Why does Fresno rank so low on U.S. News’ annual report of best places to live?
Fresno was No. 141 among the nation’s best places to live in 2022 in rankings released Tuesday by U.S. News & World Report.
The yearly comparison of the nation’s largest 150 urban centers put Huntsville, Ala., at the top of its list, followed by Colorado Springs and Green Bay.
San Jose (No. 5 overall), San Francisco (No. 10) and San Diego (No. 107) were tops in California. Fresno ranked No. 8 in the state.
The U.S. News report said it bases its rankings on “quality of life” and “value” to determine an overall score.
In placing Fresno nine spots from the bottom, the report gave the city a score of 5.4 out of 10 overall, 6.2 in terms of quality of life and 4.3 in value.
Determining factors used by U.S. News include statistics from the U.S. Census Bureau, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Department of Labor, along with the website’s own “internal resources.”
On the positive side, U.S. News said the city is surrounded by farms that produce organic produce, with a “diverse job market,” but also reported the city is the 17th-most dangerous in the nation. It noted both violent and property crime are higher than the national average.
The city’s Tower District and it’s annual Rogue Festival were cited as cultural assets to the region.
Major employers listed in the report included Community Regional Medical Center, Fresno State and Aetna.
Fresno came in at No. 145 in terms of best places to retire. Housing costs, a hot topic in 2022 at the Fresno City Council, were reported to be an average of $430,212, well over the national average of $365,000.
No mention, however, was made of air quality in the city although Fresno’s air is frequently ranked among the worst in U.S. cities.
Other California cities ranking above Fresno in the report were Sacramento, Santa Barbara, Los Angeles and Santa Rosa.
However, Fresno topped Modesto, Bakersfield, Visalia and Stockton in the Central Valley, and also came out above Vallejo and Salinas.
The remaining top 10 in the national rankings were Boulder, Colo.; San Jose; Raleigh, N.C.; Fayetteville, N.C.; Portland, Maine; Sarasota, Fla.; and San Francisco.
