[Durham INC] Durham County Residents Continue to Express Satisfaction in Government Services and Quality of Life

[Jones, Henry R.]

NEWS RELEASE

For Immediate Release                                                      Date: 02/01/21
Contact: Public Information Office                                  Phone: (919) 560-0000/Fax: (919) 560-0020
E-mail: publicinformationoffice at dconc.gov<mailto:publicinformationoffice at dconc.gov>

Durham County Residents Continue to Express Satisfaction in Government Services and Quality of Life
62 Percent State Satisfaction with Durham County's COVID-19 Response

Durham, N.C. - Durham residents have an overall positive view on County government and life in the community, according to the results of the County's 2020 Resident Satisfaction Survey<http://www.dconc.gov/county-departments/departments-a-e/county-manager/city-county-resident-survey/2020>.

Sixty percent of respondents expressed satisfaction with the quality of life in Durham, while 58 percent said they were satisfied with the quality of County government services. The survey, completed by a representative sample of 848 residents both inside City of Durham limits and unincorporated Durham County, was administered by the Olathe, Kan.-based ETC Institute in December. The Durham Board of County Commissioners heard a presentation on its findings at their February 1 Work Session.

The survey found residents ranking public schools, Sheriff's Office protection and Department of Public Health services as key County priorities. From a community-wide perspective, which included services provided by the City of Durham, residents listed the following top priorities: public schools, city street maintenance and Police Department protection.

"This survey allows County leadership and staff to measure resident priorities and perceptions of government services, quality of life and more," said Durham County Manager Wendell Davis. "This tool is just one way we aim to better understand community sentiments as we strive to make Durham County a great place to live, work and thrive."

This sixth combined City-County resident satisfaction survey, which had a margin of error of plus or minus 3.3 percent, also found:

  *   Seventy-seven percent of residents said they were satisfied with quality of life in their neighborhood.
  *   Overall satisfaction fluctuated slightly compared to the 2019 survey. For example, quality of life in neighborhood satisfaction went from 81 percent in 2019 to 77 percent, as noted above. Additionally, overall quality of life in Durham dropped slightly from 64 percent in 2019 to 60 percent. Meanwhile, satisfaction with County services remains constant at 58 percent.
  *   Sixty-two percent of respondents expressed satisfaction with County government's COVID-19 response. Residents ranked housing and rental assistance, preventing COVID spread, food assistance and small business support as top priorities for City and County government spending to address the pandemic.
  *   The percentage of residents expressing satisfaction with the quality of County services was 16 percent higher than a benchmark group of other communities between 150,000 and 400,000 residents. Additionally, customer service from County employees was rated 29 percent higher than other communities in that population range.

To read the presentation and a full report, go to Durham County's website: http://www.dconc.gov/county-departments/departments-a-e/county-manager/city-county-resident-survey/2020.

###

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.deltaforce.net/pipermail/inc-list/attachments/20210201/62b78c4a/attachment.htm>