Top 10 places to raise a family: Bay Village makes list

BAY VILLAGE, Ohio - Bay Village has a population just over 15,000, an average income at $80,000 and home prices under $200,000. Those are just a few factors that helped it rank one of the Top 10 Places to Raise a Family in the nation. That’s right, the nation.

In the August issue of Family Circle magazine, Bay Village is the only Ohio city to make the list.

"We are very excited," said Bay Village Mayor Deborah Sutherland. "We found out Monday we got it."

Actually, the secret was kept in a lot longer. It's the second time Bay Village has been on the radar for the honor -- and the list -- only this year, coming in much higher.

Sutherland was contacted by the magazine in 2011, but in the end, Bay Village didn't crack the top 10. Instead, the city ranked in the top 20.

As recent as February, the mayor said the publication reached out to her again, asking she go through the process one more time.

"Only about four people knew what was going on," Sutherland said from her home as she was readying to head out for Fourth of July festivities.  

All of this comes on the heels of Bay Village being named one of the top communities by Cleveland Magazine. Safe to say Bay Village is on a high.

"It's a feather in our cap. A wonderful place to live," explained Sutherland.

Family Circle judged more than 3,400 similar-sized cities when it named its Top 10.

On the Web: Family Circle http://on.wews.com/Nb77Q8