California, the Livability State
Livability.com released its Top 100 Most Livable Cities in America, and over a fifth are in California. The study evaluated more than 2,000 mid-sized and small cities (sorry, New York, Chicago, and you other big guys), and ranked them in eight categories: economics, housing, amenities, infrastructure, demographics, social and civic capital, education, and healthcare. Among OC cities, Fullerton (No. 49) came in highest, then Irvine (No. 53, pictured) and Costa Mesa (No. 68). Among California cities, Palo Alto (No. 5) topped the list and others include Berkeley, Santa Clara, San Mateo, Santa Barbara, Pasadena, Ventura, Sunnyvale, Santa Monica, San Rafael, Alameda, Santa Cruz, Monterey, Santa Rosa, Goleta, Menlo Park, Burbank, and Haywood. (Madison, Wis., was No. 1. A fine city, but a little cold in winter.)
