Affordable housing and traffic congestion are the community’s most important issues that they want local government to address, according to respondents in a survey conducted in December, 2020. The City of Bend regularly conducts community satisfaction surveys seeking the community’s perspective on City services and priorities for City funding.
The most recent survey found that people in Bend appreciate living in Bend and are satisfied with the City’s services. More than eight in ten respondents say that Bend is an excellent (36 percent) or good (52 percent) place to live. Over six in ten respondents rate the City of Bend’s performance as an A (14 percent) or B (51 percent). Strong majorities are satisfied with the City’s drinking water service (84 percent), police and fire services (81 percent) and sewer service (75 percent).
The Bend community sees room for improvement around transportation issues and affordable housing. Specifically, about one in five respondents (19 percent) identify traffic congestion as a top transportation issue they would like government leaders to address. Similarly, about one in five (21 percent) say the City of Bend needs to prioritize ensuring the transportation system can handle more people to better manage growth.
Concern about affordable housing stands out as a priority issue for respondents: 34 percent say addressing affordable housing is an “urgent” priority and just as many (34 percent) say it’s a “high” priority. When asked to choose one service to prioritize for funding, affordable housing is at the top of the list, with four in ten (42 percent) respondents asking the City to increase availability of affordable housing. Three in ten (32 percent) say keeping the region affordable is key to better growth management.
The survey also asked about the City’s role related to COVID-19. Respondents preferred the City focus on small business support (39 percent) or expanding childcare opportunities for working parents (15 percent).
Phone survey results and complementary online survey results have been shared with the Bend City Council as one of several inputs intended to help guide their biennial goal setting. Goal setting, which is underway, helps shape the City’s two-year work plan and influences discretionary funding in the City’s two-year budget.
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