Alabama Jim wrote:
If you can stand a lot of cold, take a look at Casper, WY. If you want a mix, try looking at Ashville, NC.
A friend of ours was asked to study the climate, cost of living, access to such items as you listed for a major retailer he worked for. He came up with Asheville, NC as the best in the USA all around. We live 45 miles north in NE TN which has lower cost living and similar climate. When we were looking a few years ago we ruled out West of the Mississippi because we did not want to spend everyday praying for rain and South of the Ohio river because after 10 years in Northern MN we were tired of winter.
In three years of living here nothing has made us regret the decision.