Overland Park is one of Money Magazine's best places to live, with California's popular Orange County barely beating out the Midwest.
Overland Park's flat terrain and grid layout don't provide much drama, but for its residents, reasonable housing prices, good jobs and proximity to Kansas City, Mo. are excitement enough.
The city (where Sprint Nextel employs 12,000 people) recently began building a dozen soccer fields to host national tournaments - good news for local businesses. There are six major medical centers here too, and schools are among the best in the nation.
Happily, development hasn't paved over the green space: The Arboretum and Botanical Gardens covers 300 lush acres, for example.
O.P.'s median household income is $6000 higher than the average, the insurance premiums are lower, the houses are less expensive, and the air quality blows others out of the water...er, air.
Commute time is shorter, there are more movie theaters (guess that's a perk), Parkers are highly educated and mostly married.
Overland Park does have fewer golf courses than the average, and fewer restaurants (that one surprised me). Fewer bars and libraries, too.
Overall, though, Overland Park comes in 9th in the nation...and that's not a bad place to be. Or live.
Congrats O.P.
And, Olathe. Only two spots behind Overland Park. That's two KC Metro cities ranking in the top 12 in the country. Olathe's seen the most growth of any other city in American, too.
Congrats Olathe.
Here's the article , and here's the list.
Should mention Shawnee earned 39th best place to live in the country on this list, and Lee's Summit came in at 79th.
I must say, I'm not surprised at how high our metro communities ranked, but I am surprised about a few that didn't make the list. You?