According to Forbes magazine, Lake City is in good shape to weather the current economic crisis.
In the most recent issue of Forbes, the magazine lists the most and least vulnerable towns in the United States. Using criteria that focuses on 141 micropolitan areas in the nation, Lake City ranks 95th out of the 141 — the higher the ranking, the better, Forbes explained.
The study took into account various data to list and rank each city. To evaluate the strength of each town, the magazine used August unemployment numbers from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and 2007 Census data on median income, poverty, education levels and outstanding mortgage debt.
While there are more than 141 towns classified as micropolitan — there are more than 500, actually — the U.S. Census does not track those with populations less than 65,000. To be classified as this, the towns must have an urban core of at least 10,000 — and up to 50,000 — and have a county population between 65,000 and 180,000. Ruiz said the 2007 U.S. Census listed Columbia County with approximately 76,552 residents, with a margin of error of approximately 6,000 residents.
Of the Florida cities listed, only one — Key West, which is labeled the second least vulnerable town in the U.S. — ranks higher than Lake City.
SOURCE: LAKE CITY REPORTER November 9th, 2008. Click here to read the entire article