Wenatchee---#4 Safe and Secure Small City in US (Seattle, Spokane: foreclosures, insurance)

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[SIZE=3] Article published Dec 12, 2008
[/SIZE] [SIZE=3] [SIZE=5]Wenatchee: Fourth-safest small city in nation[/SIZE]
By Michelle McNiel
World staff writer
WENATCHEE — Wenatchee has been named the fourth most safe and secure small city for raising a family.
Farmer’s Insurance on Thursday released its fifth annual Most Secure U.S. Places to Live list.
Several Northwest cities ranked high in the survey, and the insurance company stated people seeking to live, work and raise families in a safe place should consider moving to the region.
The ranking is based on a range of data including crime statistics, extreme weather, risk of natural disasters, housing depreciation, foreclosures, air quality, life expectancy and job loss numbers in 2007.
Last year Wenatchee was 11th in the same survey. It was the first time Wenatchee appeared in the ranking, said Jerry Davies, a spokesman for Farmers Insurance.
In all, 379 metropolitan areas across the country were examined for the survey. They were divided into large, mid-sized and small cities.
The Puget Sound metropolitan areas, including Seattle, Bellevue and Everett, were ranked the top large metro area in the country for safety. A high job growth rate and long life expectancy, along with minimal housing depreciation and lack of extreme weather, contributed to the area’s top rating in the study.
Olympia was named the best mid-sized city for the second year in a row. Fifteen cities in Washington, Oregon and Idaho made the top 20 between the three categories.
— Michelle McNiel, world staff

[/SIZE]How we compare Farmers Insurance ranking of the most secure U.S. places to live among cities with fewer than 150,000 residents:
1. Corvallis, Ore.
2. Bismarck, N.D.
3. Logan, Utah
4. Wenatchee
5. State College, Pa.
6. Lewiston, Idaho
7. Morgantown, W.Va.
8. Harrisonburg, Va.
9. Billings, Mont.
10. Santa Fe, N.M.
11. Wheeling, W.Va.
12. Grand Junction, Colo.
13. Lebanon, Pa.
14. Grand Forks, N.D.
15. Casper, Wyo.
16. Wausau, Wis.
17. Mount Vernon-Anacortes
18. Farmington, N.M.
19. Midland, Tex.
20. Great Falls, Mont.

How large and mid-sized Northwest cities ranked:

Large Metro Areas (500,000 or more residents)
1. Seattle-Bellevue-Everett
2. Portland-Beaverton, Ore./Vancouver
5. Tacoma
14. Boise City-Nampa, Idaho

Mid-Size Cities (150,000 - 500,000 residents)
1. Olympia, Wash.
3. Salem, Ore.
4. Bremerton-Silverdale
5. Bellingham
12. Kennewick-Richland-Pasco
16. Eugene-Springfield, Ore.
19. Spokane
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[Sandy Nelson]

I'm really surprised about Tacoma making the list, and I'm pleased about Olympia repeatedly being named safest mid-sized city.