The city of Mukilteo, Washington, 25 miles north of Seattle and best known for its scenic views of the Olympics, the Cascades and Puget Sound, the historic 1906 Mukilteo Light Station, and being half of the Mukilteo to Clinton Washington State Ferry route, is one of the nicest small cities around the Sound, or, at least, I’ve always thought so.

Guess I’m not alone: Money magazine named Mukilteo to the tenth place spot on its list of “Best Places to Live” 2009 edition, citing its lovely scenery, good schools and low unemployment rate.

Mukilteo follows cities and towns in Missouri, Minnesota, Nebraska, Wisconsin, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Texas, and Georgia: other Washington locales that made the top 100 are Sammamish at number 12, Newcastle at number 17, Richland at number 51 and Silverdale at number 92.