Published by Sunset.com Bruce Anderson, Peter Fish, Caroline Hetzel, Matthew Jaffe, Michelle Lau, Sarah Max, Ken McAlpine, Jessica Mordo, and Nora Burba Trulsson

We searched the West for towns, cities, and neighborhoods that are easy to love. All our winners boast a strong sense of community—the gift of making you feel like you belong.

Best medium-size town: Ogden, UT Back in the 1990s, Ogden's 25th Street was seedy. Now, 25th Street draws crowds for the restaurants and cafes and yoga studios that occupy its historic buildings. And Ogden itself is on a roll. Thirty-five miles north of Salt Lake City, Ogden always differed from more genteel Utah cities, a railroad and stockyard town with rough edges. But it also had wealth—appealing residential neighborhoods whose homes ranged from bungalows to mansions. And it had a world-class setting at the base of the Wasatch Range.

It was the setting that started Ogden’s revival. In 2002, the local ski resort Snowbasin hosted the downhill ski competitions in the Salt Lake Olympics, and the Olympic torch was carried down Washington Boulevard. By then, it was agreed that, thanks to the decline of the railroads, both street and city had seen better days. The city used the Olympics as a springboard to rebrand itself. The city began hosting big outdoor sports events, including the Xterra USA Championship triathlon and the Ogden Marathon. This let athletes and outdoor recreation companies discover Ogden—not just its natural assets but also its low cost of living compared to Utah’s more famous resort towns.

At the same time, the city was sprucing up 25th Street. Old buildings were no longer torn down; instead, they were renovated to house restaurants. It’s also home to the kind of community events that thrive in Ogden, like September’s Harvest Moon Celebration. The revived Ogden boasts other new amenities. The Junction mixed-use development frames the newly renovated and imposing Mormon Temple. Nearby stands Lindquist Field, home to the Raptors, Ogden’s minor-league baseball team. The UTA Rail commuter train will get you to Salt Lake City International Airport in about an hour.

Population: 84,316. Median home price: $117,500.

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