off the deep end.
You've been there recently, and I trust you find it an enjoyable location. Maybe not a NEED TO GO THERE AS SOON AS POSSIBLE, but definately not a place to avoid if you don't need to.
to me 62nd says "avoid at all costs!" and that definately doesn't describe Omaha in terms of livablility.
That is another thing I feel is being ignored. We aren't looking at what is the best city to visit on vacation, or has the most skyscrapers, we're looking for where the best place to center your life is, make your home, and for people who are fresh out of college, obviously Texas is your place to be, for Young Adults, anywhere that doesn't give off a "dead city" vibe is probably best, for Families, a Large not MEGA city in the midwest like Omaha or Des Moines or Kansas City would probably fit you well. A MEGA city fits those who are wealthy enough to survive cost of living, or who need the urban reminder on a daily basis. Population varies from person to person, and is what I feel is too important on these boards when considering livability.
I'm trying not to hijack threads, so I apologize if that is how it appears here, but I had an argument to make. Thank you all for your patience.
There are 567 metropolitan areas in the country. Being ranked 62nd isn't that bad. Omaha's MSA is the 61st largest and isn't even in the top 100 in population growth. So if some publication says it's the 62nd best metropolitan area in the country, so what? That means there are over 500 metropolitan areas ranked worse than Omaha.
There are 567 metropolitan areas in the country. Being ranked 62nd isn't that bad. Omaha's MSA is the 61st largest and isn't even in the top 100 in population growth. So if some publication says it's the 62nd best metropolitan area in the country, so what? That means there are over 500 metropolitan areas ranked worse than Omaha.
I appreciate the caring tone. While I still disagree with the ranking, I can see I've got my point out there, so I will cease and desist all this Omaha talk.
I went with Houston out of the available options. From not only the ranks it recieves, but also testimony of people who live there I've met. It sounds like a very nice place to live. Only critisism I've ever heard is that the coast there is ugly. Anyone from the area who can confirm or deny?
You have no clue. The Omaha metro is nearly twice the size of Des Moines. Omaha is consistently ranked as a top metro area to live and just recently listed as the 3rd best city (can't recall the publication...it may have been Yahoo) to live in terms of career and living. One of its suburbs (Papillion) is consistently ranked in the top 10 cities to live.
Who cares if Omaha has no pro sports team. Neither do Des Moines, Wichita, Topeka, Little Rock, or Oklahoma City (not at the moment). Since when is the defining characteristic of a city?? Have you ever been to Omaha? Name one thing those cities have that Omaha doesn't? If you'd actually pay attention you'd realize Omaha is a boom town and its economy is humming along quite nicely. The Omaha of today is not the Omaha of the '80s. Omaha is much more similar to a Kansas City than a Des Moines, Topeka, or Wichita.
Please. Your "expertise" in the matter is laughable and your indictment of other people is equally absurd. How are people oppressing your opinion...because they disagree with your opinion concerning Omaha?
You get all huffy when someone dares disagree with your negative opinion of Omaha, but are willing to give them the same respect that you demand from them. Yes, everyone has an opinion...and their opinion is simply that your opinion is wrong. Well, my opinion is that they're correct. Sorry, if I'm "oppressing" you.
Hello everyone! I have enjoyed reading these posts as a visitor, and find the thoughts of others and their respective cities to be not only interesting, but very informative. Let me tell you a little about the city that I now call home, but first, I will tell you how my family came to call the Greater Phoenix area home. My wife and I are orginally from the west coast, and were born and raised there. Up until the point of moving to Arizona I lived almost my entire life in and around beautiful Pasadena, California. Likewise, my wife spent much of here life in Southern California, but lived and went to school in LA proper. Although it seems that most people on city-data.com seem to have a slight disdain for Southern, California, our families are proud to call the area home, and feel very blessed that we were able to grow up in two such amazing cities. But as each of us finished school and started our family, which now consists of two VERY active boys, we realized just how economically stratified the LA metro area had really become. Although we were living, working, and sending our children to Pasadena schools, because of Pasadena's close proximity to LA, it is very hard for the smaller cities not to follow what the larger one does, and in this case, owning a home, at least for us at the time, was nearly impossible. Although we were living comfortably, and everything was for the most part stable, we really were looking for something different, and away from the activity of the city. My wife also wanted to be a stay at home mom, like she was before our kids were in all day school. This change that we wanted came in the form of a job offer in Detroit. Because of the nature of the work, my prospective employer wanted mine, and the other families that would be hiring on at the same time, to live in the city. The offer was great, and even though a lifetime of living in S. Cali had corrupted us into viewing the midwest in a certain negative view, we were actaully very excited about