rankings

Arlington Ranks No. 2 on New ‘Rich and Single’ List

By ARLnow.com

Arlington is moving up in the ranks of havens for the rich and single.

A new Bloomberg list of “large U.S. cities with wealthy one-person households” ranks Arlington as No. 2, second only to Hoboken, New Jersey. (Twenty-five percent of workers in Hoboken are employed in finance, insurance or real estate.)

To compile the list, Bloomberg examined U.S. Census data from 2006 to 2010 and identified cities of at least 50,000 people where men and women ages 15-64 “lived alone and had median incomes greater than national averages.”

In Hoboken, 53 percent of the population fell into that category. In Arlington, 43 percent of the population was classified as wealthy and living alone.

In August, Arlington ranked No. 4 on a CNN Money list of “Best Places for the Rich and Single.” According to figures cited by CNN Money, Arlington’s population is 41.5 percent single and has a median family income of $132,580.

Arlington Ranks 27th on ‘Best Cities’ List

By ARLnow.com

Arlington has ranked #27 on Bloomberg Businessweek’s new 2012 list of “American’s 50 Best Cities.”

The county got high marks for having the highest median household income and the lowest rate of unemployment on the list. But while the county’s economy may be strong, Businessweek gave Arlington low marks for its bar scene.

“The city could stand to be a bit more fun — it’s held back by weak nightlife,” the magazine said of Arlington.

At #27, Arlington ranked between Chicago (#28) and Milwaukee (#26). Washington, D.C. ranked third on the list, just below second-place Seattle and first-place San Francisco. Cities were ranked based on “leisure attributes, educational attributes, economic factors, crime, and air quality.”

Hat tip to @wfpman. Photo by Steve Uzzell/Rosslyn BID.

Arlington Ranks #4 on List of the ‘Rich and Single’

By ARLnow.com

Arlington is moving up in the rankings of places for the single and wealthy.

The county has ranked #4 on CNN Money’s 2012 list of “Best Places for the Rich and Single.” That’s up from our #7 ranking last year.

Also on this year’s list were Alexandria, at #12, and Towson, Md., at #8. Newton, Mass. ranked #1 on the list, which takes into consideration a place’s percentage of single people and the median family income.

According to figures cited by CNN Money, Arlington’s population is 41.5 percent single and has a median family income of $132,580. In writing about Arlington’s well-to-do single scene, the publication observed:

When the sun goes down, it’s time to turn the BlackBerry off and move and shake to a different groove. With its namesake Ballroom, the Clarendon neighborhood is the area’s hub for singles-spotting. Still, Arlington’s other “urban villages” are catching up. Head to Restaurant Row in Crystal City or Shirlington’s burgeoning nightlife scene to engage in a little bipartisan congress.

Arlington Ranks Among Top Areas for “Social Seekers”

By Katie Pyzyk

Arlington is receiving a distinction on another Best Places to Live list. It ranks among the top ten markets for social seekers, according to a list released by Coldwell Banker.

Arlington ranked seventh on the list. Areas with “Social Seekers” are considered those where residents would rather go out than stay home. These areas are described as “perfect for the hip, trendy and fun at heart.”

The top ten list of social seekers is:

  1. Manhattan
  2. San Francisco
  3. Chicago
  4. Los Angeles
  5. Seattle
  6. Brookline, Mass.
  7. Arlington
  8. San Diego
  9. Portland
  10. Mountain View, Calif.

The write up of Arlington stated “Arlington residents enjoy quaint cafés, upscale salons and all the activity and entertainment of the nation’s capital.”

Arlington also topped the list as the number one city for Social Seekers in the state of Virginia:

  1. Arlington
  2. Huntington
  3. Tysons Corner
  4. Alexandria
  5. Belle Haven
  6. Oakton
  7. Merrifield
  8. Idylwood
  9. McLean
  10. Falls Church

The Social Seekers list is the first lifestyle category ranking that Coldwell Banker is releasing in its “Best Places to Live” series. Four others will follow in the categories of Suburbanites, Adventurers, Leisure Lovers and Culture Cravers.

“Americans believe that their home is a reflection of their identity and that clearly goes beyond the property line and into the communities where they live,” said Budge Huskey, president and chief operating officer, Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC. “Social Seekers are drawn to the nightlife and action, while others we will explore in the series might prefer backyard barbecues and carpooling.”

The list was compiled based on a number of attributes such as access to transportation, high volume of bars and restaurants, happening nightlife and great entertainment. More information about the list of Best Places to Live can be found online.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Arlington Schools Make Washington Post List — All four Arlington public high schools have been ranked in the top 1 percent of all high schools in the U.S. by the Washington Post. The Post’s “Challenge Index” ranked H-B Woodlawn 48th in the nation and 2nd in the region, the highest ranking among the Arlington schools. [Arlington Public Schools]

Bishop O’Connell Softball Team Wins State Championship — For the 17th time in 19 years, the Bishop O’Connell Knights softball team has captured the Virginia Independent Schools Division I state championship trophy. The team had a 27-1 record this year. [Sun Gazette]

Arlington Named Bike-Friendly City — Arlington has been named the 23rd most bike-friendly “city” in the country by Bicycling Magazine. The publication looked at areas with “robust cycling infrastructure and a vibrant bike culture.” [Bicycling]

Zimmerman to Visit France — Arlington County Board member Chris Zimmerman will be visiting three cities in France next month in order to study ways to make Arlington less car-dependent. [Transportation Nation]

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Arlington Ranked Second Healthiest County in Va. — Arlington has been named the second-healthiest county in Virginia, second only to Fairfax County. The rankings were released yesterday by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. “Arlington County works hard to promote a healthy way of living, and to provide residents with options that make it easier to stay healthy and fit,” County Board Chair Mary Hynes said, citing biking, walking and recreational activities as examples of healthy options encouraged by the county. [Arlington County]

