They call it the City of Arts and Innovation, but Riverside on the outskirts of Los Angeles also lays claim to being the birthplace of the California citrus industry, a fact honored at the 248-acre California Citrus State Historic Park. Living up to its name, Riverside is also home to the Riverside Metropolitan Museum and Fox Performing Arts Center, a 1929 theatre built in Spanish Colonial Revival style in the heart of downtown. The city boasts one of the nation’s most ethnically diverse populations, ranked #10 in the Foreign-born Residents subcategory. Hispanic citizens make up 53% of the city’s population, while nearly 44% of citizens speak a non-English language. Like a reflection of the community around it, University of California, Riverside (ranked #26 in our University subcategory), is one of the nation’s most ethnically varied post secondary institutions. Riverside also performs well in our Place category (#14), which includes Safety (#12) and the second-best weather in the country—that is, only if you enjoy 277 days of sunshine annually.