City Council

Agenda Request

Agenda Of:

12-19-06

Agenda Request No:

REC I

Initiated By:

Barbara Brescian, public communications director

Responsible Department:

public Communications

Presented By:

Mayor david wallace

Department Head:

barbara brescian,

 director

 

 

Additional Department. Head (s):

N/A

Subject / Proceeding:

One of 25 Best Suburbs

Exhibits:

N/A

Clearances

Approval

Legal:

N/A

Executive Director:

judy kimrey

director of public affairs

Purchasing:

N/A

Asst. City Manager:

n/a

Budget:

N/A

City Manager:

Allen Bogard

Budget

Expenditure Required:  $

N/A

Amount Budgeted/Reallocation:  $

N/A

Additional Appropriation:  $

N/A

Recommended Action

Recognize Sugar Land for prestigious accomplishments.

 

Executive Summary

 

The City of Sugar Land ends the year with the announcement of its third national recognition for 2006.  This time, Business Week picked Sugar Land as one of the 25 best suburbs in America. Others are now recognizing what we always have known; Sugar Land is a premier community – one of America’s Best.

 

Business Week described Sugar Land as a “winning combination of affordability, academics, safety and culture that most families dream about but can rarely find – within their budget.”  Business Week worked with Bert Sperling, founder and president of Sperling’s Best Places and co-author of Best Places to Raise your Family: The Top 100 Affordable Communities in the U.S.  They identified 25 of the best and most affordable suburbs in the nation after looking at median home prices, cost of living, crime and local schools.  All are located within an hour of a major city and were described as having a vibrant downtown scene with fine restaurants, sophisticated shopping and seasonal festivals.  According to Bert Sperling, “We looked for places with a sense of identity and a good economy.”

 

Among this best of the best, Sugar Land ranked in the top 10 in Median Household Income and Household Income greater than $100,000.  Cost of Living compared to income levels in an area – the Buying Power Index (BPI) – ranked our City as the second best BPI in the nation.  We also were recognized as second in the nation for future job growth for the next five years (2006-2010).  This is based on long-term economic growth trends in the area and other economic factors.

 

To sum it up, Sugar Land is described as the “newer powerhouse” suburb because of its attractive location, excellent workforce and strong economic development initiatives.