Survey says Hagerstown ranks fourth in Md. as best place to raise a family

It's safe to say that Hagerstown is a good place to raise a family — at least according to a recent ranking released by the website, Niche.com.

In the site's 2015 Best Places to Live rankings just released, Hagerstown takes the fourth spot as the "Best Town to Raise a Family in Maryland."

"It's always nice to be recognized for the good qualities of the community," said Erin Wolfe, the city's communications manager. "I really think the ranking shows it is an ideal place to raise a family."

Wolfe pointed to the city's museums, theaters and the growing arts community that contribute to the high quality of life and a family-friendly atmosphere.

But she said the ranking failed to take into consideration the 19 city-owned parks throughout Hagerstown.

"I think that they certainly play a part in the high quality of life," Wolfe said. "(The city) has a small-town feel with the amenities of a larger city."

Nonetheless, she called the ranking a "breath of fresh air," since Hagerstown has not always fared well in national surveys.

For example, in 2013, the Daily Beast featured a list called "The 15 worst cities to have a baby, from New York to Miami," with Hagerstown ranking fourth on that list.

But the survey and the methodology used to determine the ranking drew criticism from local leaders, who called it flawed.

Niche.com, formerly known as College Prowler, is a company headquartered in Pittsburgh that runs a ranking and review site.

It was founded in 2002 by Luke Skurman, then a student at Carnegie Mellon University's Tepper School, as a publisher of print guidebooks on U.S. colleges.

However, during a rebranding process, the website added all schools, cities and neighborhoods to its rankings.

The family rankings were based on the evaluations of 4,280 towns with populations under 100,000, according to Niche.com.

The evaluations included an analysis of schools, crime rates, demographics and access to affordable housing and child care. Grades were also assigned to each area.

For example, Hagerstown received a C- for the city's overall safety; B+ for its schools; C+ for its libraries; and a B- for affordable housing.

"When you go into the methodology used it looks legit," Wolfe said.

A high ranking in all areas indicates that a town attracts young families with good schools and a safe community, the website said. Frederick took the top spot.

Even through the new survey indicates that Hagerstown's unemployment rate of 8.7 percent is higher than the national average of 6.3 percent, and the poverty rate of 23.3 percent is higher than the national average of 15.2 percent, the city ranks third as the "Best Towns for Millennials in Maryland."

A millennial is a term referring to the generation born between 1982 and early 2000.

Niche ranked the towns based on the number of millennials living there, job opportunities and access to bars, restaurants and affordable housing.

According to the survey, 16.9 percent of Hagerstown's residents are between the ages of 25 and 34, and 2.1 percent of them moved to the city within the last year.

The city gets a B+ for its access to bars; a B+ for access to restaurants; and a B for its availability to coffee shops, the survey said.

Frederick again took the top stop in the millennial ranking.