Thursday January 16th, 2025 7:59PM

Gainesville named Best-Performing Small City by Milken Institute

By Hamilton Keener Anchor / Reporter

Gainesville-Hall County Metro was recently named the top small city in the Milken Institute’s 2025 ranking of the Nation’s Best-Performing Cities.

Gainesville has been named in the top ten list since 2016 and was ranked third in last year's list.

“It’s an incredible honor and privilege to have the Milken Institute select Gainesville-Hall County as the best-performing small metropolitan area in the United States,” Gainesville Mayor Sam Couvillon said. “It’s recognitions such as these that reaffirm the city’s meticulous actions and make every difficult decision made on behalf of the taxpayers worthwhile while also helping us identify areas of improvement. I think I speak on behalf of the Gainesville City Council, city management, and staff when I say this distinction will further motivate us to keep these trends, and this community, moving forward.”

According to the Milken Institute, the area's top ranking reflects strong job and wage growth and a robust high-tech presence.

“The metro's climb to the top this year comes on the heels of several years of strong labor market conditions. Gainesville placed second, fourth, and ninth in one-year job growth, five-year job growth, and five-year wage growth, respectively, in this year's rankings,” the report read.

The area’s trade and transportation sector experienced the fastest one-year job growth with 8.7% and the education and health services sector had the fastest five-year job growth with 25.8%.

“Gainesville's performance was boosted by its exceptional increase in employment, ranking second in one-year and fourth in five-year job growth. Manufacturing in the poultry industry remains the top employer in Gainesville, with poultry business leaders Fieldale Farms and Victory Processing established there,” according to the institute.

Greater Hall Chamber of Commerce Chairman Glennis Barnes of Georgia Power said the ranking reflects long-term efforts to invest in the area.

“We are grateful to be in the conversation of top performing Metro’s in the Nation, and this year’s #1 ranking affirms our long-term efforts to invest in infrastructure, support workforce development and maintain a business-friendly environment,” Barnes said. “Working together, we can achieve consistent economic development success that has made the Gainesville-Hall County Metro Area a top performer for quality jobs, technology investment and small business growth.”

To read the entire report click here.

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