A recent report ranked Gainesville No. 20 among best performing cities in the smallest metro category.

The Milken Institute/Greenstreet Real Estate Partners Best Performing Cities Index ranks U.S. metropolitan areas by how well they are creating and sustaining jobs and economic growth. The components include job, wage and salary and technology growth.

The Best Performing Cities ranking depicts those U.S. metropolitan areas that are recording the top economic performance. In the 2008 smallest metro category, Gainesville was ranked 20th overall and ranked seventh in one-year job growth and 12th in five-year job growth. Top performing cities were Midland, Texas; Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, and Bend, Ore.

"Overall, the economy of Gainesville-Hall County is very strong," said Tim Evans, Greater Hall Chamber of Commerce’s vice president of economic development. "Job and investment growth has been diversified over many different business and industry sectors. That diversity in our economic base helps us prosper in good times and spares us some of the pain during a recession."

"It is an honor for the Gainesville MSA to be included in the Milken Institute’s 2008 Report of Best Small Cities," said Chamber President and CEO Kit Dunlap.

"We have always known that we are an economic hub for good jobs, and the Chamber and Economic Development Council will continue to work to keep us at the top," Dunlap said.