Prairie State Wire

Naperville, Arlington Heights and Bolingbrook were among the 50 U.S. cities of at least 75,000 residents ranked the best places to raise children, according to a new study by the SafeWise website. 

The three Chicago-area cities were among the places SafeWise found to be the least dangerous places in the nation in terms of property crime, violent crime and presence of sex offenders.

Naperville, with a population of nearly 150,000, topped the list, with 0.2 sex offenders per 1,000 residents, a violent crime rate of 0.69 per 1,000 and a property crime rate of 0 per 1,000, according to the analysis.

With a population of 75,688, Arlington Heights finished sixth and reported 0.37 sex offenders per 1,000; a violent crime rate of 0.37 per 1,000; and a property crime rate of 8.3 per 1,000 residents annually.

In the 14th position, Bolingbrook, with a population of 75,451, has 0.61 sex offenders per 1,000; 1.48 violent crimes per 1,000; and 7.85 property crimes per 1,000 residents annually, the study found.

Texas and California had the most cities on the top-50 list, but outside of those states, most of the safest cities in the ranking were spread through the eastern portion of the nation, researchers found.

The study found a link between population and crime, with lower populations being associated with lower crime rates. In addition, population density was found to be a factor in coronavirus infection rates and their effects on public health, according to the analysis, which is based on FBI crime data.

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50 Safest U.S. Cities to Raise Children

Rank	City	Population	Sex Offenders per 1,000	Violent Crime per 1,000	Property Crime per 1,000
1	Naperville, IL	148,457	0.2	0.69	0
2	Johns Creek, GA	85,446	0.02	0.4	6.23
3	Newton, MA	89,505	0.04	0.65	7.03
4	Carmel, IN	94,128	0.16	0.46	7.61
5	Cary, NC	170,518	0.19	0	9.77
6	Arlington Heights, IL	75,688	0.37	0.37	8.3
7	Flower Mound, TX	78,542	0.2	0.57	8.44
8	Fishers, IN	94,035	0.32	0.49	8.67
9	San Ramon, CA	76,569	0.14	0.56	10.27
10	Plymouth, MN	79,559	0.05	0.55	11.36
11	Farmington Hills, MI	81,239	0.73	0.85	8.38
12	New Rochelle, NY	80,340	0.45	1.22	8.29
13	Irvine, CA	288,052	0.13	0.56	12.7
14	Bolingbrook, IL	75,451	0.61	1.48	7.85
15	Mission Viejo, CA	96,419	0.43	1.17	9.72
16	Thousand Oaks, CA	129,319	0.28	0.97	11.44
17	Santa Clarita, CA	216,589	0.07	1.35	11.25
18	Murrieta, CA	114,706	0.46	0.8	12.31
19	Lake Forest, CA	85,302	0.32	1.86	8.92
20	Port St. Lucie, FL	193,137	0.93	1.13	9.58
21	Gilbert, AZ	247,463	0.19	0.95	13.23
22	Frisco, TX	187,889	0.19	0.87	13.64
23	McKinney, TX	189,555	0.5	1.52	10.45
24	Chino Hills, CA	81,177	0.34	0.95	13.29
25	Troy, MI	84,221	0.58	0.62	13.74
26	Allen, TX	103,168	0.5	1.08	12.38
27	Cedar Park, TX	79,087	0.42	1.23	12.21
28	Franklin, TN	80,825	0.47	1.47	12.15
29	Mount Pleasant, SC	89,733	0.02	1.54	13.61
30	Sterling Heights, MI	133,055	0.84	1.8	10.03
31	Glendale, CA	204,724	0.27	0.99	15.19
32	San Marcos, CA	98,088	0.43	2.06	10.73
33	Missouri City, TX	75,628	1.26	1.35	10.78
34	Pearland, TX	124,179	0.62	0.95	14.83
35	Parma, OH	78,968	1.18	1.57	10.71
36	Hampton, VA	133,965	3.47	2.36	0
37	Simi Valley, CA	127,222	0.85	1.68	11.72
38	Somerville, MA	82,161	0.15	2.15	12.41
39	Clifton, NJ	85,732	0.34	1.13	15.79
40	Folsom, CA	78,916	0.41	1.08	15.78
41	Coral Springs, FL	134,640	0.18	1.55	15.05
42	Surprise, AZ	136,611	0.46	1.21	15.39
43	League City, TX	108,275	0.33	1.01	16.75
44	Roswell, GA	95,677	0.34	1.32	15.68
45	Cape Coral, FL	187,869	0.77	1.42	14.38
46	Sugar Land, TX	89,919	0.54	0.91	17.09
47	Pleasanton, CA	84,992	0.25	1.29	17
48	Edmond, OK	93,557	0.86	1.36	15.22
49	Meridian, ID	103,774	1.54	1.59	12.14
50	Danbury, CT	85,818	1.18	1.55	13.55

Source: SafeWise.com