MoneySense has ranked 190 Canadian cities, using a variety of criteria to rank everyone in a big list. Ottawa won again this year, Regina leaped to fifth place, and Yorkton has settled in for a fighting 34th. Not terrible, but also a ranking that leaves room for improvement. Since clearly this city is better than, at a minimum, those jerks in Repentigny, Quebec - number 19 on the list, and the city I most want to create an arbitrary rivalry with - it's clear that we've got to work together to kick it up a few places next year.
We've got a leg up on Repentigny in a few areas. In the ability to walk or bike to work, we're 101 places ahead of them. We're also 49 spots ahead when it comes to affordable housing - an area which the city needs to work hard to stay ahead on, since the housing market is getting increasingly compressed. We've also got a better jobless rate, and a much better score in the area of culture, which is based on how many people are employed by the arts segment. We even beat them on weather, which is surprising since Yorkton has been, in the three years I've lived here, home to the most bizarre weather imaginable. I like to think Repentigny is a frozen wasteland battered by freak thunderstorms daily as a result. It's the only explanation.
So where do we need to improve? In the list, Yorkton's greatest weakness is crime, where it is ranked 185th out of 190 cities. This is a complex societal problem that needs a multi-pronged solution, and I can't offer an easy answer. People with a lot more expertise than myself need to look at the areas where Yorkton is most affected by crime, and find ways to combat it in the city. While competitive in most areas, this is one ranking on the list where the city is very low overall, and an important criteria. In the short term, and more fitting with the tone of this piece, I recommend that if you're considering committing a crime, either stop, or travel to a certain Quebec town before doing so.
In less serious news, we're also well behind the people of Repentigny in new car purchases. We're in 159th place to their 9th, which is a major gap, so clearly everyone needs to go out and buy a new car. Maybe the local dealers can help, and hold special sales with the goal of beating that Quebec town in new car ownership overall. Helping this cause could be another area where we're behind, that being overall wages. Repentigny residents, apart from living in a town with an annoying to spell name, appear to have a greater household income - even though we have a barely superior discretionary income, suggesting that Repentigny has a higher cost of living. So, there's only one solution, everyone needs a raise. Then we can use our extra money to buy a new car, and bump this city up in the rankings a bit.
Everyone likes to say their city is the best in the world. Some places even like to rank the cities, in order to give some bragging rights. I'm not sure I agree with the MoneySense criteria - new car purchases seem like a frivolous category - but it does sometimes provide interesting food for thought, especially in areas such as crime. It also gives us a way to find out how to beat the blasted city of Repentigny once and for all.
