SARASOTA (WSNN) – Best beach in the world. Now, how about the best place to retire. That’s according to U.S. News and World Report.
“Florida has dominated our list this year in a way we haven’t seen in previous years; seven of the top 10 best places to retire this year are in Florida and that’s never happened before,” Senior editor for retirement, Emily Brandon said.
The U.S. News and World Report ranked Sarasota as the No. 1 best place to retire and the 16th best place to live in the country.
After finishing second place last year, Brandon says several factors contribute to Sarasota inching ahead of Fort Myers, this year.
“Sarasota scored highly in a Gallup survey of well-being with residents saying they have supportive social and community relationships,” Brandon said.
She says there are a lot of retirees in the area.
“And that helps you to really feel welcome in a community when there are other people that you can do things with during the day when you’re looking for a retirement spot,” Brandon said.
The city also scored well on the desirability metric, which measures where age 45 and older in the U.S. are most interested in retiring.
“I think retirees have been stuck at home for a very long time now and they’re really dreaming about that Florida beach retirement and Sarasota’s white-sand beaches and palm trees are certainly fun to dream about and aspire to as you sit at home for yet another week,” Brandon said.
Sarasota City Manager, Tom Barwin, says the rankings are not surprising; Sarasota has grown a lot over the years.
“The city itself has morphed since 1902 to a whopping 60,000 people, and we’re a region of almost 800,000 now,” Barwin said.
But Sarasota has more to offer than just fun in the sun.
“People obviously come here for the sun and the aesthetics and learn of the beauty of the region; so much water and greenery and beautiful beaches, but once they’re here a while, they learn about all the activities that are available to them throughout the year,” Barwin said. “So you really can’t beat it, you’re only bored if you want to be.”
There’s a lot of love here on the Suncoast.
Barwin says the future of Sarasota is bright; as more people and traffic come in, city leaders plan to keep Sarasota a place of high-quality living. They’re committed to getting the carbon out of the air, cleaning up our waterways, and restocking our fisheries.
