Sunnyvale was the nation's fifth safest city for cities of its size this year, and took the 18th spot overall.

The ranking comes from Morgan Quitno Press, a state and city ranking publication, that bases its lists on data tracked by the FBI. Safety is determined by looking at statistics for six crime categories: murder, rape, aggravated assault, burglary and car theft. By comparing the rates for those crimes against the population of the city, the FBI then estimates the relative safety.

For the past 11 years, Morgan Quitno has published its rankings, and this was the ninth consecutive year that Sunnyvale was in the top ten for cities its size. It has always been within the top 20 overall.

"I think its great that Sunnyvale has been listed in the top ten for our population category for the past nine years," Mayor Dean Chu said. "That's quite an accomplishment."

Chu said that while cities do look at the statistics as an indicator of their current safety, its nothing more than an indicator, because the findings are based on a select number of crimes. In Sunnyvale for example, Chu said there is a high rate of automobile burglary--people breaking into vehicles to remove items from inside--a factor that is not addressed by the FBI.

"I wouldn't say that it determines policy, but it does give us an indication of how we're doing compared to other cities," Chu said.

Chu said he was concerned that some crimes have increased in Sunnyvale, and he plans to have some informal meetings with his fellow council members to discuss what can and should be done to remedy that.

Rising crime was a factor in this year's budget process when the council restored funding to the Department of Public Safety's Narcotics and Vice Unit, completely restoring two of the three positions cut last year. When the positions were restored, Special Operations Captain Byron Pipkin told The Sun that it was partly due to a rise in vice crimes--including prostitution, drugs and gambling.

The safety rankings may not directly affect how the city functions, but knowing that an area is safe may be partly responsible for the high standard of living in the area and the overall well-being of Sunnyvale residents.

"I think, in general, that if people feel safer, people will use our parks and our city facilities later at night, because they don't feel like that have to be afraid of the dark," Chu said.

Pipkin said that while the Department of Public Safety does its own calculations and analysis of crime rates, the Morgan Quitno numbers have become a gauge for them, because the rankings have been done over a long enough period of time. And although they've slipped a little in the rankings, Pipkin said that the department's own estimates have shown a slight decline in some types of crime, including rape.

"If things hold up, we're on a good track for next year to get even better, with lower crime rates," Pipkin said.

Chamber of Commerce President/CEO Suzi Blackman said she thinks Sunnyvale has kept its high ranking for so long because of the financial and educational background of Silicon Valley. Because of the focus on technology in the area, residents tend to be more educated and--economy permitting--enjoy higher incomes. Incomes have fallen recently due to the "dot-bomb," but that is beginning to turn around.

Blackman said that the safety of Sunnyvale and the surrounding area--San Jose was the safest city of 500,000 or more people--also contributed to the rise of Silicon Valley.

"I think that obviously a company wants to be in a place where their employees are safe and feel comfortable going to work," Blackman said.

As Sunnyvale jockeys to make the most of what many say is a recovering economy, having an attractive and safe area for new businesses may play a key role in bring prosperity back to Sunnyvale and Silicon Valley.