Chanting “We’re #81! We’re #81!” is probably not going to happen, but at least Arlington ranks in the top half of the pack when it comes to urban areas where residents enjoy nice views from their residences.
Lawn Love recently set up parameters and then crunched the data to determine how those heavily populated areas stack up. The study looked at where residents have the nicest park views, mountain views, water views and cityscape views, as well as the air quality in every area.
“With premium sights, Honolulu takes first place overall, landing near the top of almost every metric,” the analysts concluded. “The Big Pineapple might disappoint when it comes to park views (just #146), but who’s missing those when you can see cascading waterfalls, ocean waves and towering volcanoes from your balcony?”
Honolulu, which in addition to topping the overall listing also ranked #1 for city views, was followed on the list by Reno, Nev. (#2 overall and #1 for mountain views), then Seattle; Anchorage; Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.; Irvine, Calif. (#1 in park views); Colorado Springs; Fort Lauderale (#1 in water views); Bellevue, Wash.; and, rounding out the top 10, Cape Coral, Fla.
(Lubbock, Texas, ranked 76th overall but came in first nationally in air quality.)
As for Arlington, it ranked 34th for park views, 51st for city views and 68th for air quality, but was down the list in water views (175th? What about the Potomac River?), which oddly enough was lower than the county’s ranking for mountain views (124th). On the plus side, it did outscore its bigger names-the-same community of Arlington, Texas, which placed 175th.
And other communities found themselves even deeper on the list.
“Not everyone is lucky enough to live in a home with a view that takes your breath away,” analysts noted. “At rock bottom of our ranking, Arizona cities Glendale, Tempe, Chandler and Mesa rank decently in mountain views and park views, but fail to rise in any other metric. And despite being near the Sandia Mountains in New Mexico, many residents are unable to admire the natural beauty of Albuquerque (No. 196 on the list) from their living rooms. The mountains surrounding these cities are obstructed by suburban sprawl and poor air quality.
Air quality also takes its toll on Los Angeles, which ranked 29th overall but was held back from a better result by a 170th ranking in air quality.
Among other Virginia communities, Norfolk placed 36th on the list, Virginia Beach 46th, Newport News 63rd, Richmond 65th, Chesapeake 67th and Alexandria 95th. The District of Columbia was 82nd.
“Even if your home lacks spectacular sights, you can bring beautiful views to your backyard with the art of landscaping,” Lawn Love noted.
Find the full ranking and methodology at https://lawnlove.com/blog/cities-with-best-residential-views.