"Modesto is the county seat of Stanislaus County in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 188,856. Current census estimates place the population at 206,300. According to the California State Department of Finance January 2006 estimate, 514,370 people live in the Modesto Metropolitan Statistical Area. Roughly 80 miles (130 km) from Yosemite National Park, 80 miles (130 km) from Sacramento, California's capital city, and about 90 miles (140 km) from both San Jose and San Francisco, Modesto is less than 2 hours from many prime locations in California. This proximity to major business centers has turned the agriculturally based city into a bedroom community. Over twenty percent of the workforce travels outside of the county to their place of employment. The area is plagued by some of the worst air quality in the nation, on occasion surpassing even that of Los Angeles. It is reported to have had the highest car theft per capita rate in the United States in 2005 and 2006, it dropped to fifth in 2007, but regained the top spot in 2008. In 2007, Modesto was named the worst city in America in Cities Ranked & Rated, 2nd Edition and one of the top three most dangerous metropolitan areas in California by Morgan Quitno. (It ranked second in 2006" (
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