INC NEWS - Durham #2 on Forbes list

[RW Pickle]

Raleigh-Durham Ranked #2 by Forbes Magazine as “Best Place For Business
And Careers”
 
Durham, N.C. – The City of Durham is pleased to announce that the
Raleigh-Durham area has been ranked as the second best place in the United
States for business and careers by Forbes Magazine. 
 
“We are excited and pleased to be ranked so highly by such a prestigious
publication,” said William V. “Bill” Bell, Durham’s mayor.  “Durham is a
great place to live and work, and this number two ranking further
illustrates that good things are happening in Durham.”
 
The magazine’s seventh annual ranking of “Best Places for Business and
Careers” relies on Economy.com, the West Chester, Pa. research firm, which
helped the publication weigh business costs (labor, energy, tax, and
office space expenses) and living costs (housing, transportation, food,
and other household expenditures).
 
Economy.com also helped Forbes assess the education levels of the work
force, as well as job and income growth and migration patterns over the
past five years. 
 
For quality-of-life issues, the magazine examined crime rates and used a
culture-and-leisure index developed by Bertrand Sperling, a consultant in
Portland, Ore. who keeps track of museums, theaters, golf courses, sports
teams and so forth.
 
“This distinguished honor illustrates the great things our City is doing
to attract businesses, and subsequently great jobs, to Durham,” said
Patrick W. Baker, Durham’s city manager.  “A large part of our success in
this area is due to the hard work of our Office of Economic and Employment
Development.  They are making significant strides in creating good jobs
and developing a skilled workforce to fill them.”
 
Forbes Magazine Top 10 Best Metros
1.	Boise, Idaho
2.	Raleigh-Durham, N.C.
3.	Austin, Texas
4.	Washington, D.C.
5.	Albuquerque, N.M.
6.	Huntsville, Ala.
7.	Fayetteville, Ark.
8.	Norfolk, Va.
9.	Atlanta, Ga.
10.	Madison, Wis.

 
To read the complete article, visit the Forbes Magazine website at
http://www.forbes.com/home/lists/2005/05/05/05bestplaces.html.