Irvine Ranked “Safest City in U.S.” by 24/7 Wall St. Public Safety is Linked to Irvine’s Economic and Population Growth in “Virtuous Cycle.”

Recently, using data from the FBI, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed the violent crimes rate in the 294 U.S. cities with populations of at least 100,000 — a population-adjusted measure of incidents of rape, robbery, homicide, and aggravated assault — to identify America’s safest cities. Irvine, California, was found to be the safest city in the United States.

Here is their report published on October 23, 2019, on public safety in Irvine:

“1. Irvine, California
> 2018 violent crime rate: 55.5 per 100,000 people
> 2018 homicides: 0
> Poverty rate: 13.2%
> 2018 unemployment rate: 2.8%

According to the most recent FBI data, there were zero murders, 40 rapes, 53 robberies, and 67 aggravated assaults reported in Irvine in 2018. Adjusted for population, there were just 56 violent crimes reported per 100,000 Irvine residents, by far the lowest rate of any U.S. city with a population of at least 100,000 and less than one-sixth the national violent crime rate.

The low prevalence of crime may have been a pull factor for the large influx of residents who moved to Irvine over the past decade. From 2009 to 2018, the population of Irvine grew by 33.6%, more than five times the 6.6% national growth rate.”

As the Orange County Register’s distinguished business and real estate columnist Jon Lansner reports, “when you compare the safety rankings with local housing prices, it’s no surprise that these safe cities are also among the nation’s priciest places to buy a residence.”

Lansner also notes that Irvine’s public safety success is connected to its economic and population growth in what University of Chicago Senior Fellow John Roman calls a “virtuous cycle.” “Growing cities tend to grow because they’re perceived as safe and that safety compounds in a virtuous cycle,” Roman said. “Safe places get safer.”

Congratulations to our outstanding Police Chief Mike Hamel and to all the dedicated professionals of the Irvine Police Department. I know that Irvine continues to be recognized as America’s safest city because the men and women of the Irvine Police Department perform their duties every day at the very highest levels of professionalism and integrity. Our community knows that our police officers are dedicated to ensuring the safety of our residents and treating everyone with fairness and respect.

Thank you, Irvine Police Department!