ST. GEORGE — St. George ranked first out of 138 small metropolitan areas in the 2006 annual "most secure areas to live" survey commissioned by the Farmers Insurance Group of Companies.

The report, released Monday, ranked the top 20 "most secure places to live" in the United States, according to survey results compiled by bestplaces.net

"It's good news. It seems like no matter what list is out there, we're on it," said St. George Mayor Dan McArthur, who is serving his fourth term in office. "People are finding out what we already knew. St. George is a great place to live and raise a family."

The rankings, compiled by Bert Sperling, a database expert with bestplaces.net, were based on crime rates, environmental hazards, terrorism threats, unemployment rates, job growth and the potential for extreme weather conditions for 379 communities around the nation.

"The job growth in St. George has apparently been hitting on all cylinders, and the crime rate is still very low," Sperling said in a telephone interview. "Basically, it looks like St. George has really been discovered over the last few years. We're certainly seeing it (St. George) more and more in our studies."

Washington County's phenomenal growth over the past few years has brought many challenges to residents and community leaders alike, McArthur said.

"I think there are pluses and minuses to being on lists like these," he said. "It indicates to me that the city is safe, managed well, and it reassures residents that we're working hard. I just didn't want everybody to say it so loud."

St. George Police Chief Marlon Stratton was pleased with the rating.

"It's good for me to hear this. It shows what we're doing is making a difference," said Stratton. "I believe we're successful because of the outstanding collaboration we have from some of our citizens. It's not just the police anymore."

The St. George Police Department assigns officers to patrol specific sections in the city for a one-year period. Each officer is expected to meet with residents and solve problems unique to the assigned area.

Communities were ranked in the small, medium and large metropolitan categories. St. George ranked first in the small cities category, those with fewer than 150,000 residents. In the mid-size category, those cities with 150,000 to 500,000 residents, Provo/Orem ranked 11th, while the Ogden/Clearfield area ranked 36th out of the 127 cities surveyed nationwide.

Among large cities, or those with 500,000 or more residents, Salt Lake City dropped from its 2005 ranking of 41st to 53rd out of 114 cities in the survey this year.

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E-mail: nperkins@desnews.com