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TheBuzz
Erika Engle
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We're No. 4! We're No. 4! ... in terms of personal security
OF U.S. CITIES with a population of 500,000 or more, Honolulu is the No. 4 most secure in which to live. You can practically hear the chanting, chee-hoo-ing and other hollering from the property and casualty insurance office cubicles and hallways.
The study, conducted by database experts at Oregon-based Sperling's Best Places, was commissioned by Los Angeles-based Farmers Insurance Group.
"Everyone looks for a safe, secure place to live," said Jeff Beyer, senior vice-president and chief communications officer for Farmers, in a statement.
"Whether you are single or raising a family, a secure environment is important. It offers the well-being so necessary to succeed in today's fast-paced world."
The study factored in crime statistics, extreme weather, risk of natural disasters, environmental hazards, terrorism threats and job-loss numbers among 379 markets.
Large metro areas that beat Honolulu were No. 1 Boise City and Nampa, Idaho; No. 2 Portland, So. Portland and Biddeford, Maine; and No. 3, Las Vegas and Paradise, Nev.
The most secure mid-sized city, with 150,000 to 500,000 residents, was Las Cruces, New Mexico, and among small towns with a population of 150,000 or fewer, the winner was St. George, Utah -- also declared the overall most secure hamlet to habitate.
It has the lowest crime rate of all 379 communities, lowest unemployment rate of the small towns, mild winters, low annual precipitation and clean air, the survey found.
One ponders if premium payments will plummet for people in the placid principalities.
"No, that's not the purpose," chuckled Jerry Davies, director of media relations.
However, "when companies like ours go into a community, these are the things they look at and they are rated," he said.
"It's not to say that your rates are going to drop immediately, but it is taken into account" when rates are set, he added.
Also taken into account are the emotions of people who live in each place, he said. When the company first started doing the study in 2004, he said, "we thought it would be interesting ... to find out a feel for the most secure cities by interviewing people who live there, about the things they have there."
High-profile incidents like the beating of a White House Travel Office director do catch the attention of surveyors. However, the city ratings are intended "more for the people that live in the city, more than ... the visitors," Davies said.
The BestPlaces.net list of the Best and Worst Cities for Crime ranked Honolulu No. 91 among the 100 largest metro areas -- which seems like a good thing until one reads that the ranking goes from the least crime at the top, to the most, at the bottom. That's the end we were on.
Honolulu has held its own more favorably in other Best Places surveys. In its most recent Best Places to Live list, Honolulu is No. 5 for its laid-back and easygoing attitude, low crime rate, excellent restaurants, entertainment options and its economy.
Honolulu ranked at No. 103 on a list of 110 migraine hotspots in the United States. It was a positive thing to be on the bottom end of that one.
Conversely, we were not among Best Places' 50 healthiest U.S. cities, though smoggy Los Angeles, industrial Detroit and sausage-and-deep-dish-pizza-laden Chicago were on the list. Even Cleveland iced us out.
All the list-mania is because that is what Best Places parent company Fast Forward Inc. does, both for general publication and under commission, by companies such as Farmers Insurance Group, Axe Deodorant Bodyspray and others.
Erika Engle is a reporter with the Star-Bulletin. Call 529-4747, fax 529-4750 or write to Erika Engle, Honolulu Star-Bulletin, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., No. 7-210, Honolulu, HI 96813. She can also be reached at:
eengle@starbulletin.com