Quality Of Life

THE LATEST census figures should set off alarm bells for everyone in metropolitan Baltimore who cares about the quality of life in his or her community. So far, we have only the basic outline; the details don't come until next month. But there is enough in the initial figures to cause alarm. For example: Baltimore is by far the fastest-shrinking major city in the nation. Now that other cities are either slowing their decline (Detroit, Milwaukee, Philadelphia) or growing (New York, Chicago, Indianapolis, Columbus)

ST. PAUL, Minn. - Of all the states in the nation, Minnesota is still "the most caring," according to one report. A national study released this week by the United Way of America reported that Minnesota offers the best quality of life based on six criteria, including health care, education and financial well-being. The caring report highlights the efforts of Minnesotans such as Mindy Grantham, who has lived in seven states and recently moved to Minneapolis from New York City. "I had forgotten how sweet everyone is, and I kept thinking it was just an act, but it's not," said Grantham, who spends five hours a week mentoring an 11-year-old girl.

In her one-woman play, Moving at the Speed of Life, Kristen Valerio explores the challenge of maintaining a decent quality of life while keeping pace in a culture that seems to be moving ever faster. For her depiction of life in the fast lane, she drew on the experiences of living in Manhattan for eight years. For an understanding of how the little things matter, she reflected on a childhood spent in Annapolis. "It is my roots growing up on the Chesapeake that keep me craving a richer quality of life," said Valerio, whose show was opening last night at Towson University, with additional performances set for tonight, tomorrow and Saturday.

Baltimore's long-struggling west side is outperforming the rest of downtown - even the waterfront - on jobs and some other measures of economic vitality, a sign that redevelopment efforts are gaining traction. That statistical barometer of health comes from the nonprofit Downtown Partnership of Baltimore Inc.'s 2004 "state of downtown" report, which will be released today and paints a mostly positive picture of the city's core. Downtown as a whole lost about 765 jobs but gained twice that number of residents.

Quality of life is a lot like beauty -- it often lies in the eye of the beholder. Even so, it's encouraging news when an overwhelming majority of Baltimore-area residents rate their quality of life as good or excellent, despite concerns about drugs, crime and the quality of area schools. A new survey conducted for the Baltimore Regional Council has found that 78 percent of residents in the metropolitan area rate their community's quality of life as good or excellent. But behind all the statistics are some worrisome trends.

An unusual attempt to compare the effectiveness of an unorthodox cancer treatment to that of conventional chemotherapy has found that both were equally ineffectual in extending the lives of men and women with terminal cancer.The study, published in today's New England Journal of Medicine, found no difference in the length of survival between patients treated at the University of Pennsylvania Cancer Center and patients at an alternative-treatment clinic in San Diego.The researchers did, however, find that the conventionally treated patients reported a higher "quality of life" than patients at the Livingston-Wheeler Clinic -- despite many claims made for alternative therapies and despite the toxicity of chemotherapy.

Cities with highest quality of life 1 Zurich, Switzerland 2 Geneva, Switzerland 3 Vancouver, British Columbia 4 Vienna, Austria 5 Auckland, New Zealand 6 Dusseldorf, Germany 7 Frankfurt, Germany 8 Munich, Germany 9 (tie) Bern, Switzerland, and Sydney, Australia From a survey by Mercer Human Resource Consulting Co. based on interviews with residents.

With everyone from dog catcher to U.S. senator vowing to fight crime, there's no denying the issue's resonance among voters this season. But the real angst in many suburban areas isn't about the growth of crime; in many residents' eyes, it's over the crime of too much growth.In Howard County, Republican Executive Chuck Ecker faces a vociferous challenge from Democrat Susan Gray, whose single issue is attacking higher density and increased residential growth. In Harford County -- a once-rural outpost transformed dramatically in the past decade -- the County Council presidency is being sought by councilwoman Theresa Pierno, who has made a name for herself as a grassroots growth-combatant.

Paul's Place Outreach Center is a wide-ranging community center in Southwest Baltimore's Pigtown neighborhood. The center has a dining room where lunch is served five days a week. Paul's Place also includes a clothing center, literacy program and computer lab, as well as programs for children. The mission of Paul's Place is to improve the quality of life in Southwest Baltimore, according center's Web site. A quote in the dining room reads, "Hope, personal dignity and growth in a welcoming, safe and respectful environment."

An overwhelming majority of Baltimore-area residents say the quality of life here is good or excellent, although city residents are less enthusiastic than are their county neighbors, according to a massive metropolitan survey announced today.The poll, prepared by the University of Baltimore's Schaefer Center for Public Policy this spring in a partnership with the Baltimore Regional Council of Governments, asked 2,500 area residents to rate life in their community and identify the region's most pressing concerns.