Phoenix Gets High Marks on Resident Survey

Aug. 18, 2004

Most Phoenix residents not only like where they live, but they're also pretty happy with the way the city provides them with municipal services.

More than 90 percent of city residents interviewed for the 10th biennial community attitude survey agreed that Phoenix is a good place in which to live.

In addition, more than nine of 10 residents - 91 percent - also said they are very satisfied or satisfied with the overall performance of the city in providing services. The rating was up four percentage points from two years ago and was the highest positive service delivery rating recorded since the city began conducting the surveys in 1985.

"These survey results truly are a testimony to the city management and our more than 14,000 employees who provide great service to Phoenix residents day in and day out," said Mayor Phil Gordon.

"Our goal is to continue to provide services at the highest level possible and to improve in those areas that some residents identified as areas for improvement," he said.

Of the individual services provided by the city, fire protection and paramedic services again received the highest ratings from those questioned. Using a scale of one to indicate poor services and 10 to indicate excellent services, fire came in at 8.4 and paramedic at 8.3. Other services that received more than 7 were garbage, library, Internet access, wastewater, keeping streets clean, police protection, controlling street flooding, bus service, uncontained trash collection, preserving historic buildings, and parks and recreation programs.

Residents also identified crime and transportation as the two top issues that the city should be working on to improve neighborhoods.

In other survey findings, three of four residents believe the city's blight ordinance is working well or fairly well and nearly two of three residents believe the downtown area has become better or a little better over the past few years.

City Manager Frank Fairbanks said he was most encouraged by the fact that the favorable review the city received from its residents followed city budget cuts of more than $100 million over the last few years. The budget reductions, which were the result of a deep downturn in the state and national economy, resulted in some staff and service reductions.

The survey involved in-depth telephone interviews with 702 residents and has a margin of error of 3.8 percent.

The city conducts the surveys every two years as part of an effort to measure the attitudes of residents regarding city policies and services and to see where changes and improvements might be made.

The survey is online at phoenix.gov/CITYGOV/attsurv.html.

Media Contact:

Toni Maccarone

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