Costa Mesa in top 100 best places to live

Based on various quality-of-life factors, Livability.com this week has dubbed Costa Mesa one of its Top 100 Best Places to Live.

The city clinched the No. 99 spot based on eight categories: economics, housing, amenities, infrastructure, demographics, social and civic capital, education and healthcare.

Small to mid-sized cities, with populations between 20,000 and 350,000, were ranked. The rankings came after a months-long study of more than 1,700 American cities.

Respondents were asked about “factors that make their communities better places to live, as well as the factors they would consider in selecting another city,” according to a news release.

Costa Mesa’s highest score was for its amenities, which, according to the Livability.com survey, included farmers markets, golf courses, parks, weather and community arts. Its lowest ranking was in healthcare.

“We are honored but not surprised to make the list,” Mayor Jim Righeimer said in a prepared statement. “Those of us who call Costa Mesa our home already know that it’s one of the finest places to live in America. It’s good to see others recognizing what we experience each day.”

Five other Orange County cities were ranked higher than Costa Mesa: Anaheim, No. 28 spot; Irvine, 36; Fullerton, 48; Santa Ana, 93; and Orange, 94.

Palo Alto ranked No. 1.

“Great cities are more than just a check-list of bars, coffee shops and museums,” said Livability.com editor Matt Carmichael in the release. “Our goal was to collect the best data available, from the best sources and the best partners, to gauge the true measures of livability.”

The Martin Prosperity Institute, a Toronto-based think tank, helped produce the list. The public affairs division from Ipsos, an international market research firm, conducted the survey. Data from the U.S. Census Bureau, Walkscore and GreatSchools.com was also included.

The full survey is available on https://livability.com/top-100-best-places-to-live.