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America's Best Places To Live 2008

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No 1: Plymouth, Minn.

Population: 70,100

Miles from Minneapolis: 10

Number of lakes: Eight

Rank of its main school district: Top three in the state

Pros: Plenty of green, great schools, close to the Twin Cities

Con: A long, cold winter

When Steve and Sarah Berg had their second son, Tanner, back in 1993, they were living in a Minneapolis suburb full of older people and craving a more congenial place to raise their family. They drove through Plymouth and knew they'd found the perfect spot. "It was National Night Out, and we went past all these neighborhoods with hundreds of kids outside, and I said, ‘Okay, we've got to move here,' " remembers Sarah, a 43-year-old stay-at-home mom. She and Steve, 43, a managing director at an investment firm, bought a house near the wooded 310-acre French Regional Park, and they've never looked back. "Whether it's grocery shopping, entertainment, friends or activities," Sarah says, "Plymouth is great for raising a family."

Courtesy of City of Plymouth

Steve Berg and sons Tanner (left) and Andrew head to Medicine Lake

Topnotch schools, good jobs, affordable housing, low crime, an active outdoor culture-yep, they're pretty much all here. Ten miles from Minneapolis and 18 from St. Paul, Plymouth (originally a Dakota Indian settlement) could easily have become just another Twin Cities suburb. But more than 50,000 jobs in industries from professional services to education keep many residents working in town. Home prices, while not dirt cheap, are hardly stratospheric: The typical three-bedroom, two-bath house goes for $350,000. Education is a big draw-the city's main school district is ranked among the top three in the state-and the arts are close at hand. Plymouth's open-air amphitheater, the Hilde Performance Center, hosts numerous summer concerts, including symphonies by the Minnesota Orchestra. Residents are a quick drive from the Twin Cities' professional sports teams and the Mall of America, the nation's biggest mall.

Courtesy of City of Plymouth

Kids playing at the Hilde Performance Center

And did we mention the outdoors? Plymouth boasts more than half a dozen sizable bodies of water, including Medicine Lake, a huge (900-plus-acre) magnet for boaters, water skiers and fishermen. Want to learn how to wakeboard? The city offers a tutorial. And with 53 parks and more than 100 miles of trails, residents such as finance director Darren Harmon, 38, can walk, bike and jog on paths that connect every neighborhood. "There are lots of places to go to enjoy a meal or a cup of coffee," he adds.

Of course, this being Minnesota, winter can be brutal: The average low temperature in January is about 13°F. But when the mercury plummets, the locals get busy. In February the city hosts a Fire & Ice Festival that includes mini-golf, bowling and basketball-all right on the ice. "There are sledding hills everywhere, and ice rinks and lakes for skating," says Della Kolpin, 45, an architect. "When you live in Minnesota, you embrace it."