Tucson Tops 'Simple Life' List

By Harry Kimball,  Newser Staff
Posted Jul 28, 2009 1:52 PM CDT
Tucson Tops 'Simple Life' List
Logan Peak is shown in Cache County, Utah.   (AP Photo)

Of all the cities and towns in America, Tucson, Ariz., offers the simplest and most rewarding living, USA Today reports. The AARP studied demographic information and a city’s stress index—a measure of suicide, crime, and divorce rates—to pick places a retiree might relax easily, and cheaply. The desert city, population 541,000, fits. “There are a lot of ways to enjoy living there,” an AARP exec says.

Other towns that made the list:

  • Greenville, SC: Surrounded by picturesque mountains and features "a pedestrian-friendly Main Street," the fruit of years of redevelopment.
  • Montpelier, Vt.: The 7,800 residents of the smallest state capitol in the nation are never bored by the local pastime: politics.
  • Logan, Utah: Nice town, but the view is the clincher. "Any day when I'm feeling frustrated," a resident says, "I just step out my front door and look at this beautiful mountain valley and instantly feel better."
  • Ames, Iowa: The town of 55,000 scores for "wholesome Americana." "It's such a clean little town," a resident says.
(More Tucson, Arizona stories.)

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