Did You Know?
Milwaukee – The City on Everyone’s List
Ever notice how a city’s interesting quirks, cultural mix and historical perspective give it an aura, a vibe, an identity that sets it apart? We do. Milwaukee’s been getting a lot of national and international media coverage due to our vibrant arts scene, diverse cultural events, unique visitor attractions and more than $2.5 billion in new tourism product investment since 1998. But these aren’t our only claims to fame. Listed below are some of the many reasons why there’s no place like Milwaukee.
"5th in nation for Fortune 500 headquarters per capita"
-Fortune, 2009
A 6-year national online study by Cambridge University in England ranked Wisconsin among the top five states in America for “extraversion” and “agreeableness”. The head research scientist summed it up: “It appears people who live there are healthy, friendly, socially outgoing…calm, even-tempered, down-to-earth and practical”. Looks like Wisconsin is a hotbed of nice!
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"2nd nationally for number of best places to work per capita"
-Great Places to Work Institute, 2009
Milwaukeeans can credit local businesses like WE Energies for achieving the official Well City USA designation recently awarded by the Wellness Council of America (WELCOA). The designation names Milwaukee as a healthy place to live and work, and recognizes the strides of businesses like WE Energies to promote healthy lifestyles in the workplace and the greater Milwaukee community.
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"11th fittest city in America"
-Men’s Fitness, 2009
The City of Milwaukee as a whole ranks 13th among the nation’s most walkable cities, according to www.walkscore.com. All of the core downtown neighborhoods, however, scored 90 and above, earning Milwaukee’s city center the designation of “Walker’s Paradise”. We knew it to be true, but here’s the proof!
Bicycling named Milwaukee 25th in its list of America’s Best Bike Cities. Using data from several studies, the magazine ranked cities with populations of 100,000 or more based on their support of a vibrant and diverse bike culture and smart, savvy bike shops. All of the listed cities were applauded for important aspects such as striped or segregated bike lanes, municipal bike racks, bike boulevards and, most importantly, biker support from local government.
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"Summerfest: World’s Largest Music Festival"
-Guinness Book of World Records
A study done by Portfolio.com/Bizjournals ranked Milwaukee as 25th most fun cityin the country, defeating such tourism meccas as Las Vegas (ranked 26th) and Orlando, FL (42nd). The study looked at U.S. Census data for the top 100 metropolitan areas, measuring quantity and per-capita concentration of establishments in seven categories: shopping, food & drink, culture, popular entertainment, gambling, and high and low impact sports.
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"Mitchell International is the fastest-growing airport in the nation"
-U.S. Dept. of Transportation, March 2010
The cost of flying in and out of Milwaukee’s Mitchell International Airport is now among the lowest of any major city in the country. Newly released U.S. Department of Transportation data for 4th Quarter 2009 shows that the average airfare out of Milwaukee dropped lower than the average at 92 other U.S. airports. It is now $72 less than the nation’s average. Mitchell's average fare was $91 less than O'Hare's and, for the first time, less than Midway Airport's by $10.
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"2nd safest city among the 40 largest metropolitan areas in the U.S."
-Forbes.com, 2009
The Downtown population is booming in Milwaukee! According to a report by GIS consultants, about 15,000 people live in the downtown area, more than Pittsburgh, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Cleveland, Memphis or Nashville. When asked why they lived downtown, residents' top two answers were "cultural and entertainment venues" and "proximity to lake and/or river." Milwaukee is also becoming the model for cities with revitalization plans such as Wichita, where the Wichita Eagle points to Milwaukee's RiverWalk with "its connections between business and entertainment districts" as a big win in attracting newcomers and suburbanites to downtown living. Milwaukee is heralded for maintaining its character while building a future on government-backed incentives, a diverse student population and leaders who emphasize the role of architectural design and urban planning.
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"9th best city for young professionals in the U.S."
-Forbes.com, 2008
Forbes also listed Milwaukee as the number one city in which to look for a job in 2009, having been previously ranked as a Top 10 city for young professionals to find job prospects, a high quality of life and the “attractive population”.
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"12th most sustainable city in the U.S."
-SustainLane.com, 2008
In April of 2009 Milwaukee was designated a U.N. Global Compact City as an international hub of water research and technology. As one of only thirteen cities in the world and the second city in the U.S. behind San Francisco to earn this prestigious recognition, Milwaukee hopes to become the epicenter for water science and industry conferences. The designation resulted from a collaboration of business leaders from the city’s numerous water-based industries and the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee’s Great Lakes Water Institute.
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5th best up-and-coming tech city in the U.S.
-AARP The Magazine, 2007
Since 2008, Milwaukee is up 5 rankings in the Top 30 Most-Wired American Cities list by Forbes.com. Forbes creates this list by computing the percentage of Internet users with high-speed connections and the number of companies providing high-speed Internet in the area.