In updating one of our websites, NorthScottsdale.com, we have come to find that there has been a bunch of accolades recently lavished on Scottsdale that I’m guessing most people aren’t aware of. Even I wasn’t aware of them all. Pretty heady stuff. Let’s look at some of them:

  • Scottsdale ranked No. 1 place to raise children, according to a study published in early June 2014 by MyLife.com. Cities were judged using five criteria: crime rate, public school rating, public parks per capita, average family salary and cost of living.
  • Scottsdale ranked No. 6 safest city in America (out of 100 most populous cities) by Movoto.com. This study is ranked on per capita statistics relating to property crime, violent crime and the chance of being a victim of crime. In all of 2012, Scottsdale only had one murder and just 147 violent crimes making it on the safest big cities in America.
  • Scottsdale earned the No. 6 spot on 24/7 Wall St.’s “Best Run Cities in America.” To determine the performance of the nation’s largest cities, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed the 100 largest U.S. cities by population and considered a variety of factors, including the area’s economy, job market, crime level, and welfare of the population.
  • Top Ten Tech Savvy City: The Center for Digital Government recently honored Scottsdale as a top 10 tech-savvy city for using technology to eliminate waste, enhance service levels, improve transparency and engage with citizens in the digital world.
  • Scottsdale named one of Top 100 Best Places to Live – Livability.com, a national website that ranks quality of life in America’s small and mid-sized cities, has named Scottsdale one of the Top 100 Best Places to Live. Scottsdale, touted for education and amenities, ranked No. 89 on the list. It is one of only two Arizona cities named to the list. The other is Tempe. 1,700 U.S. cities were considered and the factors that make them the best places to live, work and play.
  • Google honors Scottsdale as Arizona’s 2013 “eCity”
    Scottsdale recently captured the 2013 eCity Award from Google, an honor that recognizes the strongest online business community in each state. Google said, “The businesses in these communities are embracing the web to find new customers, connect with existing clients and fuel their local economies. Scottsdale joins the ranks of America’s leading cities in the digital economy.” For more information, visitwww.google.com/ecities
  • Scottsdale ranks in top 20 of “America’s Thriving Cities”
    The Daily Beast ranks Scottsdale 15th on a list of “America’s Thriving Cities.” To find the country’s top 20 thriving cities, the news reporting and opinion website looked at the 100 largest cities in the United States and compared them in various categories including: population growth; employment and earnings; market strength; infrastructure; and intellectual capital.
  • Scottsdale ranks No. 1 spot for retirees
    MSN Money named Scottsdale the No. 1 city to retire in. Here’s what it had to say, “The city packing the heaviest post-65 punch in America sits just off the northeastern fringe of Phoenix, luring newcomers — or retaining longtime locals — with plenty of play and rays. The biggest attraction is the weather (and) just how pleasant it is here.”
  • Scottsdale recognized for top innovative green initiatives
    NerdWallet, a San Francisco-based consumer advocacy website, recently featured Scottsdale as a top city for innovative green initiatives. The website applauded Scottsdale for protecting natural areas like the McDowell Sonoran Preserve, incorporating multiuse paths, and using compressed natural gas trucks, solar power to generate electricity and energy-efficient LED light fixtures.