Owning A Garbage Dump Probably Improved Rating

Hurray! We're Number 12!
By JONATHAN JENKINS, SUN MEDIA

At least we topped Leamington.

Toronto is the 12th best place to live in Canada, according to MoneySense magazine's second annual ranking of the nation's top locations.

It's a huge step up from last year's 33rd spot and two places above Leamington, the nation's tomato capital that topped the chart in 2006. But when Ottawa is this year's winner -- well, who in Hogtown really cares?

"Whenever someone does something like this, there's certain criteria they choose and certain criteria they give weight to," said Glen Stone, spokesman for the Toronto Board of Trade.

And one area MoneySense completely ignored in their ranking this year is multiculturalism, Stone noted.

"Toronto is the most multicultural city in the world," Stone said. "From Albania to Zanzibar, you can get a contact here."

'OTHER'

The rankings also downplay T.O.'s artistic strengths -- with the attractions categories whittled down to whether a city boasts a casino, a capital, sports teams or "other".

"After New York and London, we're the third largest theatre city in the world. You're not going to find another city in the country that has more attractions, and we're the safest large city in North America," Stone said.

But it's not all sour grapes as Stone said some of the areas where Toronto rates poorly are worth taking a hard look at -- such as the city's low percentage of people who bike or walk to work.

"Gridlock and commute times -- these are things that affect people's lives and they have a huge impact on the business community," Stone said. "It's a wake-up call."

The magazine's assessment looks at such categories as real estate, economics, weather, amenities and attractions,

Weather is the single biggest factor, followed by cost of housing and how long it takes to buy a home.