Money's list of America's best small cities


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90. Norwalk, CT
Norwalk
WINNER
Top 100 rank: 90
Population: 83,000
Compare Norwalk to Top 10 Best Places
Norwalk is a longtime hot spot for sailors: It's right on Long Island Sound. Every year, this small city attracts thousands from all over the area to take part in its oyster festival, which celebrates the city's maritime activities and rich oyster history.

A business-friendly environment has attracted everything from a German knife manufacturer to a granola company, not to mention numerous excellent restaurants, arts and culture.

Norwalk's educational system also stands out; its high school has an unusual Japanese cultural-exchange program. Many residents make the one-hour commute to New York City to work. --N.A.

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Is Norwalk a great town, or what?
Norwalk stats
  City stats Best places avg.
Median family income
(per year)		 $89,840 $90,957
Job growth %
(2000-2009)*		 -2.12% 15.71%
See jobs near Norwalk
Median home price $358,500 $239,391
See Norwalk homes for sale
Test scores reading
(% above/below state average)		 13.3% 22.9%
Test scores math
(% above/below average)		 12.5% 22.9%
Personal crime incidents (per 1,000) 5 2
Property crime incidents (per 1,000) 23 24
Restaurants
(within 15 miles)		 2,215 2,967
High temp in July ° F 83.7° 86.2°
Low temp in Jan ° F 19.8° 21.3°
Median age 38.3 35.3
Financial City stats Best places avg.
Median family income
(per year)		 $89,840 $90,957
Family purchasing power
(annual, cost-of-living adjusted)		 $60,214 $86,860
State sales tax 6.00% 5.45%
State income tax rate
(highest bracket)		 6.50%I 7.35%
State income tax rate
(lowest bracket)		 3.00%I 2.96%
Auto insurance premiums
(Average price quotes, for the state)		 $2,016 $1,707
Job growth %
(2000-2009)*		 -2.12% 15.71%
See jobs near Norwalk
Housing
Median home price $358,500 $239,391
Average property taxes
(2007)		 $9,550 $3,418
See Norwalk homes for sale
Education
Colleges, universities and
professional schools (within 30 miles)		 47 25
Test scores reading
(% above/below state average)		 13.3% 22.9%
Test scores math
(% above/below average)		 12.5% 22.9%
% students attending public/private
schools (located within town limits)		 93.1/6.9 87.8/12.2
Quality of life
Air quality index*
(% of days AQI ranked as good)		 70.0% 77.8%
Personal crime incidents (per 1,000) 5 2
Property crime incidents (per 1,000) 23 24
Median commute time (in minutes) 19.3 21.4
% population with commute
45 mins. or longer		 15.5% 13.6%
% population walk or bike to work 2.7% 3.6%
Leisure and culture
Movie theaters
(within 15 miles)		 30 31
Restaurants
(within 15 miles)		 2,215 2,967
Bars
(within 15 miles)		 70 207
Public golf courses
(within 30 miles)		 360 162
Libraries
(within 15 miles)		 68 72
Museums (accredited by AAM;
within 30 miles)		 17 10
Ski resorts (within 100 miles) 38 12
Arts funding (Dollars per person of state funds spent on arts) 2.1 1.5
Weather
Annual rainfall
(inches)		 48.96 37.40
% clear days in the area 27 29
High temp in July ° F 83.7° 86.2°
Low temp in Jan ° F 19.8° 21.3°
Median age 38.3 35.3
Completed at least some college
(% of residents)		 60.8% 71.5%
Married % 48.8% 56.6%
Divorced % 8.9% 8.4%
Racial diversity index
(100 is national average; higher numbers indicate greater diversity)		 111.7 94.9
From the August 2010 issue
Notes: *County data

(I) Income tax notes:
For joint returns, the taxes are twice the tax imposed on half the income.
Combined personal exemptions and standard deduction. An additional tax credit is allowed ranging from 75% to 0% based on state adjusted gross income. Exemption amounts are phased out for higher income taxpayers until they are eliminated for households earning over $61,000.
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Find Your Best Places
Region
Northeast South
Midwest West
Ranking
Top 100 winners only
Population
8.4M
46,000
Home Prices
2009 median sales prices
$1.2M
$36K
Video
How we picked the Best Places
Using statistics from data provider Onboard Informatics, we crunched the numbers in order to zero in on America's best small cities for families. (Last year, we looked at small towns, with populations between 8,500 and 50,000.) More

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