[ Council Communication ]  [Draft Survey Questions]

Council Communication

Title:	2003 Citizen Survey
Dept:	Administration
Date:	February 18, 2003
Submitted By:	Ann Seltzer
Approved By: ...........................	Brian Almquist, Interim City Administrator

Synopsis:	The city has conducted random sample phone surveys in 1995, 1996, 1998 and 2000 and has budgeted for one in the 2002-2003 fiscal year. The objective of the survey is to gather information from Ashland residents, which reveal their attitudes about city and government issues, their understanding and awareness of city programs and satisfaction with these programs and city operations. The more current views and opinions will be compared to those of residents in 2000 and in 1998 when the baseline survey was conducted (the survey tool changed considerably from 1995 and 1996). The survey is conducted by phone to a random sample of 400 Ashland residents. The sample size allows a margin of error no greater than +5%.
Request:	Staff is looking for Mayor and Council input on topics/questions they would like to include in the upcoming survey. Included with this communication is a copy of staff's proposed questions for the 2003 survey. The proposed timeline requires all input not later than March 10. Timeline to conduct survey and prepare survey results. March 10 Final input due from Council. April 7-21 Conduct survey. Late April Prepare results. Early May Present results to council.
Fiscal.Impact:	The 2002-2003 budget allows $15,000 to conduct the survey (allows for 12 - 15 minutes per call), the same allotment as in previous years.
Background:	In 1998, the City issued an RFP for research firms to conduct a series of three citizen surveys. The firm selected was Scudder and Associates from Eugene, Oregon, now known as Lockwood Research. Upon completion of the survey, Lockwood Research makes a formal presentation to Council at a study session, and provides the City with a final detailed report. A new RFP will be issued for the survey to be conducted in subsequent years. Results for the 1998 and 2000 are posted on the City's web site. If you prefer a hard copy please let me know.

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NOTE:
After the 2000 survey was completed in November of that year Council suggested conducting the survey in the spring to avoid competing with the numerous calls associated with the November election. Council also expressed some concern about the growing number of people who screen calls or answer the call and won't participate and the difficulty of getting a representative sample. There was discussion about weighting the sample size and/or using age and gender quotas. The following options are available.

1) Weighting:
Weighting uses demographic information from Census data.

For example:

The most recent demographic profile for the City of Ashland based on the 2000 Census indicates that 12% percent of the population is between the ages of 33 to 44.

If at the end of the survey, the number of respondents reached did not equal the demographic profile percentage of 12% the responses of the survey could be weighted.

If 10 of the 400 respondents were between the ages of 33-45¾or 4% and 12% of 400 respondents is 48 people. Weighting would give each of the 10 respondents their own voice plus the "voice" of 3.8 others.

2) Gender and Age Quotas
Quotas could be set based on the demographic profile. Using the above figure, callers would keep calling numbers until they had 48 respondents between the ages of 33 and 45. This would likely increase the cost of the survey because more calls must be made to meet each of the set quotas.

3) Promote the Survey in Advance
By letting the community know in advance that the City is conducting a phone survey and asking for their patience and assistance, we may have fewer people screening calls and have more people willing to participate in the survey. An article about the upcoming survey will be in the March issue of City Source, information will be sent to the local media and posted on the City's website.

Most of the following questions are the same as the ones in 1998 and 2000. Suggested questions new to this survey are identified and questions which staff feels should be deleted are italicized.

DRAFT City of Ashland Community Attitude Survey 2003

Hello, my name is __________ and I'm calling from Lockwood Research and today we are gathering the opinions of Ashland residents regarding the city of Ashland. May I have 10-12 minutes of your time?

1) Are you 18 years of age or older? (if YES, continue - if No, ask to speak with someone in the household who is 18 or older. If NO, discontinue politely).

2) Are you registered to vote in Ashland? Yes No

3) How long have you lived in Ashland? Years______ Months______
(If less than 6 months thank politely and terminate)
First, I would like to get your opinions about the quality of life in Ashland.

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4) Looking back, would you say that life in Ashland, during the last few years, has generally improved, stayed pretty much the same, or has gotten worse than a few years ago?

1. improved

2. stayed the same

3. gotten worse

4. don't know/can't rate

5) In your opinion, how responsive is the City of Ashland in addressing and working on the problems and needs of the community? Using a rating scale where 1 = not at all responsive and 5 = very responsive, how responsive would you say the City is?

1. not at all responsive

2. somewhat unresponsive

3. neutral

4. somewhat responsive

5. very responsive

6. don't know/can't rate

6) Do you believe growth and development in Ashland during the past several years has been too fast, too slow, or just about right?

1. too fast

2. too slow

3. just about right

4. don't know/can't rate

NEW How important is the city's role in assisting with affordable housing in Ashland? Using a rating scale from 1 to 5, where 1 = not at all important and 5 = very important, how important do you feel it is?

