If you’re thinking about a move to Plano, it’s necessary to consider the facts.
Here, discover detailed information about different aspects of Plano life. These statistics should answer any questions that you might have about moving here.

• In October 2006, Plano became the safest city in North Texas and the second safest city in all of Texas according to the Morgan Quitno 13th Annual America’s Safest Cities and Metropolitan Area Awards. Using 2005 FBI crime data, the ranking compares the city’s population with the number of offenses classified as murder, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary and motor vehicle theft.
• The city-operated Plano Television Network added a second Lone Star Emmy to its growing list of state and national awards in 2006.
• The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency honored the City of Plano as one of the “Best Workplaces for Commuters” in August 2006.
• “D Magazine” rated Plano second of Dallas suburban populations of 80,000 or more. Plano was also rated second for education in July 2006
• “Money Magazine” ranked Plano 11th among “Best Places to Live” and “Best Places to Retire” in 2006.
• The League of Women Voters of Texas awarded the City of Plano the 2006 Government Award for Excellence in Environmental Awareness.
• Plano was featured as one of 100 cities in the 2006 Edition of the “America’s Top-Rated Cities: A Statistical Handbook.”
• The National Fire Protection Association named Plano a Risk Watch Safe Community, dedicated to keeping children safe from unintentional injury.
• The American Music Conference lists Plano among the “Best 100 Communities for Music Education in America.”
• The North Texas Clean Air Coalition recognized Plano in November 2005 as one of the “2005 Best Workplaces for Commuters.”
• In June 2005 Plano was sixth in The Robbery Report as a safe city by “Men’s Health” after an analysis of FBI data on robbery, burglary and vehicle theft along with identity theft information from the Federal Trade Commission and computer intrusion data from the Justice Department. Plano’s internationally-accredited Police Department has one of the lowest crime rates in Texas for cities with populations over 100,000.
• “Aquatics International” magazine honored Plano’s recreation facilities in its “2005 Best of Aquatics.”
• In 2005 Plano’s Public Safety Communications Department became accredited as a Communications Center through the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement (CALEA). The department also received the Team 9-1-1 Award of Merit from the Texas Commission on State Emergency Communicators.
• Recipient of the 2004 Keep Texas Beautiful Governor’s Community Achievement Award of Excellence and the Keep Texas Beautiful Gold Star Affiliate Award. Plano was honored with the 2005 Environmental Vision Award from the North Texas Corporate Recycling Association, along with the 2005 Outstanding “Closing the Loop” award for the Plano Material Exchange.
• Plano was the 41st fastest-growing city in the United States of cities with populations of 100,000 or more at the time of the 2000 Census, according to 2005 Census Bureau estimates.
• Nationally accredited since 1994, the Plano Parks and Recreation Department is also a three-time winner of the National Gold Medal for Excellence in Parks and Recreation Management and has been recognized as a Tree City USA by the National Arbor Day Foundation for 16 years.
• Plano remains one of only a few cities in the United States that’s General Obligation Bonds receives the highest possibly bond rating from Moody’s Investor Service, Standard & Poor’s and Fitch IBCA, Duff & Phelps. In issuing their ratings the companies have lauded the City of Plano for its quality of fiscal management as well as its diverse economic development and corporate headquarter relocation and retention.
• The Fire Department has a Class 1 ISO (Insurance Service Office) rating, one of only seven cities in Texas and 45 communities nationally, which is the highest fire protection classification awarded. The Fire Department is the only fire department in Texas to achieved accreditation in both fire and emergency medical services (EMS) with the Commission on Fire Accreditation International (CFAI).
• “Men’s Health” ranked Plano fifth as one of the best cities for men in November 2004.
• The 2004 Texas Municipal League Municipal Excellence Award in Public Works for cities with a population of 25,000 or more was awarded to Plano.
• Plano was named Cricket City of America in June 2004 by the North Texas Cricket Association for its youth cricket programs, hosting the first East-West USA Cricket Conference.
• “D Magazine” recognized Downtown Plano as one of the “Best Places to Live for Community Spirit” in April 2004.
• “Money Magazine” named Plano “America’s hottest town in the West” in January 2004.
  m 1994 All-America City recipient.

A Great Place to Live!

• Texas is a Right-to-Work State.
• City tax-abatement incentives have created approximately 44,000 new jobs.
• Plano has 10,624 registered businesses.
• 92.5% of Plano’s workforce has 12+ years of schooling.
• 52.1% of Plano’s adult workforce has 4+ years of college.
• 36.7% of the people who work in Plano live in Plano.
• The unemployment rate in Plano from January through September 2006 ranged from 4.3% to 4.0%.
  (Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Plano Economic Development Board, Registered USA and Texas Workforce Commission)

A Great Place to Work!

