Safe Places to Live

[mickeyd]

Hard to believe that El Paso was #8, espacially since it's across the Rio Grande ditch from the most deadly city in the world, Cuidad Juarez, MX.

"In today's challenging economy, citizens look to their local governments to keep their communities secure and economically strong," Robert Woudstra, Farmers CEO said in a statement. "In the 82 years since its founding, Farmers has been committed to improving the communities where its customers, agents and employees live and work."
The complete Farmers Insurance Group's Most Secure U.S. Places to Live for 2010:
Large Metro Areas (500,000 or more residents)
1. Madison, Wis.
2. Des Moines/West Des Moines, Iowa
3. Syracuse, N.Y.
4. Austin/Round Rock, Texas
5. Portland/South Portland/Biddeford, Maine
6. Rochester, N.Y.
7. Honolulu, Hawaii
8. El Paso, Texas
9. Bethesda/Gaithersburg/Frederick, Md.
10. Seattle/Bellevue/Everett, Wash.
11. Pittsburgh, Pa.
12. Minneapolis/St. Paul/Bloomington, Minn.
13. Nassau/Suffolk Counties, N.Y.
14. McAllen/Edinburg/Mission, Texas
15. Bridgeport/Stamford/Norwalk, Conn.
16. Raleigh/Cary, N.C.
17. Albany/Schenectady/Troy, N.Y.
18. Wichita, Kan.
19. Buffalo/Niagara Falls, N.Y.
20. New Haven/Milford, Conn.
Mid-Size Cities (150,000 - 500,000 residents)
1. Olympia, Wash.
2. Sioux Falls, S.D.
3. Bellingham, Wash.
4. Kennewick/Richland/Pasco, Wash.
5. Fargo, N.D./Moorhead, Minn.
6. Rochester, Minn.
7. Duluth, Minn./Superior, Wis.
8. Binghamton, N.Y.
9. Lynchburg, Va.
10. Burlington, Vt.
11. St. Cloud, Minn.
12. Green Bay, Wis.
13. Yakima, Wash.
14. Appleton, Wis.
15. Spokane, Wash.
16. Bremerton/Silverdale, Wash.
17. Boulder, Colo.
18. Cedar Rapids, Iowa
19. Fayetteville/Springdale/Rogers, Ark.
20. Las Cruces, N.M.

Small Towns (Fewer than 150,000 residents)
1. Lewiston, Idaho/≠Clarkston, Wash.
2. State College, Pa.
3. Ithaca, N.Y.
4. Bismarck, N.D.
5. Logan, Utah
6. Wenatchee, Wash.
7. Morgantown, W.Va.
8. Billings, Mont.
9. Corvallis, Ore.
10. Midland, Texas
11. Sioux City, Iowa
12. La Crosse, Wis./Winona, Minn.
13. Elmira, N.Y.
14. Rapid City, S.D.
15. Oshkosh/Neenah, Wis.
16. Eau Claire, Wis.
17. Mount Vernon/Anacortes, Wash.
18. Fond du Lac, Wis.
19. Blacksburg/Christiansburg/Radford, Va.
20. Grand Forks, N.D./Crookston, Minn.

Ranking the 60 Safest Places to Live

 

[Nodak]

I see my target city is number 4 on the small towns list although in ND it is considered a large city.

 

[W2R]

The rankings took into consideration crime statistics, extreme weather, risk of natural disasters, housing depreciation, foreclosures, air quality, terrorist threats, environmental hazards, life expectancy and job loss numbers in 379 U.S. municipalities.

OK...... I'm not sure what this quantity really means to me, or what weighting was used, or why. Maybe it corresponds to dollars spent by insurance companies in settling claims, per household per year.

 

[ziggy29]

Hard to believe that El Paso was #8, espacially since it's across the Rio Grande ditch from the most deadly city in the world, Cuidad Juarez, MX.

It reminds me of the claims that living very near to a maximum security prison is actually quite safe, because those convicts who escape it tend to want to get far away from it, not stay "in town".

And the "small towns" in this list seem to be significantly overrepresented by college towns. Interesting.

 

[Gumby]

I live in one of the top 20 large metro areas. Especially if you don't live in the large inner city, it is indeed a very safe place.

 

[harley]

I went to college in the #19 small town areas. It may be safer now, but I barely got out alive.

 

[haha]

I went to college in the #19 small town areas. It may be safer now, but I barely got out alive.

They didn't measure death by drowning in the punchbowl, or being struck by falling beer kegs.

Ha

 

[haha]

I live in one of the top 20 large metro areas. Especially if you don't live in the large inner city, it is indeed a very safe place.

I attended university in that same place, and if you are in the inner city, it was, and I am told is, far from "safe".

Ha

 

[Gumby]

I attended the same school, and you are quite right, especially north of the Payne Whitney Gymnasium.

And given the presence of said city on this list,
http://gawker.com/5695776/the-25-most-dangerous-cities-in-the-us-are-mostly-nice-places
the suburbs where I live are really and truly safe.

 

[haha]

I attended the same school, and you are quite right, especially north of the Payne Whitney Gymnasium.

And given the presence of said city on this list,
The 25 Most Dangerous Cities in the U.S. Are Mostly Nice Places
the suburbs where I live are really and truly safe.

I did a volunteer gig out of Dwight Hall up there. Junior high age guys. I liked them a lot, but it was a rough place. I grew up in a gritty city, so I was experienced.

I think your suburb/city comparison is true in many places, though in some places the closer suburbs are falling apart too, and they often don't have the kind of police experience to deal with the changed circumstances.

Ha

 

[Mmm Rrr]

I'm struck by the fact that 6 of the 20 mid-sized cities are in Washington... I live in one of them, and it feels safe. DD would say boring.