it. The bad part was, that excitement quickly faded almost as soon as it had begun. I offer not offense to the people that love and call Detroit home, but everything about the city was not what we were looking for and left feeling not only naive and foolish, but very let down. I think half of the problem too was that in regards to the weather. The first few interviews, and 'house hunting' ventures were in January, and once you live 30+ in near perfection, it is hard to have anything else. About this same time, both my parents, and my wive's father moved to Phoenix, and some very good friends of ours bought a second home in the area as well. At the time we honestly didn't think too much about it, and although we enjoyed visiting them, we never really thought that Phoenix was for us. Two years passed and we were finally ready to buy our first home. This time though, the company that I work for opened a division in Phoenix. Although we weren't very excited about it, we couldn't pass it up this time. We took the opportunity before we even had a house! The first area we looked into was in Phoenix, and we really did like it for the most part. Not only was it in a very safe area, but it seemed to have similar touches that reminded us of home. The second was all the way out in Mesa, which was in a nice community too, but the best part was, there was kids everywhere, which was soomething that we really wanted. But the third house we looked into was in Scottsdale, and although on the pricey side, we fell in love with it first thing. I can honestly tell you that if you are looking for one of those kinds of cities, Scottsdale is it through and through. First off, the schools here are amazing! They took our kids from only going to school for sports, to going to school because they like it! Not only that, but every teacher that we have ever had is very involved with us, and sends out emails and other notifications throughout the week to let us know of everything. It is fantastic! The second thing that blew us away was how clean the city was! For a city of almost a quarter of a million people, there are few areas that one could call dangerous or unsightly. Not to mention that crime for a city of this size is very low, and shows no sign of ever being high. We also love the weather. Although it is hot now, the rest of the year is wonderful, and there tends to be a very outdoor minded population throughout the whole valley. Of course my wife adores the upscale shopping that can be found here, and loves that everything in terms of both local art and decor, can be found right next to national vendors on every level. Again, for a city of this size, that is really nice. Plus, the golf for me is nothing short of first class. All around Scottsdale is just simply put, a very well organized, and well managed city that is only getting better as it ages. The only problem that we have found is that living here does tend to be expensive at first. But since the jobs here are so plentiful I have switched positions twice, and am now able to provide for my family better, all the while giving them a great city to live in. Sure, we aren't a super urban enviroment like others that have been mentioned before. But for our size, and for our caliber, I think Scottsdale has done very well for itself, and is without a doubt one of the best cities to get a return out of in the nation. Well done Scottsdale!!
Last edited by arizona sunset; 07-01-2008 at 10:18 PM..
Reason: typo
You have no clue. The Omaha metro is nearly twice the size of Des Moines. Omaha is consistently ranked as a top metro area to live and just recently listed as the 3rd best city (can't recall the publication...it may have been Yahoo) to live in terms of career and living. One of its suburbs (Papillion) is consistently ranked in the top 10 cities to live.
Who cares if Omaha has no pro sports team. Neither do Des Moines, Wichita, Topeka, Little Rock, or Oklahoma City (not at the moment). Since when is the defining characteristic of a city?? Have you ever been to Omaha? Name one thing those cities have that Omaha doesn't? If you'd actually pay attention you'd realize Omaha is a boom town and its economy is humming along quite nicely. The Omaha of today is not the Omaha of the '80s. Omaha is much more similar to a Kansas City than a Des Moines, Topeka, or Wichita.
Please. Your "expertise" in the matter is laughable and your indictment of other people is equally absurd. How are people oppressing your opinion...because they disagree with your opinion concerning Omaha?
You get all huffy when someone dares disagree with your negative opinion of Omaha, but are willing to give them the same respect that you demand from them. Yes, everyone has an opinion...and their opinion is simply that your opinion is wrong. Well, my opinion is that they're correct. Sorry, if I'm "oppressing" you.
OH NO!!! not another poster from Omaha, did Go Ne round up some people from the Omaha threads.
and you mentioned Omaha is a boom town, wow my city isnt even a boom town and we're growing almost twice as fast as your city is, plus our whole metro area is growing fast also.
Last edited by desert sun; 07-02-2008 at 12:37 AM..
I voted for Boston... I live about 2.5 hrs from Boston and go there as often as I can. It's historical yet contemporary and I love the people/food/culture. Hopefully I can get a job there after college.
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. From not only the ranks it recieves, but also testimony of people who live there I've met. It sounds like a very nice place to live. Only critisism I've ever heard is that the coast there is ugly. Anyone from the area who can confirm or deny? 
