By Kelsey Ligon
It’s not unusual for Zionsville to find itself at or near the top of many positive city rankings, but it recently topped the list of “Snobbiest Places in Indiana.”
The rankings were compiled by Roadsnacks, a website that exists to “show you the real side of places that not everyone wants to hear.” Zionsville earned the distinction because of its high home prices, high household incomes and high percentage of residents with college degrees. Carmel placed second and Avon third.
Reaction from Zionsville and Carmel residents has been mixed.
“I think that at times, living in a privileged community, we forget about the rest of the world and just how lucky we are,” said Chelsea Leeds, a Zionsville resident since 2006.
One Carmel resident (hopefully) joked on Facebook that he crashed his Bentley while reading the article. Another drily proposed closing down the art galleries, theaters and private schools in order to combat this negative image.
On the other end of the spectrum, some residents were affronted by the article’s claims.
Carmel resident Bill Baines said he did not see the humor of the article.
“There are those of us that are uniters, and those of us that are dividers,” Baines said. “The author or authors of ‘snobbiest-places-in-Indiana’ are dividers.”
Patti Smith moved to Zionsville in 1988 and said she immediately felt like she was at home.
“Perhaps outsiders would say it is a snobby community just because it is clean, well-kept and there is a very high-end car dealership in town, but they are mistaken,” Smith stated on Facebook. “People smile and speak even if you are a stranger. It’s not like that everywhere, so we like it.”
Some of the same factors that led to Zionsville topping the snob list also helped the town place at No. 1 on the “Best Places to Live” in Indiana, according to Homesnacks, a related site.
