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DENVER — Several Colorado cities are being recognized as some of the best places for military members and their families to live.

Military Times ranked Centennial as the third-best medium city to live in.

“In Colorado, and especially in the metropolitan area that we’re in, embracing the military is the norm,” Centennial Mayor Cathy Noon said. “I think that energy, that value of the military culture is just part of who we are.”

Highlands Ranch ranked seventh in the small-city category, while Lakewood ranked 15th in medium cities.

As for large cities, Colorado Springs ranked third and Aurora ranked 21st.

The methodology included the evaluation of 577 places, as designated by the U.S. Census Bureau, dividing them into 254 small cities with populations of fewer than 75,000; 244 medium-sized cities with populations between 75,000 and 199,000; and 79 large cities with populations of more than 200,000.

Cities are compared in three broad categories: Veteran and military culture and services; economic indicators and livability factors such as crime, health, school quality; and other data.

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