Memorial Day weekend is the unofficial start of summer. I marked it by hiking in STARVED ROCK STATE PARK with my kids and some friends, the first of many wonderful places in and around Chicagoland that I want to visit with my family and friends while the weather is nice.
As my “must see” list grows, so does my curiosity about other people’s favorite spots. The local web site Gapers Block just announced the winners of its Neighborhood Landmark contest, and looking at all of these city gems reminds me just how lucky I am to live in Chicago.
So I was disappointed to find out Chicagoland was not on the latest list of the top 25 best cities in the world to live in, this one from Mercer’s 2010 Quality of Living Survey . The highest ranking U.S. cities were Honolulu at No. 31 and San Francisco at No. 32; Chicago shares the No. 45 spot with Washington, D.C. The survey is intended to help companies fairly compensate their employee depending on where they work. Rankings take into account 39 factors grouped into 10 categories, such as public services and transportation, and housing.
In the Christian Science Monitor story on the rankings, Joel Kotkin noted that they fail to capture the intangibles that make cities truly great. He writes:
"It seems to me what makes for great cities in history are not measurements of safety, sanitation or homogeneity but economic growth, cultural diversity and social dynamism.... Just think about the great cities of history – ancient Rome, Islamic Baghdad, 19th century London, 20th century New York – or contemporary Los Angeles, Houston, Shanghai and Mumbai.
"These represent a far different urbanism than what one finds in well-organized and groomed Zurich, Vienna, and Copenhagen. You would not call these cities and their ilk with metropolitan populations generally less than 2 million, 'bustling.' Perhaps a more fitting words would be 'staid' and 'controlled.' ...Alas, comfort takes precedence over dynamism in these new cities."
So I say forget top 25 lists—at least when they omit our region. MPC wants to know what you think makes Chicagoland great. In partnership with the Chicago Architecture Foundation, we’re holding our “What Makes Your Place Great” contest again this summer, and we’re asking everyone in Chicagoland to nominate their favorite undiscovered public place. Check out MPC Associate Karin Sommer’s announcement for more details. We look forward to seeing all your nominations -- I’ll be adding some of them to my “must see” list for the summer!