• Very important

• Somewhat important

• Neutral

• Not important

NEW (if the answer to the previous question is very important or somewhat important ask the following question) Affordable housing requires land, permanent funding and political will. Which of the following four options do you feel is the best means to fund affordable housing? (the order of the list will be rotated as it is read to the respondent)

• Increase in the Food and Beverage tax

• Increase the Transient Occupancy Tax (hotel/motel tax)

• Increase Property tax

• Take money from another city program(s)

• If so which program?

• Is there any other funding method you feel is best?

• None of the above

7) How important do you believe it is for the City of Ashland to invest in and encourage tourism? Please use a rating scale where 1 = not at all important and 5 = very important.

8) What do you like MOST about living in Ashland? (probe and clarify)

9) What one thing would you change about Ashland to make it a better place to live? (probe and clarify)

10) Now I am going to ask about various aspects of life in Ashland and would like to know in your opinion if each aspect has gotten better, worse, or stayed the same over the past year or two. Using a rating scale of 1 - 5 with 1 = MUCH WORSE and 5 = MUCH BETTER and 3 = STAYED the SAME. (the order of the list will be rotated as it is read to the respondent)

1. Recreational opportunities for young people

2. Availability of affordable housing

3. Employment opportunities

4. Traffic congestion in Ashland

5. Recreational opportunities for adults

6. Social services for the financially disadvantaged

7. Recycling opportunities

8. Availability of senior services

9. The character of downtown

10. Citizen involvement

11. Availability of parking downtown.

Now, I would like to ask your opinions regarding services provided by the City or Ashland.

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11) Generally speaking, how satisfied are you with the overall level of services provided by the City of Ashland? Again, using a rating scale where 1 = not at all satisfied and 5 = very satisfied, how satisfied are you?

1. very dissatisfied

2. somewhat dissatisfied

3. neutral

4. somewhat satisfied

5. very satisfied

6. don't know/refused

I'm going to read you a list of specific services that the City provides and for each one I would like you to rate the city's performance using a scale from 1 to 5, with 1 = Poor and 5 = Excellent.

12) What kind of job do you think the City is doing with: (the order of this list will be rotated)

1. Maintaining City streets

2. Water services

3. Electric services

4. Sewer services

5. Police protection

6. Fire protection

7. Planning for growth and development

8. Providing information to local residents

13) Is there any service that you feel the City should provide but currently does not?

NO YES: (please describe)

13a) Would you be willing to pay for this new service if the City provided it?

NO YES Not sure/Don't know

14) Is there any service that the city currently provides that you feel could be eliminated?

NO YES: (please describe)

15) How safe do you currently feel your neighborhood is? Please use a rating scale where 1 = Not at ALL safe and 5 = VERY safe.

1. Not at all safe

2. Somewhat safe

3. Neutral

4. Very safe

5. Don't know/Can't rate

My next questions are about City government.

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NEW How much attention do you pay to City of Ashland government? Would you say:

• Alot

• Some

• Not very much

• Almost no attention

• Don't know (don't read this to the respondent)

NEW In a typical week, how many times would you say you see or hear or talk about something related to City of Ashland government? Would you say:

• A lot

• Some

• Not very much

• Almost never

• Don't know (don't read to respondent)

16) Generally speaking, how satisfied are you with the opportunities provided to the citizens of Ashland to give input on City decisions? Again, using a rating scale where 1 - not at all satisfied and 5 = very satisfied, how satisfied are you?

1. Very dissatisfied

2. Somewhat satisfied

3. Neutral

4. Somewhat satisfied

5. Very satisfied

6. Don't know/Refused

17) Thinking of the community as a whole, how much trust is there in local government? Use of rating scale where 1 = No trust at all and 5 = a lot of trust.

1. No trust at all

2. Hardly any

3. Neutral

4. Some trust

5. A lot of trust

6. Don't know/Refused

18) Have you watched a city council meeting on Cable Access TV in the last year? YES NO

19) Have you attended a city council meeting in person in the last year? YES NO

20) Are you willing to participate in city government? YES NO

If yes, in what way? (probe and clarify)

21) During the past 12 months, have you had contact with anyone at the City? YES NO Don't recall

21a) If yes: How would you rate the courteousness of the staff? Use a scale, with 1 = Poor and 5 = Excellent.

1. Very poor

2. Somewhat poor

3. Neutral

4. Very courteous

5. Excellent

22) How would you rate the overall quality of the work performed by City employees? Use the same scale, with 1 = Poor and 5 = Excellent

23) How would you rate the how effectively City money is being used? Use the same 1 to 5 scale with 1 = Poor and 5 = Excellent.

