This year, Money magazine has given top position on its annual list of Best Places to Live to the city of Louisville in Colorado.

Residents give the city top rating for its outdoors with its long stretch of trails and Rocky Mountain National Park within an hour's reach.

Money magazine said its 2009 list highlighted small towns across the country, with populations of 8,500 to 50,000, because they were places where, jobs are available, crime is low, schools are top-notch and housing is affordable. Washington, D.C., excluded by population, was not included on the list.

Minnesota city of Plymouth got top place in the 2008 list and didn't appear on this year's list. Louisville ranked number 3 in the 2007 list.

U.S.