We Planoites know that we are lucky to live in a city that often appears at the top of lists of desirable places to live, work and raise a family. But the most recent honor bestowed upon Plano is quite a big deal. MONEY magazine announced this week that Plano was named #3 on its Best Places to Live 2016 list. Plano was also the top city in Texas on the list.
A variety of factors contribute to the magazine’s decision, but among them are population size, job growth, crime level, home values, health care and quality of schools. MONEY specifically cited the remarkable number of large corporations that have recently chosen Plano as their home base, as well as the number of jobs created by these moves.
MONEY also recognizes the fact that Plano’s diversity (about 43% of our residents are not white, and approximately 80 languages are spoken in our schools) is one of our city’s key strengths.
The City of Plano threw a little party Wednesday afternoon in downtown Plano’s McCall Plaza to celebrate the announcement. Plano Mayor Harry LaRosiliere addressed the small crowd assembled to celebrate. He was clearly pleased (and maybe a little giddy) about our spot on the list. He applauded the fact that Plano still feels like a small city, and that despite our population of over 270,000, “you can feel that you know your neighbors and those around you.” He also joked that when people from other cities ask if Plano is really that good, we must reply, “Plano, Texas, baby–believe the hype!”
New Plano business owner and long-time executive chef Tre Wilcox (of Julia Pearl Southern Cuisine and TRE Cooking Concepts) was contacted by MONEY to contribute his thoughts on what makes Plano a great place to live. He cited that fact that he could not only safely raise his 15-year-old daughter in Plano, but that the city’s restaurant scene is rapidly growing. “I know that people say down south, which is Dallas now, that there’s no reason to go past 635, what does Plano have to offer? We got some amazing food up here, we have some amazing chefs up here.”
Jamee Jolly, president and CEO of Plano Chamber of Commerce, spoke to the crowd as well, giving thanks to the multitude of citizens who’ve contributed to making Plano one of the best cities to live in. Among those she listed were small business owners, developers like Fehmi Karahan (responsible for the Shops at Legacy), our school teachers, our nonprofit organizations, our City of Plano employees and our public servants.
Jamee concluded by saying, “Congratulations to my fellow Planoites, you made this possible.”
Photos from Wednesday’s celebration. Click to enlarge:
