(Washington, DC) - In remarks delivered Wednesday on the Floor of the House of Representatives, Congressman Jason Altmire (PA-4) honored Pittsburgh, America's "most livable" city. 

"It is a true pleasure for me to stand here tonight to talk about my favorite city, the City of Pittsburgh, which has once again been named by Places Rated Almanac as America's 'most livable' city," said Congressman Altmire.  "Places Rated Almanac has been designating cities as livable for 26 years, and Pittsburgh is the first city to ever repeat.  I can't tell you how happy I am to have this designation because this shows the rest of the country and the rest of the world what we already know in southwestern Pennsylvania - that Pittsburgh is a great place to live and work."

Places Rated Almanac rated Pittsburgh against 379 U.S. cities based on nine categories:  housing, transportation, jobs, education, climate, crime, health care, recreation and ambiance.  In his remarks, Congressman Altmire pointed out that Pittsburgh:

•    Ranked in the top 30 percent in the housing category.  The average home in Pittsburgh sells for $112,000, which is 49 percent below the national average.  The cost of living in Pittsburgh is 93 percent of the national average;
•    Ranked in the top 25 percent for jobs.  For the past 100 years, Pittsburgh is still one of the nation's top corporate centers, hosting headquarters to Fortune 500 companies such as Alcoa, Heinz, Mellon, PNS, PPG, U.S. Steel and WESCO International.  More than 90 multi-billion dollar, global corporations call Pittsburgh home;
•    Lays claim to 34 colleges and universities, including the University of Pittsburgh and Carnegie Mellon University which are consistently ranked the best in the nation;
•    Leads the country in medical research and innovation and boasts world-class health care with the 14th ranked overall health system and the 11th ranked children's hospital;
•    Has more theaters in a concentrated area than any city outside of New York City and boasts the second best cityscape view in America; and
•    Ranked in the top six percent in recreation with 38 miles of shoreline, world-class sports facilities and teams, and white water rafting and skiing within 90 minutes of the city center. 

"While the 'most livable city' designation may have come as a surprise to some people around the country, I stand here tonight to tell my colleagues that Pittsburgh is a fantastic place to live and work, especially for young people," said Congressman Altmire.  "We are doing a much better job now attracting and retaining a younger workforce, and we have shown that we have young and dynamic leadership."