Do You Live in a Cruddy City for Children?

by Michele Cheplic | More from this Blogger

23 Jun 2011 10:55 PM

What makes a city ideal for raising kids?

If you are the editors of Parenting magazine, then you base your decision on great schools, affordable living, low crime rates, decent air quality, an abundance of pediatricians, ample job opportunities, kid-friendly restaurants and outstanding green spaces. Oh, and free museums.

The popular periodical culled more than 8,000 bits of info and placed them into 84 categories to come up with its 2011 list of best cities to raise children. The annual list features 100 of the most family-friendly cities in the United States. Only this year your hometown may not have made the Top 10, even if it did last year. That's because the folks at Parenting decided to add a new category for 2011: "Charm and Culture Index." Basically, cities got bonus awesome points if they housed outstanding cultural attractions or other charming features, such as free kids' day at the zoo.

The introduction of the new category caused a massive shuffle from last year's list. For example, in 2010, Arlington, Virginia, was rated as the best of the best when it came to places to raise healthy, happy kids. This year it fell to No. 70.

So, where does your city sit on the new list? Well, here are the places you don't want to be raising your kids, according to Parenting magazine: Coming in dead last is Anaheim, California. Interestingly, the home of the "Happiest Place on Earth" is fine to visit, but you sure as heck don't want to be living there with kids.

Rounding out the bottom 10:

90. Detroit, Michigan

91. Scottsdale, Arizona

92. Los Angeles, California

93. Arlington, Texas

94. Mesa, Arizona

95. Las Vegas, Nevada

96. Fresno, California

97. Long Beach, California

98. Bakersfield, California

99. Riverside, California

Apparently, America's southwest region is not great for raising kids.

Meanwhile, if you are parenting in the following metropolises, then you can breathe a sigh of relief. The Top 10 best cities to raise children are:

1. Washington, D.C.

2. Austin, Texas

3. Boston, Massachusetts

4. St. Paul/Minneapolis, Minnesota

5. Des Moines, Iowa

6. Madison, Wisconsin

7. Honolulu, Hawaii

8. Omaha, Nebraska

9. Seattle, Washington

10. Louisville, Kentucky

You can view the entire list here.

Where did your city rank?

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Learn more about Michele Cheplic

Michele Cheplic was born and raised in Hilo, Hawaii, but now lives in Wisconsin. Michele graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a degree in Journalism.

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