Salina: Most Affordable Location in Kansas
Rachel Hinde - Fri 08:38 AM 02/08/2013
Nationally, Salina ranks thirty-nine out of 298 cities placing it in the top thirteenth percent in terms of affordability.
The 2012 American Chamber of Commerce Research Association Annual Cost of Living Index lists Salina with the lowest Composite Index Rate in Kansas out of six participating cities. The other participating cities in the state include; Dodge City (94.3%), Hutchinson (91.2%), Manhattan (92.9%), Topeka (92.5%) and Wichita (91.4%).
This is Salina’s sixth year in a row to have the lowest Composite Index Rate in Kansas at 90.1%. Nationally, Salina ranks thirty-nine out of 298 cities placing it in the top thirteenth percent in terms of affordability.
Salina Area Chamber of Commerce President, Dennis Lauver said, “not only do we offer the most affordable place to live in Kansas, but we offer the best place to raise a family and also retire.” Lauver’s comment is in reference to multiple times in the last five years that Business Week magazine named Salina as the best place to raise a family in the state of Kansas. A recent study conducted by On Numbers, a national business blog affiliated with the Wichita Business Journal, concluded Salina is the destination of choice for Kansas retirees.
The Council for Community and Economic Research produces the American Chamber of Commerce Research Association Cost of Living Index to provide a useful and reasonably accurate measure of living cost differences among urban areas. The ACCRA Cost of Living Index measures relative price levels for consumer goods and services in participating areas. The average for all participating places, both metropolitan and nonmetropolitan, equals 100, and each participant’s index is read as a percentage of the average for all places.
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thetruth
Friday 8 February 2013 09:12 Report this comment
I will have to respectfully disagree with the statement about Salina being a good place to raise one's family. I raised my family in Salina, regretablly, so I know. Thankfully, my kids are now grown and have moved on. I pray that I did not do too much damage to them by raising them in Salina. They now live elsewhere and to a child (3 total), they recognize Salina for what it is and are tremendously elated to be out of that town.
pissed_patriot
Friday 8 February 2013 10:14 Report this comment
As someone who was born and raised in Salina too I disagree. The places that are affordable are slums, good paying, steady jobs are rare. Drugs and crime are rampant, and nothing seems to be getting better. This is truly a dead end town.
jimdingo
Friday 8 February 2013 10:20 Report this comment
I disagree, I've got a good job, low property tax, and it only takes 10 minutes to get to work. I was raised in Denver, big city life sucks real bad.
pops67401
Friday 8 February 2013 10:40 Report this comment
I disagree as well. i sure wish I could afford to get out of this pit of a city
ShadowCipher
Friday 8 February 2013 10:48 Report this comment
Statistics are a funny thing. They can be manipulated to show the best qualities, or the worst. Salina, KS is not a bad town, but it certainly can do better. The two most common complaints I hear from people out of town is A) where are the good paying jobs? B) Why does everything look ran down?
ShadowCipher
Friday 8 February 2013 10:49 Report this comment
We have some parts of Salina I am very proud of, but the city government's choice to grow to increase tax revenue rather than improve quality of life is a daft choice. We have beautiful homes decaying, and new cookie-cutter homes being built. We have a stagnant local economy that relies on interstate traffic to support our growing (low wage) service sector; We've been stuck with the same major manufacturers that threaten to leave if they don't have their way... The City of Salina must, in my opinion, focus on reviving decaying parts of town, support small business, and provide quality education. This city has it's issues, but we are still at a point where things can get turned around if the citizens become active and vocal on what they want.
Yobanger
Friday 8 February 2013 11:08 Report this comment
That's because it's the crappiest place in Kansas, and by that measure, the entire world! Salina and Kansas is 70 years behind the rest of the free world!
tlamastus
Friday 8 February 2013 13:39 Report this comment
I would not want to live in Salina. My daughter is grown now but did not move to Salina. I am so happy my daughter did not go to Salina to school. I don't shop in Salina unless I absolutly have to.
t--bone
Saturday 9 February 2013 00:23 Report this comment
Salina used to be a nice place many years ago. But today with low paying jobs, high crime rate and a city commission more concerned about gay rights than improving our city is a sham. Their insight to improving the city is reflected in the scrape metal called art out there on 9th street. They feel improving the city is closing Greely Ave so we can no longer access the fair grounds. Then one of them has the guts to run for re-election, well she is in for a rude awakening.
Aurora.
Sunday 10 February 2013 00:27 Report this comment
Old Dennis L. of the chamber tries everything he can to make like he is doing his job. But the fact remains we have no big employers entering Saline that pay big wages. Maybe he needs to spend a week down at the food bank or a week at the hospital to see the many people who cannot pay for services.