Community Survey 2000
 Results from the
Community Survey distributed in the
City’s last Annual Report are in. Nearly 700 responses were collected! Thank you
for
taking the time to let us know what you think. These surveys ...
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gauge citizen satisfaction
with City services;
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provide an opportunity for
community members to comment on future City programs and priorities;
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offer a vehicle to
reinforce the relationship between the City organization and citizens;
and
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allow us to compare
responses to data collected previously.
The comprehensive analysis
compares the data with two previous surveys done in 1998 and 1997, where
applicable. Since many of the questions were the same, trends are
developing. However, it is important to note that the rating scale for
general questions in this survey was modified since we are changing all
surveys to a standard format.
Click
here to review a comprehensive summary. Or review the brief outline below.
Here’s what we learned ...
In general, respondents
continue to be very satisfied with City services and programs. Click on
the links to see a detailed graph of the subject matter.
- City
Appearance
– Of those who
responded, 98% rated the City’s park maintenance as average or better.
Greenbelt, tree and beach maintenance were all rated average or better
by 95% of respondents. Overall City cleanliness also received similar
marks from 96% of those with an opinion).
- City Government
– In past surveys, a majority
of respondents indicated that purchasing property for parks and open
space and preserving historic resources was important.
In this survey, we asked respondents to rate the City’s efforts to
date: regarding open space - 94% gave average or better ratings;
regarding historic preservation - 93% gave similar marks. In addition,
92% of respondents said the City does an average or better job of
keeping them informed about services, events and issues while 80% gave
similar marks regarding the City’s efforts to consider/listens to
citizens’ input.
- Community Services (graph
1; graph 2; graph
3)
– Additional City
services as well as non-City services were rated in this survey, as
compared with past questionnaires. Here are some of those and the
percentage of raters that gave average or better marks: harbor/marina
services (95%); garbage collection/recycling (93%); bus service (86%);
and availability of parking in business districts (68%).
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Traditionally ranked
City services, including fire (99% = average or better), library
(96%), police (95%) and overall City
services (94%) continued to receive high marks from those with
an opinion.
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Regarding programs
for different age groups: of the various age groups that were
rated, programs for seniors, adults and children received ratings of
90% average or better. Programs for youth (80% = average or better)
and teens (71%) received lower ratings.
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Your
Neighborhood - Community members rated four areas
regarding their own neighborhood: Cleanliness, Police Patrols, Street
Conditions and Safety. Only Cleanliness can be compared to past years, and
it has not changed since 1997.
Both Safety and Cleanliness received good marks, similar to overall
City Street Cleanliness, whereas Street Conditions and Neighborhood Police
Patrols received slightly lower marks.
Traffic
Issues - Citizens were asked whether Congestion, Parking,
Speeding, or Walkways in their neighborhoods were a ‘serious
concern,’ ‘somewhat of a concern,’ or ‘no concern.’ Raters
indicated that speeding in neighborhoods is considered serious by more
people (40%) than those that think it is not a problem (23%).
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Safety Issues (graph
1; graph 2) - In general, safety
concerns about various parts of the City continue to remain low,
as compared with past surveys. Safety issues surrounding Downtown
Monterey showed a significant decrease (-13%) while concerns regarding
the Recreation Trail from El Estero to Seaside and the North Fremont
Business District showed slight increases.
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Regarding City
Council meetings broadcast on TV, the majority of raters said
they would watch meetings if they were broadcast on local cable TV and
that they would find it informative to be able to watch the meetings.
Respondents also included
written comments and suggestions on a variety
of subjects. These comments will also be taken under consideration.
The City plans to
distribute a Community Survey each year with our City Focus Annual
Report. Every other year, we will take a comprehensive survey asking for
general input on City services, programs and activities. During the
alternate years including this coming year, we plan to gather more
in-depth data on targeted issues.
Thanks for your input! Continue to send in
your ideas and suggestions. Look for our Community Survey in the annual report this fall
or send in info anytime. Contact us today.
Community
Survey 1999 material |
