The City has, once again, been awarded a top spot in the list of safest cities. This time it was from SafeWise rankings, which recently released an annual Safest Cities in Ohio report. Police Chief Keith Tarase received correspondence from SafeWise that stated North Royalton was rated sixth out of the top 10 safest cities in the state of Ohio. The missive stated that “your city earned this recognition based on the latest FBI crime data, and it’s clear that your leadership, first responders, and residents are making a real difference.”
SafeWise is a firm that researches, tests and reviews home safety products. “We contextualize national crime and safety trends to show how they affect you and your neighborhood. We use this knowledge to examine safety and security products and find out whether they’re worth your time. When we find flaws, gaps in coverage, or a practice that makes us raise our eyebrows, we let brands and consumers know,” according to SafeWise officials.
The cities were ranked through the use of current FBI crime data, using the FBI Uniform Crime Reporting program. They also utilize state population through the US Census Bureau to identify the median city population per state. From that they report only those cities that fall above the median,” according to SafeWise officials.
The rankings are based on property and violent crime data, which are weighted equally. Arson is not included in the FBI property crime, so it has been also excluded in the rankings. They calculate the rate of crimes per 1,000 people in each city, in order to level the playing field for the various populations.
The North Royalton Police Department posted the following, in response, on their Facebook page: “The North Royalton Police Department would like to thank our residents, our officers, our employees, the city administration, as well as our public safety partners at the North Royalton Fire Department and Southwest Emergency Dispatch Center all of whom share this honor with us.”
SafeWise noted that “for the purposes of this report, the terms ‘dangerous’ and ‘safest’ refer explicitly to crime rates as calculated from FBI crime data—no other characterization of any community is implied or intended.” There were 175 cities that met the criteria for ranking this year. The following are the cities, ranked for 2025: Sagamore Hills, Broadview Heights, Olmsted Township, Montville Township, Hamilton Township, North Royalton, New Philadelphia, Brook Park, Parma Heights, Avon Lake.
SafeWise stated that “at a time when safety is top of mind for many Americans, North Royalton is standing out as a place where people feel protected, neighbors look out for each other, and community investments in safety are paying off.”
Mayor Larry Antoskiewicz thanked both Police Chief Keith Tarase and Fire Chief Bob Chegan. “Under their leadership, the safety forces in our community have once again helped earn North Royalton the distinction of being a safest community, not only in the state, but in the nation. Yesterday’s announcement marked the second time in less than six months that our City earned the designation from two independent groups. In December, we were named a Top 25 Safest Small Cities in the U.S. by MoneyGeek. And, yesterday, we were named No. 6 Safest Cities in Ohio by SafeWise. We are grateful for the efforts of our North Royalton Police Department and North Royalton Fire Department for all they do to make this happen each day!”
The rankings formulated by financial website, MoneyGeek placed North Royalton in the top twenty five of about 1,000 cities, ranking thirteenth, with the number one spot going to Columbus, IN; two, Wallingford, CT; three, Lone Peak, UT; four, Zionsville, IN; five, Monroe Township, Middlesex County, NJ; six, Yorktown Town, NY; seven, Carmel Town, NY; eight, Wallkill Town ,NY; nine, Upper Arlington, OH; ten, Lexington, MA; eleven, Shrewsbury, MA; twelve, Wellesley, MA.

By GLORIA PLEVA KACIK
Contributing Writer