The growing city of Bowling Green has earned the distinction of being named to MONEY magazine’s annual Best Places to Live list.
To create the ranking, the magazine looked only at places with populations of 50,000 or more and eliminated any place that had more than double the national crime risk, less than 85 percent of its state’s median household income or a lack of ethnic diversity. That left 583 places to consider across the nation. From there, the magazine looked at data pertaining to each places’ economic health, cost of living, diversity, public education, income, crime, ease of living and amenities. The greatest emphasis was placed on economic health, public school performance and local amenities, with housing, cost of living and diversity being critical components.
Here’s what the magazine had to say about Bowling Green:
“Home to Kentucky’s second-largest university, one could call Bowling Green a college town, but the city of around 67,000 is also an excellent place to live for more than just students. First-time homeowners, for example, may be surprised to find the average home sells for $169,900. Job seekers will appreciate the city’s growth, with Moody’s Analytics predicting a 7.4 percent increase in jobs by 2022, as well as employers like Fruit of the Loom and Bowling Green Metalforming, the second largest manufacturer in the state. With 208 clear days a year, there’s plenty to do outside, whether that’s window shopping downtown, riding the carousel at the nearby Beech Bend Park or touring a real limestone cavern by boat at Lost River Cave.”
It’s probably no coincidence that Bowling Green is also Kentucky’s fastest-growing metropolitan area. Between 2010 and 2017, the city saw its population grow by 9.7 percent, compared to Kentucky’s overall population growth of 2.4 percent for the same time frame.
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