For the second consecutive year, Northwest Arkansas ranked in the top five best places to live in the country, according to U.S. News and World Report.
Although the magazine refers to the area as Fayetteville, the statistics and description are for the Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers metropolitan statistical area, which includes all of Benton, Madison and Washington counties in Arkansas and McDonald County in Missouri.
The metropolitan statistical area also includes Bentonville, home to Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art.
"When you look at that thing, it's really for the metropolitan area, but I always like it when they highlight my city," Fayetteville Mayor Lioneld Jordan said. "This city is the southern anchor of that region. I get together with the mayors of the region and we all work together well."
Jordan said Northwest Arkansas ranked high in quality of life, education, cultural arts and a "welcoming spirit." He also cited low unemployment and an environment that inspires entrepreneurs.
In its emailed newsletter, the Walton Family Foundation cited the region's "cultural, recreational and economic assets" regarding the ranking.
"The region's expanding green space, parks and trails, its first-class performing arts center and active local food movement all helped Northwest Arkansas stand out," according to the foundation, which is based in Bentonville.
Steve Clark, president of the Fayetteville Chamber of Commerce, said the magazine's rankings get people all over the country talking about Northwest Arkansas.
"When you look at those rankings, one of the reasons we get up there at a pretty high rate is new jobs we are creating and the cost of living," he said.
Clark said he doesn't believe growth will ruin Fayetteville's reputation as a funky place with its share of artists, musicians and bohemian folk. "Keep Fayetteville Funky" bumper stickers are common around town.
Clark said the University of Arkansas helps Fayetteville stay funky.
"Every 12 months, we bring 5,000 new faces into Fayetteville," Clark said. "Those 5,000 faces come from all parts of the nation and the world, so they bring some funky with them when they come."
Clark cited the number of scooters in Fayetteville as evidence of continuing funkiness.
"Economic development in the 21st century is about talent and sense of place," Clark said. "Every day, it gets easier for that talent to live anywhere in the world."
According to the report released Tuesday, Northwest Arkansas ranked No. 5 on the list this year and No. 3 last year, when it was bested only by Denver at No. 1 and Austin at No. 2.
Austin and Denver swapped spots on this year's list, with Austin at No. 1.
San Jose, Calif., and Washington, D.C., leap-frogged Fayetteville this year, with San Jose jumping from No. 10 to No. 3 and Washington going from No. 8 in 2016 to No. 4.
Little Rock ranked No. 38 in this year's list. Other nearby Southern cities included Jackson, Miss., at No. 91, Memphis at No. 93 and New Orleans at No. 95.
To the west of Arkansas, Dallas ranked No. 15 and Tulsa came in at No. 59. Heading north, Kansas City, Mo., ranked No. 48 and St. Louis ranked No. 65.
The nation's largest cities didn't fare so well. New York City was ranked No. 80, Los Angeles No. 88 and Chicago No. 83.
Fayetteville ranked lower in desirability than New York City, Los Angeles or Chicago but higher in quality of life, value and net migration. In the of "job market" category, Northwest Arkansas was behind New York City but ahead of Los Angeles and Chicago.
Fayetteville was starkly different from those cities when it came to real estate prices.
In Northwest Arkansas, the average annual salary is $43,570 and the median home price is $182,508, according to U.S. News. In Los Angeles, the average annual salary is $51,766 and the median home price is $487,716.
The unemployment rate in Northwest Arkansas is 2.9 percent, compared with 5.2 percent in Los Angeles, according to the U.S. News article.
Coming in at No. 6 overall was Seattle, which prompted this headline on a post on the Seattle Times' Facebook page: "Fayetteville, Ark. beat out Seattle on a list of the best places to live in the U.S. Fayetteville? Arkansas? Really?"
That post, and the attached article by Evan Bush, the Seattle Times enterprise producer, attracted 743 comments, mostly from Arkansans defending Fayetteville.
"Before expressing snarky incredulity, you should actually visit Fayetteville and see for yourself why it actually beat out Seattle," wrote Bill Schreckhise, an associate professor of political science at the university in Fayetteville who has three degrees from Washington State University in Pullman.
"We moved to Fayetteville from Seattle about 10 years ago," wrote Chris Foley, who now lives in Tulsa. "Seattle is certainly bigger and has all that you'd hope from a major city. Fayetteville is no slouch though. Quality of life? Seattle doesn't begin to compare. Get off the coast and stretch your legs a little. You'll obviously be surprised by what you'll find."
Bush said he didn't write the headline on the Facebook post.
"I wasn't involved with the Facebook posting," he said. "I think it was intended to be good-humored and good-natured, but I think people were a little rankled."
Seattle ranked No. 7 last year, behind Fayetteville at No. 3.
Seattle has an average annual salary of $59,060 and a median home price of $359,693, according to this year's ranking.
According to U.S. News, it rains considerably more in Fayetteville than Seattle -- 47.9 inches per year vs. 37.5 inches. But it rains about 150 days out of the year in Seattle, compared to 100 in Fayetteville.
The metropolitan areas included in the rankings were evaluated using data from sources such as the U.S. Census Bureau, the FBI, the Department of Labor and U.S. News' own internal resources, according to the website, realestate.usnews.com.
The data were categorized into the five indexes and then evaluated using a methodology determined by Americans' preferences, according to the website. The indexes and weight given to those indexes were: quality of life, 30 percent; value, 25 percent; job market, 20 percent; desirability, 15 percent, and net migration, 10 percent.
Metro on 02/11/2017