24) Are there any City imposed taxes and/or fines that you feel are unnecessary? If yes, which one(s)? No Not sure/Don't know

25) What improvements, if any, do you think the City government could make? (Don't read list. Probe and clarify)

1. Citizen access to City council members

2. Citizen opportunities to voice opinions and feelings

3. more neighborhood meetings

4. other

26) Switching to transportation. In the course of an average month, how many times, if any do you ride an RVTD bus?

1. None

2. Occasionally, but less than once a month

3. Once a month

4. 2 times

5. 3-5 times

6. 6 - 10 times

7. More than 11 times per month

27) In the course of an average month, how many times, if any, does any member of your immediate family's ride an RVTD bus?

1. None

2. Occasionally, but less than once a month

3. Once a month

4. 2 times

5. 3-5 times

6. 6 - 10 times

7. More than 11 times per month

DELETE 28) Generally speaking, when you visit downtown Ashland do you find locating a parking space to be easy or difficult? (probe for very or somewhat)

29) When driving in downtown Ashland during the summer months, where do you first look for available parking?

• The Plaza

• Other

30) When parking in downtown Ashland during a typical Monday through Friday during normal working hours, how often do you typically have to move your car to avoid getting a parking ticket?

1. Don't have to move the car, typically finished before parking expires

2. Once

3. Twice

The last topic to cover is about information sources.

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NEW In terms of keeping citizens informed about what is happening in city government¾how good of a job do you think Ashland City government does at that? Would you say...

• Excellent

• Good

• Fair

• Poor

• Don't know (don't read this to the respondent)

NEW The following is a list of topics that people sometimes want to know about their city government. As I read each one, tell me how often you have tried to get information on that topic¾if ever. For each one, tell me whether you have looked for that type of information frequently, sometimes, seldom, or never. First, how often have you looked for information about (rotate the list)

• The city budget, including spending, taxes & fess,

• Conservation programs

• Police services

• City utilities like electricity, sewer, water

• Ashland Fiber Network

• Fire protection services

• Licenses and permits

• Mayor and City Council

• Planning issues

• Ways to get involved with City government

31) I am going to read a list of information sources. For each one tell me how often you use or refer to it as a source for obtaining information about Ashland. Would you say you always, sometimes, rarely or never refer to (insert list item, list will be rotated) as a source for obtaining information about Ashland.

• Cable Access TV

• TV news programs

• Community or neighborhood meetings

• Free newspapers such as Sneak Preview

• Ashland Daily tidings

• Medford Mail Tribune

• Radio

• Utility bill inserts

• Ashland City Source - the quarterly newsletter

• Ashland City's web page

• City council meetings/Planning Commission meetings

32) Does your household have a personal computer¾meaning an IBM compatible or Macintosh computer, or any computer on which you can do more than simply play games? YES NO NOT SURE

33) And do you or someone else in your household use that computer to connect to the Internet? YES NO NOT SURE

NEW
The use of the Internet to conduct business has grown considerably. Which of the following city services would you like to be able to do on the Internet?

• Pay utility bills

• Apply and pay for permits, licenses

• Pay for parking tickets

• Access tax lots

• Other

My last questions are for demographic purposes only.

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34) If employed, is your place of work located in Ashland?

• Not employed, looking for work

• Not employed, retired

• Volunteer work

• Employed, work outside Ashland

• Employed, work in Ashland (continue with 34b)

• Don't know/Refused

34b) Do you work in downtown Ashland?

NO (continue with question 35) YES (continue with question 34c)

34c) When going to work downtown, how many days per week do you: (insert mode of transportation)

• Drive alone (continue with question 34d)

• Carpool

• ride the bus

• Walk

• Bike

• Get dropped off

34d) This past summer when you drove to downtown to work, how far away did you park your car from your workplace?

• 0 block/onsite parking

• ____Blocks

• ___ Miles

35) Do you own or rent your home?

• Own

• Rent

36) Do you have children under the age of 18 living in your home?

Yes (continue to question 36a) NO Part-time/Occasionally

36a) Do you ever drive children to school more than twice a week?

Yes (continue with question 36c) NO Part-time/Occasionally

36b) What are some of the reasons you drive children to school?

• Bus service is not available where we live

• Children have before/after school activities

• On the way to work/other activities

• Security/safety concerns

• Other

37) I am going to read some age ranges and I would like you to stop me when I read the range that includes your age.

• 18 - 24

• 25 - 34

• 35 - 44

• 45 - 54

• 55 - 64

• 65 and older

• Refused

38) I am going to read some broad income ranges and I would like you to stop me when I read the range that includes your combined household income before taxes.

• Under $15,000

• $15,000 - $24,999

• $25,000 - $34,999

• $35,000 - $49,999

• $50,000 - $74,999

• $75,000 or more

• don't know/Refused

39) We've covered a lot of topics in our survey and in closing I would just like to get your opinion on what you feel are the biggest issues facing Ashland over the next 5 years? (probe and clarify)

Thank you very much for your time. Have a nice day/evening.

40) Record respondents gender. Male/Female

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