Family Circle names Sherwood one of 10 best cities for families

By Ray Pitz

The Sherwood Gazette, Jul 1, 2009, Updated Oct 30, 2009

Liza Jensen pulls her daughter Ellie, 1½, in a wagon down Railroad Avenue July 9. Joined by her two other children, Denmark, 6, and other daughter, Addie, 3, she said she wasn’t terribly surprised that Sherwood received the nationwide distinction as a family friendly city.

Ray Pitz / Sherwood Gazette

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Family Circle magazine has named Sherwood as one of the best towns and cities for families, according to a recent national survey.

In its August issue, the magazine lists the city as one of the perfect places to call home based on such criteria as affordable housing, good neighbors, green spaces and its public school system.

“The city of Sherwood is honored to have been selected by Family Circle Magazine as one of the top 10 best towns and cities for families,” said City Manager Jim Patterson. “It takes an entire community of people in schools, businesses, local government, faith community and active non-profit organizations to create a great place to live and raise a family, and Sherwood, Oregon, has all that.”

The magazine stated that each of the towns honored contained forward-thinking leaders, parents, teachers and students who are passionate about their hometown, dedicated to bettering their children's futures and involved in advancing their local school systems as exemplified by the implementation of such programs as partnering with local government in providing recreational amenities, private medical groups to ensure treatment for students who don't have health insurance and integrating dual language classes in grade school.

Patterson said he spent a couple hours collectively answering numerous questions about the city and that Sherwood School Distict Superintendent Dan Jamison was contacted as well.

“They said, ‘well we’ll let you know at some point prior to publication (if) we made the Top 10,” he said. He was notified June 29 of the ranking.

Family Circle partnered with Onboard Informatics, a New York City research firm that provides real estate, demographic and other data, to assemble an initial list of 1,700 cities and towns with populations between 15,000 and 150,000. From that list, nearly 800 localities were selected with a high concentration of households with an average income of $75,000.

The magazine then assessed which places best met their family-friendly criteria -- including affordable homes, quality schools, access to health care, green space, low crime rate and financial stability -- and ranked them from top to bottom.

Family Circle then selected the 10 winners from among the highest-rated towns. Other cities or towns in the list — in no particular order — include:

-- Rockwall, Texas

-- Indian Trail, North Carolina

-- Edina, Minnesota

-- Noblesville, Indiana

-- Perrysburg, Ohio

-- Hendersonville, Tennessee

-- Kenmore, Washington

-- Sun Prairie, Wisconsin

-- Evans, Georgia.

Family Circle magazine has a circulation of 3.8 million and 21 million readers making it one of the most widely read monthly magazines in the world.

Patterson said anytime the city, which has a population of 16,420, receives national recognition it reaffirms what most residents already know, that Sherwood is “a special place to live.”

Mayor Keith Mays said he agrees.

"It's a wonderful reflection and compliment to all the families and companies in Sherwood," said Mays. "It's not news to us but it's great to get that recognition by Family Circle."

Pulling her daughter, Ellie, 1½, in a wagon July 9, Liza Jensen, joined by her other children, Denmark, 6, and other daughter, Addie, 3, she said she wasn’t terribly surprised that Sherwood received the nationwide distinction.

“That’s one of the reasons we moved here,” said Jensen, who has lived here for a little under two years.

Jensen said she read about the city’s newest honor on MSN.com and noticed it listed on the Old Robin Hood Theater marquee.

Sherwood now adds the ranking to similar accolades. In 2006, the city was a finalist for an “All American City” ranking and in 2007 Sherwood was listed as No. 18 in Money magazine’s best places to live.

The August issue of Family Circle magazine is now on sale or visit www.familycircle.com.

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