Money Magazine |
The Best Places to Live Today Great Jobs-Low Crime-Easy Living July 1997 By Ann Knol, Kevin Peraino, Sarah Rose and Mary Schaefer Ranked 10th in the U.S.: FORT WALTON BEACH, FLA. Area population: 160,800 Unemployment rate: 3.8% Four-bedroom house: $114,900 Property tax: $1,618; Sales tax: 7% Top state and local income tax: None Violent crimes per 100,000 people: 335 Annual sunny days: 220 In 1950, Fort Walton Beach, located on Florida's northern Panhandle, was a fishing village with about 2,400 residents. My, how times have changed! The city now has roughly 22,000 people, and last year new-housing permits in what locals call the Redneck Riviera (all of Okaloosa County) grew a stunning 48%, second in the U.S. only to No. 8 San Jose. Destin, a nearby sliver of a town along pristine white-sand beaches, is the locus for most of the development--$250,000-plus properties that are often second homes for Alabamans, Georgians and Tennesseans. But in inland towns like Fort Walton Beach, Niceville (we're not kidding!) and Valparaiso, where most of the year-round population lives, you can find three-bedroom houses for as little as $85,000. Inland doesn't mean landlocked, though. This is a fisherman's paradise; Wisconsin may have its Cheeseheads, but here the locals call themselves Fishheads. The impossibly beautiful blue-green waters of the Gulf brim with grouper, cobia and bluefish, while sparkling lakes, rivers, bays and bayous conceal bass, trout and catfish. Niceville's three-day Boggy Bayou Mullet Festival is a perennial favorite for Panhandle residents (who like their mullet fried, by the way). The year-round warm--but not too hot--weather draws raves too. There are actually four seasons here, as evidenced by the pinetrees, magnolias and oaks gracing the area. But the January temperature rarely dips below 40 (degrees) F. One warning: Summer humidity hovers around 74%, so prepare for some really bad hair days. Despite the lure of the great outdoors, people here take work seriously. Unlike some other Florida spots, a mere 10% of residents are over 64. Few places can brag about stronger job growth--the 10th highest of our 300 places. Jobs are expected to grow 74% faster than the average metro area over the next three years, according to NPA Data Services. Eglin Air Force Base is the main economic engine. The724-square-mile installation employs 9,500 military personnel and 4,300 civilians (about 12 times more than defense contractor Vitro, the largest private employer in the county). Many of the highly skilled workers stay here after their hitch, finding work at high-tech engineering and consulting firms. "Small and mid-size technology companies, attracted by the talented workforce, are helping to drive our economic development," says Eddie E. Phillips, a local technical management consultant. Since the nearest pro sports teams are four to five hours away in Atlanta, high school sports are a major event. "People come two hours in advance to get a seat on the bleachers, even if they don't have kids playing," says Kellie Jo Kilberg, a director of the county's Economic Development Council. Little wonder that everyone here couldn't be more proud that current Heisman Trophy winner Danny Wuerffel is a native son. |
