If you’ve spent time in downtown Providence, you know firsthand what a walkable, historic and special place it is. While we like to think of it as one of the best kept secrets on the East Coast, we also love seeing our neighborhood get well-deserved national attention! Just this week, two rankings confirmed what we already know—that Providence is both livable and exciting!

Livability.com, a website that explores ‘America’s best places to live and visit,’ issued its list of the top 10 best downtowns for 2014, ranking downtown Providence #2! The site described our city as “one of the most vibrant communities on the East Coast,” noting “new construction, major renovations and businesses moving in.” It points out the renovation of the Providence Public Library, the transformation of Kennedy Plaza, and the adaptive reuse of the Arcade as positive indicators, along with Hasbro’s expansion into downtown office space. The top 5 included Alexandria, VA; Provo, UT; Indianapolis, IN; and Fort Worth, TX in the top spot.

Just days later, real estate blog Movoto compared 117 cities with populations ranging from 120,000 to 210,000, and ranked Providence as its #1 most exciting mid-sized city! We ranked 3rd overall for nightlife, 5th overall for live music venues and 5th overall for non-fast food dining. Providence was followed by Charleston, SC; Ft. Collins, CO; Eugene, OR and Syracuse, NY.

We have a lot to be proud of. Keep the accolades coming!