Monday, 16 December 2024

The 100 Most Livable Cities in Canada - 2024

London Isn't One of Them (Again)


   Last year the G&M published a ranking of the "Most Livable Cities" in Canada, to help you determine in which city you would choose to live. Given that London did not appear among the "Top 100," I figured I would call that fact to your attention. It is typically the case that if one fairs poorly in a ranking, it is best to move on to a subject that is better rated. Since you probably did not read about London's poor ranking in what is left of the local news sources, have a look at this: "The 100 Most Livable Cities in Canada" in MM. You will learn from it that the closest Livable City appears to be Middlesex Centre. If you would prefer to rely on the original analysis (a good idea) see: "Canada's Most Livable Cities: Explore Our Data-Driven Ranking of the Most Desirable Places to Live in the Country," Mahima Singh and Chen Wang, Globe and Mail, Nov. 25, 2023. 

The News Is Not Good (for London)
   The data have been crunched again by the same authors and the 2024 edition of "Canada's Most Livable Cities" will be found in the G&M, Dec.12. If you are headed to a convenience store for some beer, you still may be able to grab a copy if city officials didn't abscond with all of them. I will provide here, the top 10 nice big places to live in Canada.



    Last year, I did not bother to say much about London since it was not among the 100 Most Livable Cities. This year, I dug a little deeper and found London buried among the 448 communities for which a number of variables were analyzed. Unfortunately London's rankings are not good and have gotten worse. Like I said earlier, you should look at the original article, where the methodology is explained. The article, by the way, was nominated for a Digital Publishing Award, (see, G&M, April 25, 2024.)
   

   There are sub-rankings as well and the Top 20 are listed. Unfortunately London doesn't appear, but at least it does creep into the Top 100 in one category - as a place for Entrepreneurs. The bad news is that London did worse in all categories this year.
                                                      Sub-rankings
            
                                               2024    2023
Full Ranking                         168      139
For Young Professionals.   166        99
For Raising Kids.                 129      116
For Midlife Transitions         254      196
For Retirement                      306      152
For Newcomers                     213      163
For Entrepreneurs                 76        74

You should look at the original article and especially the comments. There are, for example, many who think their city deserves a higher spot than Winnipeg. 
  MM is London-based and I have lived here for many years. Although I don't think London is as "Livable" a place as it was fifty years ago, I would think that most people in most cities (even in the top 100) would say the same thing. And I still think it is likely better than say, Winnipeg.  
(Readers of MM know how I rate Toronto and you will be able to tell from these titles:
Toronto the Carbuncle and Toronto the Carbuncle (Update).)

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