Howard County voted #2 as Best Place to Live

July 13, 2010
Columbia/Ellicott City No. 2 on magazine's best list

Money Magazine thinks you can't do much better than Columbia and Ellicott City if you're looking for a small urban area to live in.

The August issue ranks them together as No. 2 on its Best Places to Live 2010 list, right after Eden Prairie, Minn. The top 100 list, which focuses on small cities, also includes Gaithersburg (No. 25) and Rockville (No. 31).

Columbia isn't an incorporated city, as it happens. Neither is Ellicott City, despite the name. But I'm guessing Money was going for the spirit rather than the letter of the law.

Of the towns, it says: "Ellicott City boasts grand homes, a lovely 18th-century downtown, and lots of restaurants. Columbia offers a wide range of housing, tons of parkland, and a major music venue. But those varied amenities are far from the only reasons this duo has risen to No. 2 from No. 8 in 2008. It's also an economic powerhouse with a jobless rate just as enviable as Eden Prairie's."The magazine refers to jobs coming nearby as part of BRAC (though Fort Meade is in Anne Arundel County rather than Howard) and the towns' commuting distance to both Baltimore and Washington. It gives the area props for "excellent schools and a diverse population." And it says "home are affordable -- by Northeast standards, anyway."

Some of you would-be buyers trying to purchase in Howard County might not agree with the last point, judging by the complaints in the comments here. "Affordable" is definitely in the eye of the beholder. Money ranked Columbia/Ellicott City No. 4 in 2006, so the neighbors fell a bit in '08 before rising to No. 2.

I am, I admit, somewhat skeptical of "best place to ..." lists. The criteria might be perfectly reasonable, but you can't always capture what makes a community special via number crunching -- and this is coming from a devoted number cruncher.

"We crunch all this data and Ellicott City just rose to the top," said Beth Fenner, Money Magazine.

So what's the criterion for a top city?

Money Magazine looked at a couple of things including economic opportunity, affordable homes, quality schools and safe streets.

It also looked at entertainment, restaurants and parks in the area.

Howard County Executive Ken Ulman said the combined areas of Columbia and Ellicott City truly have it all for area families, even in challenging economic times.

"In the Money Magazine poll they called these two communities, Howard County, an economic powerhouse and we are really proud of that. We have the lowest unemployment rate in the state of Maryland," said Ulman

Chris, Matt and Bob all live and work in Howard County and love it.

"It's a very nice neighborhood. We all live and work around here. It's a very nice community," said Bob Brocious.

"It's a great place to be. A lot of stuff happening, great food, great restaurants. It's populated, diverse," said Matt Zolt.

"The only reason we moved to Ellicott City was because she saw on MSN.com 'The Top Places to Live in America' and we were thinking of moving out of Pennsylvania and in Ellicott City. Columbia was number six that year, so we said let's do it. Now we are number two and it doesn't surprise me," said Chris Alibaruho.

The Columbia and Ellicott City region also boasts the lowest foreclosure rate in the state.