Merced County represented on list of top family-friendly cities

Most of the best- and worst-place lists (usually the worst) that Valley cities make with frequency can’t be taken very seriously, but that doesn’t stop folks from getting fired up about them.

The latest is from the ranking and review website Niche.com, which included communities in Merced and Stanislaus counties among the “best towns to raise a family in California” in its top 100 list.

Niche, founded in 2002 by Carnegie Mellon University students as CollegeProwler.com, says it uses “insight from everyday experts” to help students and families make “big life decisions. Every year, we help millions of people find their niche and thrive within it.”

The local communities making its family-friendly list include Los Banos and Merced, as well as Waterford and Patterson in Stanislaus County. Patterson was ranked 73rd, Waterford 80th, Los Banos 83rd and Merced 85th.

The cities were ranked based on grades given for crime and safety, education, access to libraries, community (statistics that capture an area’s involvement and investment in the community), housing, residents age 35 to 44 and residents 9 and younger, access to day care and access to grocery stores.

Merced City Manager John Bramble said he was not surprised the city made the list for young families. “I think the quality of life and the environment for young people is very positive,” he said.

The city has a network of parks and bike paths, he noted. Many of the neighborhoods are walkable, and organizations offer recreational options for children and families. He added that he’s no Pollyanna about Merced, which has its share of problems.

“I really think this is a very safe community, relatively speaking,” he said. “I’d hold it up against any city in the state.”

The Niche staff uses reviews from residents as well as data from the U.S. Census and National Center for Education Statistics, among other sources, for its report.

On Facebook, some readers were skeptical of the findings, questioning why crime and high unemployment wouldn’t drag Merced off the list. But others defended the city.

Merced saw a jump in homicides in 2014 when it set its all-time record with 15, up from five the previous year. But overall crime was down by 4 percent from the previous year, according to statistics from Merced police.

Kelli Flores, one respondent, wondered what could be considered family fun time. “There’s nothing here to do for families!” she wrote. “I end up going to Modesto to do things with my kids.”

Another respondent, Johnny Moore of Merced, pointed to the city’s unemployment rate, saying it’s tough to raise a family if unemployed. “Where are the jobs here in Merced that will help raise a family?” he wrote before naming off fast food jobs in town.

The city has an 11.1 percent unemployment rate, higher than the state average of 7.6 percent, according to the latest number from the Employment Development Department.

Still, others said Merced has a lot going for it, keeping in mind that it’s not a big city at around 80,000 people.

Jonathan McCorkell of Merced noted the city has a zoo, parades, theaters, a mall and other places full of activities. “Merced gets a bad rap on most of these compiled lists, but the reality is, like most cities, there are very distinct parts of the city that reflect vast differences in quality of life,” he wrote.

Careen Kamerer Kuykendall of Merced wrote that she expected never to return to Merced after she left for college, but she came back. Her children are able to stay busy here and she’s pleased with their public education, she said.

“Yes, Merced like all towns has its problems but, for the most part, it has provided a safe place for our family,” she wrote.

To read the rankings and see details of each city’s grades, go to https://local.niche.com/rankings/towns/best-places-for-families/s/california.

This story was originally published July 1, 2015 at 7:05 PM with the headline "Merced County represented on list of top family-friendly cities."