• 252,950 residents (Jan. 1, 2006 NCTCOG estimate)
• 20 miles north of downtown Dallas
• Located in Collin and Denton Counties with 98.0% of the population living in Collin County
• Corporate boundaries include 72.5 square miles
• Census Data from the American Community Survey revealed Plano has the lowest poverty rate in the nation for cities with population of 250,000 and more. Plano had the highest median household income at $71,560.

Quality of Life

• Five public libraries with 738,939 volumes and a circulation of 2,890,139 annually, with an online catalog system and Web page, and Internet access for public use.
• 86,400-square-foot, full-service convention center
• Senior Citizens Center
• Six recreation centers
• Five golf courses (three public)
• 51 lighted public tennis courts; 30 unlighted public tennis courts
• 80 public parks (comprising 3,809 acres)
  
• Six public swimming pools
• Two area lakes
• 50 miles of recreational trails with an extensive linear park system, including greenbelts
• 72 lighted soccer/football fields; 21 unlighted soccer/football fields
• 53 lighted baseball/softball fields; Eight unlighted baseball/softball fields
• Performance theater
• Amphitheater

Water

The City of Plano participates in the North Texas Municipal Water District (NTMWD) for provision of treated water, treatment of waste water and disposal of solid waste. Plano’s water pressure remains at a 55 psi average throughout the system. The maximum daily water system pumping capacity for Plano is 258 million gallons. The city’s one-day maximum usage remains at 136 million gallons.

The NTMWD sewer system has a maximum daily waste water capacity of 68
million gallons and the sewer system’s daily average use in Plano is 28 million gallons.
The City of Plano Customer & Utility Services department on a monthly basis reads an average of 78,407 meters, and bills 77,800 water accounts, 73,444 sewer accounts and 67,739 refuse accounts.

The City provides, to an average of 67,590 households, weekly household refuse and yard trimmings collection and bi-weekly residential recycling
collection. Last year Plano disposed of 226,021.27 tons of solid waste through the NTMWD disposal system.
(Source: City of Plano Public Works and Customer & Utility Services)

Public Safety

Plano’s nationally-accredited Police Department maintains one of the lowest crime rates for Texas cities with over 100,000 population. The Plano Police Department has authorized 351 sworn officers, and 155 full-time and 81 part-time civilian employees.

The Crime Prevention Unit coordinates a variety of community-oriented programs and serves as liaison to 193 neighborhood Crime Watch groups actively involved in many department-sponsored programs. The unit conducts the Youth, Citizen and Senior Citizen Police Academies held several times each year, and conducts free security surveys for homeowners.

The Police Department works closely with the Plano Independent School District (PISD). The Department has 20 officers and two sergeants assigned to PISD’s middle schools, high schools and senior high schools. Many sworn officers and civilian employees serve as mentors for PISD’s Host/Mentorship Program. Most elementary schools have a volunteer “Adopt-A-Cop.”

The Police Department practices community-oriented policing, focusing on problem solving. The department has 10 officers and one sergeant in its Neighborhood Police Officer Unit assigned to designated residential neighborhoods and the Downtown Business District. Neighborhood Police Officers use a variety of tactics to solve problems in their assigned neighborhoods and patrols. The Department’s program to curb illegal, street racing in Plano was recognized in 2002 by the Police Executive Research Forum as one of the 16 best problem- oriented policing initiatives in the nation. The program to address underage drinking was one of five finalist agencies from around the world for the coveted Herman Goldstein Award in 2003. The Department was identified as one of four finalists for the 2004 Goldstein Award – the only finalist from the United States – for its submission, “It Takes a Village: Reducing Traffic Congestion around Barron School.”

For the fifth straight year, the National Association of Town Watch selected the Police Department as a National Award Winner for outstanding participation in the annual National Night Out Crime Prevention Program.

The Plano Fire Department serves the community from 11 stations with 309 firefighters/paramedics. The average response time is 4.57 minutes for fire and EMS calls.

The Fire Department’s response capabilities combined with fire prevention programs and community outreach efforts have earned Plano a Public Protection Classification™ Class 1 ISO rating. Plano is one of seven Texas communities and one of 45 cities nationwide with this honor. In 1998, the Plano Fire Department became the second fire department in the country to be accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Ambulance Services (CAAS) for its compliance with national standards of excellence in the delivery of emergency medical services. In 2001, the Plano Fire Department also achieved national accreditation for fire protection
services through the Commission on Fire Accreditation International. In 2006, the Plano Fire Department received reaccreditation from CFAI. In 2004 the Plano Fire Department was reaccredited by CAAS. The Plano Fire Department is the only ISO Class 1 department in the United States with both fire and EMS accreditation.