Donnellan: Theater Builds Communities — A robust arts program is vital to quality of life in Arlington, according to County Manager Barbara Donnellan. A theater buff in high school, Donnellan says theater helps build a sense of community, which is one of the key roles of local government. [Theatre Washington]

ACT College Closes in Arlington — ACT College, a D.C. area health training school, has suddenly shut down its Arlington, Alexandria and Manassas campuses. The school’s Arlington campus was located at 1100 Wilson Boulevard in Rosslyn. [WJLA]

Ballston Company Recruits Nerds — In its effort to recruit top software engineers, Ballston-based Applied Predictive Technologies (APT) is billing itself as a paradise for nerds. The company, which analyzes sales data for big retailers and restaurants, has been sponsoring hackathons, computer competitions and even StarCraft tournaments for students at top universities. The nerd recruitment seems to be working: the average SAT score of APT employees is 1560. [Washington Post]

Photo courtesy Andrew Clegg

Arlington Named No. 2 ‘City’ in America

By ARLnow.com

Arlington has ranked No. 2 on a list of the “best cities” in the U.S.

The list, compiled by BusinessWeek.com, ranked urban areas based on culture, entertainment, schools, crime, green space and other factors. Arlington ranked No. 2 ahead of Honolulu but behind the No. 1 city, Raleigh, N.C.

“Home to numerous headquarters of companies and government agencies, this Washington D.C. suburb is a draw in its own right,” BusinessWeek wrote. “The area is highly educated, with more than two-thirds of the population holding a college degree. Arlington has a median income level of $93,806, low levels of foreclosures, and the lowest unemployment among cities we ranked.”

Hat tip to The Nats Blog

Arlington Drivers Not as Accident-Prone as D.C. Drivers

By ARLnow.com

Arlington may be the safest city in the U.S. when it comes to traffic fatalities, but we’re also some of the most accident-prone drivers in the country, according to new data from Allstate Insurance. The good news: we’re less accident-prone than drivers in Alexandria, Baltimore and the District.

Arlington ranks 180 out of 193 cities in Allstate’s “Best Driver” rankings. That’s a downgrade compared to last year, when Arlington drivers ranked 174th. According to the latest data, drivers in Arlington go an average of 6.8 years between accidents.

By comparison, drivers in the safest city on the list — Fort Collins, Colo. — go an average of 14 years between accidents.

The District ranked dead last on the list, at 193rd, thanks to an average of only 4.8 years between accidents. Baltimore was the second worst, at 192nd. Alexandria ranked 184th.

File photo

Arlington Falls in Dubious ‘Parenting’ Rankings

By ARLnow.com

Parenting Magazine has released its latest list of the “Best Cities for Families.” As a result of some changes to the way the list is compiled, Arlington has dropped all the way from No. 1 to No. 70.

Replacing Arlington at No. 1 is our neighbor, the District of Columbia. Parenting says the District was chosen as the best city in the country to raise kids based on “the quality of schools, affordable homes, low crime rates, jobs, and parkland.”  Needless to say, some are questioning the methodology that allowed D.C. to top a list based on schools, affordability and crime.

Last year, when Arlington was the top-ranked city, Parenting said it was due to the county’s “fabulous schools, great home values, and an attractive unemployment rate.” This year, the District won praise for its cultural attractions.

“The history, the government, the breathtaking architecture and inspiring monuments—you don’t have to be a child to get an amazing education in this city,” the magazine wrote, adding that “family dinner nights are easy at quirky local favorites like Matchbox restaurants or Busboys & Poets.”

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

APS High Schools Ranked in Top One Percent — Arlington’s public high schools each ranked in the top one percent of the Washington Post’s national Challenge Index rankings. H-B Woodlawn ranked the highest at #46, and was #1 among Washington area high schools. Wakefield was at the bottom of the pack at #367 nationally and #50 locally. The Challenge Index measures the number of Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate and Cambridge tests taken by all students at a high school in 2010. [Arlington Public Schools]

Lopez Attracts Local Political Support — House of Delegates 49th District candidate Alfonso Lopez has named County Board Chairman Chris Zimmerman and County Sheriff Beth Arthur as co-chairs of his campaign. Lopez will face Stephanie Dix Clifford in the August 23 Democratic primary. [Sun Gazette]

Bike to Work Day Recap — Photos, video and write-ups from Arlington’s Bike to Work Day event in Rosslyn on Friday. [Ode Street Tribune, Patch, Commuter Page Blog]

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Arlington is One of Country’s Richest Counties — Well, here’s one way Arlington is a “green” county — its residents are loaded with cash. So says Newsweek, which ranks Arlington the #5 richest county in the nation. Seven of the top ten richest counties are in the DC area. More from DCist.

Charges Pending Against Driver in Davies Wreck — The young woman who was driving the car that crashed last October on the George Washington Parkway, killing one woman and severely injuring U.S. soccer star Charlie Davies, is expected to be charged with involuntary manslaughter. Investigators believe Maria Espinoza of Clarksville was intoxicated when her SUV careened across a grassy area near Memorial Bridge and struck a guardrail, nearly splitting it in half, according to the Washington Post.

Washington-Lee Bests Yorktown in Football Playoffs — Washington-Lee defeated Yorktown High 28 to 7 on Friday night. With the win, the Generals (6-5) will advance to the next round of the playoffs, facing Hayfield (7-4) on Friday. Washington-Lee played Hayfield in September and won 23-7. More from the Sun Gazette.

Flickr pool photo by Team Rank

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