Being cool is hard to measure. The Forbes 2014 List of America’s Coolest Cities defines D.C. as a special place because of many cool elements. By looking behind the data (and considering some examples in D.C. and in the DowntownDC BID area), we can understand how Washington, D.C. ousted Houston, Texas from the top seed in the 2012 America’s Coolest Cities ranking. The data shows us that D.C. is “coolest” for its high-quality art, culture, recreation and food to accommodate a young, diverse and growing population.
Their Coolest City data ranked 20 cities based on six criteria weighted equally: 1) Arts & Culture, 2) Recreation Index, 3) Diversity, 4) Local Eats, 5) Population Age 20-34 and 6) 2010 – 2013 Net Migration. The previous 2012 rankings included a seventh ranking; unemployment, which was not included in the 2014 rankings.
Here’s how Forbes and Sperling’s Best Places (the research firm that provided data for the rankings) measured “Cool” data:
Arts and Culture Index
The Arts and Culture Index considers the cultural mix of restaurants, shops and events. The Washington, D.C. metropolitan area earned a score of 99 out of 100 for art and culture, making D.C. the second coolest city for arts and culture after New York. Austin, Texas scored the lowest, earning 75. The DowntownDC BID area contributes to D.C.’s cultural index with events, such as the National Cherry Blossom Festival, museums including the National Portrait Gallery, an increasing mix of destination and discount shopping and a growing number of destination restaurants.
Recreation Index
The Recreation Index includes green space, the quality of outdoor activities available and the number of professional and college sports teams. The Washington, D.C. area scored 93 out of 100 for recreation, between Los Angeles, which was the top scorer with 100, and the lowest scorer, Raleigh, North Carolina, which received a score of 76. In Washington, D.C., the National Park Service (NPS), the Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR), the Office of Planning (OP) and the District Department of Transportation (DDOT), all play a role in supporting recreational green space in the metropolitan region. The Verizon Center in Downtown continues to play a valuable role as the home venue for D.C.’s professional hockey team, men’s and women’s professional basketball teams, and multiple college teams.
Diversity Index
The Diversity Index measures cultural composition, specifically, the likelihood of meeting someone of a different race or ethnicity. D.C. scored 70.3%, between the highest index in Los Angeles (82.4%) and the lowest (53.8%) in Boston.
Local Eats Index
The Local Eats Index measures the number of restaurants and bars per capita as well as the “city’s ‘foodie’ culture.” San Francisco scored 92.2 for local eats—the highest score. New York scored 89.9 and D.C. scored 68.9. The lowest local eats measure was found in San Antonio, Texas (61.5). Property and business owners in DowntownDC deserve credit for attracting and retaining new restaurants.
Population Age 20-34 Index
The Population Age 20-34 Index measures the young adult professional population. D.C.’s population of 20-34 year olds earned a score of 29.8%, between the highest score in San Diego, California (32.9%) and the lowest (24.6%) in Bethesda, Maryland.
Net Migration Index
The Net Migration Index “…uses information from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and Moody’s Analytics to rank the cities based on population growth since 2010, as well as on how much of their recent growth was due to net migration, since cities with greater influxes of new people tend to be more desirable,” according to Forbes. D.C. had a net migration between 2010 and 2013 of 3.9%. Austin, Texas had the highest net migration (7.5%) and Los Angeles had the only negative migration (-0.6%). D.C. population is growing due to both migrants and births. In 2013, 3,800 people moved into D.C. per month while 3,100 moved out and with 800 births and 400 deaths per month in D.C., the city had a net population increase of 1,100 per month.
D.C.’s Cool
Despite repeated attempts to contact both Forbes and Sperling’s for complete data points, the DowntownDC BID was not successful. Thus, we cannot discuss the methodology used to create the data presented in the Forbes rankings, nor can we independently verify the data.
Forbes’ says they are ranking cities, but most often they are ranking a city and part of the surrounding region. In the 2014 rankings, the city of Washington, D.C. consists of D.C. as well as Arlington and Alexandria, Virginia. The city ranking of Bethesda, Maryland (located just outside of D.C.) includes the nearby cities of Frederick and Rockville, all of which are in Montgomery County. Locally, Bethesda became a little “less cool,” in 2014 moving from the 17th coolest city in 2012 to 19th in 2014. Baltimore was ranked 14th on the 2012 Coolest Cities rankings, but it did not show at all in the 2014 rankings.
Even more challenging than measuring cool is predicting cool or its staying power. Many believe as soon as a place is considered cool, for someone else it is not cool for another person. The recent American Cool exhibit at the National Portrait Gallery in DowntownDC defined cool with elements that cannot be qualified: “a supreme compliment that evokes people who exude rebellious self-expression, charisma, edge, and mystery.” No matter how one defines cool, no city and no one can be cool all the time for everyone. However, D.C. remains home to unique art, culture, recreation and diversity, all of which are here to stay.
To remain “cool” in 2015 and 2016, the city and region must keep investing in its cool existing and future assets, in stadiums, in parks, in restaurants, in schools, in libraries, in theatres, in housing and in a modern network of transportation options all to retain our current residents and businesses and to attract new residents and businesses.