Bettendorf, Davenport make national "Best Places to Live" lists

Money Magazine took stock of roughly 1,800 American communities for their annual August "Best Places to Live" edition, and several communities in Iowa and Illinois, including two metro cities, made the cut.

Bettendorf, Iowa, ranked 80th on Money's "Top 100 Best Places to Live," the only top-100 finish for a local community: "Like gambling? Bettendorf may be the place for you. The town's gently rolling hills give way to the mighty Mississippi River and to the area's largest employer, the Isle Casino Hotel -- the first riverboat casino in the nation.

Kids in Bettendorf enjoy the Splash Landing water park and the interactive Family Museum and attend elementary schools with names such as " Mark Twain" and " Grant Wood."

With the nearest major city (Chicago) 180 miles away, Bettendorf has done much to enhance its own economic development, and is currently one of very few cities in the nation to have a fiber optic network available to all of its businesses."

Davenport, Iowa, also made the cut, ranking #16 nationally when it came to housing, as Money looked at the communities that give home buyers the most bang for their buck:

"The mighty Mississippi flows through countless American cities, but it flows differently in Davenport.

The city is situated on the only section of the nation's second-longest river that runs east to west. Davenport also shares a border with Illinois and is often referred to as "Iowa's front porch."

Davenport is part of the Quad-Cities area, which, despite its name, is made up of five cities in both Iowa and Chicago.

The city hosts a number of annual music festivals and sporting events. Farm equipment maker John Deere is one of Davenport's largest employers. The city boasts two universities..."

Several other communities in Iowa and Illinois ranked on other various lists.

When it came to the "Top 25 Quickest Commutes," Grinnell, Iowa came in at #1, followed by Fairfield, Iowa at #3, Storm Lake, Iowa at #4 and Mount Pleasant, Iowa at #11.

The "Top 25 Cities" for "Rich and Single" people featured the Illinois cities of Oak Park at #7 and Lisle at #17.

To see the entire list and full rankings: http://money.cnn.com/magazines/moneymag/bplive/2009/index.html