Tucson Ranks in Top 20 in “America’s Best Cities” Annual Report for 2021
Tucson has been named the 20th best city in the U.S. in the 2021 America’s Best Cities annual report by Resonance Consultancy.
Fast-growing Tucson is buoyed by its sense of place, ranking #10 in both the report’s Weather and Parks & Outdoors subcategories. The city is poised to ascend up future national rankings, due to a torrent of new investment in all manner of green and common space, according to the ranking on BestCities.org.
The report said Tucson’s new Sun Link LRT is sure to improve quality of life, creating a focus on fewer cars and more walkability designed to pull the sprawling population together, closer to downtown. Urban innovation that taps its outdoor bounty by increasing access to it is not a hard sell for a town where almost 25% are aged between 20 and 34, the report said.
University of Arizona was recognized for Tucson’s youthful bounce. The report said the city is also blooming economically. House prices are rising fast as the post-pandemic migration from larger urban centers powers Tucson to a Top 5 ranking in the consultancy’s Change in Home Prices category.
The report said Tucson’s citizens are also “hanging in” despite the pandemic’s economic impact, ranking #21 in its Change in Family Income subcategory. “All this places the city in the Top 10 in our overall Prosperity category. Good thing, too, given that the local shopping ranks an impressive #17 nationally,” the report said.
