Town Administrator Ben Puritz Comments on Sharon Being the Best Place To Live

Money Magazine made big waves in Sharon Monday by naming it the Best Place to live in America.

“It’s gratifying to be recognized for the attributes of the community, including [the fact that] it’s welcoming and embracing of a diverse population,” said Sharon Town Administrator Ben Puritz. “it’s natural beauty with large open spaces, the small town, friendly sense of community, the highly regarded school system, and the constituent-oriented municipal government.

Puritz said he had noticed that a correspondent from Money Magazine, which has highlighted Sharon in previous years, had “paid a number of visits to Sharon and had regular contact with my office.” He received a phone call from the correspondent Friday afternoon telling him to keep his eyes out for a story, though she couldn’t say what it was.

“On behalf of the community, there’s a feeling of accomplishment. To top out the list is the highest recognition of the community,” said Puritz.

“There are a lot of communities that have a nice appearance, but when you have this sort of social demographic, it adds another dimension,” he said, noting that Sharon is sometimes called “Little Jerusalem,” because of its diversity.

He pointed to the town’s Annual Square Jam on Aug. 2 as an example of the “holistic-ness of the community, everybody getting together from different backgrounds,” and business like Crescent Ridge offering free food. “Sharon has a special distinctive quality to it.”

“We get it right here in Sharon,” he said, quoting the late Father Robert Bullock, a Catholic priest from Sharon.