I agree that the list is arbitrary and can produce weird results, but I don't understand your comment about the other places being "car-infested, parking-lot-plagued, zero-food-diversity cities." I haven't looked at the whole list, but last year, I moved from Jersey City to Arlington, VA just outside of DC and #2 on the list. Arlington is very walkable and very transit friendly (four of the six DC Metro lines go through Arlington, and I live car-free without any issues). In many ways, I'd argue Arlington is actually more walkable than JC, and it's also much more bike friendly. There are plenty of diverse food options here too, both in Arlington and in neighboring DC, with the Arlington to DC trip comparable to the JC to Manhattan trip.

Obviously, DC is smaller than NYC, but it still has a lot going for it at a lower price point. Instantly dismissing the other cities as terrible because they aren't in the NYC area is a little silly.