[Durham INC] City Survey Shows Residents Pleased With Durham

[Blalock, Amy]

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CITY OF DURHAM
Office of Public Affairs
101 City Hall Plaza
Durham, NC 27701

News Release


News Media Contact:
Amy Blalock
Sr. Public Affairs Specialist
(919) 560-4123 x 11253
(919) 475-7735 (cell)
Amy.Blalock at DurhamNC.gov<mailto:Amy.Blalock at DurhamNC.gov>
http://Facebook.com/CityofDurhamNC
http://Twitter.com/CityofDurhamNC
http://YouTube.com/CityofDurhamNC


For Immediate Release: February 28, 2014


City Survey Shows Residents Pleased With Durham
More Emphasis Wanted on Streets, Police, and Flow of Traffic

DURHAM, N.C. - Just released results of the City of Durham's 2013 resident satisfaction survey show 81 percent of residents feel the city as an "excellent" or "good" place to live and 78 percent feel the city as an "excellent" or "good" place to work. These ratings remain steady from the 2011 survey, which were 82 percent and 77 percent respectively.

According to City Manager Tom Bonfield, the biennial survey helps the organization better assess residents' satisfaction with City-provided services and to gather input from residents about issues facing the community. "The survey provides a great opportunity to touch bases with residents - in a statistically sound way - to find out what they really think of our community and the services the City provides. We use that information to help direct our priorities, from making day-to-day decisions to overall long-term planning and resource allocation," he said.

Results from the 2013 survey results indicate that satisfaction improved in 49 of 51 areas since 2005, with the highest increases in the city's image, feelings of safety downtown, the appearance of the city, and maintenance of City streets. While satisfaction with City streets bumped up by 5 percent since 2011, residents cited less happiness since that time with some areas involving parks, including greenways and trails, condition of city parks, recreation centers, and bike facilities.

When asked where Durham leaders should focus their attention over the next two years, residents responded the same as 2011: the quality of police protection, the maintenance of City streets, and the flow of traffic in the city.

While the City continues to look at how to improve those areas, the ETC Institute, which conducts the biennial survey for the City, says Durham's overall resident satisfaction, with a 21 percent rise since 2005, stands out when compared to all U.S. cities. "Community input and Council's continued focus in areas that matter to our residents have made all the difference. Durham is still headed in the right direction," Bonfield said.

Areas that influence overall perceptions of Durham also ranked highly, with three-in-four people satisfied with the quality of life in their neighborhood, the quality of services provided by the City, and two-in-three people satisfied with the overall quality of life in the city. Although residents were least satisfied with the value they receive for their tax dollars and fees, satisfaction has increased from 35 percent in the 2009 survey, to 40 percent.

Fire protection and rescue services continued to show the highest satisfaction of all City services, with 84 percent happy with the quality of fire protection and rescue services, and proximity of fire stations. Although 36 percent of residents were least satisfied with the overall maintenance of City streets, the level of satisfaction increased significantly from 31 percent in the 2009 survey, just prior to a major streets repaving  program with bond dollars.

Other 2013 results showed:
*         Code Enforcement. 68 percent were satisfied or highly satisfied with the appearance of houses in neighborhoods, while 34 percent were least satisfied with removal of abandoned vehicles.
*         Zoning Services. 53 percent were content with enforcement of the mobile vendor ordinance, while 37 percent were least satisfied with enforcement of no front-yard parking.
*         Utilities Services. 84 percent were happy with solid waste and curbside recycling services; 71 percent with the quality of drinking water and sewer services.
*         Customer Service. 83 percent were happy with courteousness of, and ease of contact with City employees.
*         Communication. 61 percent were happy with the availability of information about City programs, and 40 percent were least satisfied with the level of public involvement in local decisions.

A random sample of 1,200 households was contacted for the 2013 survey, with 413 completing it for a 34 percent response rate. The survey has a 95 percent level of confidence, +/- 4.9 percent. Full results of the survey are now available on the City's website at http://durhamnc.gov/ich/as/bms/Pages/Resident-Survey-Results.aspx.

About the Budget & Management Services Department
The Budget and Management Services Department is primarily responsible for the development and oversight of the City's annual budget and Capital Improvement Program (CIP). The department is also responsible for organizational development, performance management, and strategic planning<http://durhamnc.gov/ich/as/bms/Pages/Strategic%20Plan/sp_SPHome.aspx> as well as for providing policy and management analysis to support decision making. The department primarily supports two Strategic Plan goals - Well-Managed City and Stewardship of the City's Physical Assets. Overall, the department is focusing on furthering the goal of transparency and accountability with its operations and communications and enhancing resident and employee engagement. To learn more, visit http://DurhamNC.gov/ich/as/bms/Pages/Home.aspx.

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