By Kevin Shalvey
PBN Staff Writer
NEW YORK – Forbes magazine yesterday pegged Providence as the 33rd best city for singles in the United States, up from 40th in the 2007 ranking.
The list this year was topped by Atlanta, followed by San Francisco, Dallas, Minneapolis and Washington, D.C. Providence was in a three-way tie with Cincinnati and Memphis.
“Our rankings are meant to be a guide for young, ambitious singles who, in an age of techno-mobility, can live and work wherever they want,” author Michael Noer wrote. “Our methodology focuses on career-minded, ‘never-marrieds’ under the age of 35. Older singles, divorcees, widows and widowers might find slightly different criteria more relevant to them.”
Providence ranked 19 for culture; 33 for nightlife; 10 for percentage of singles; 30 for job growth; 29 for cost of living; and 17 for its online dating scene.
In discussing Providence’s credentials as a city for singles, the magazine cited Edgar Allen Poe’s courtship of Sarah Helen Whiteman – an affair that was carried on while Poe’s young wife, Virginia Clemm, was dying of tuberculosis. The two would meet at the Providence Athenaeum and a cemetery behind Whiteman’s house, Forbes said.
For additional information, including Forbes magazine’s full 2008 Best Cities for Singles list, visit www.forbes.com.
