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In
spite of the economic downturn, 89 percent of residents say
Sarasota County’s quality-of-life is “excellent” or “good,” an
increase since last year.
That’s one of the key findings in the 2009 annual Citizens
Survey, presented to the Sarasota County Commission by Dr. Susan
MacManus,
distinguished university professor in the Department of
Government & International Affairs at the University of South
Florida. The Florida Institute of Government at USF administers
the survey.
Read the survey documents
For
the second year in a row, the economy and jobs rank as citizens’
most important issue, at 27 percent. That reflects rising
unemployment rates and concerns about the outmigration of
population and businesses.
Good-paying jobs a concern
The loss of jobs (43 percent) is perceived as the biggest threat
to the county’s economy. It’s followed by government waste and
inefficiency (15 percent), property tax rates (13 percent), and
people in industry leaving the county (10 percent).
In an indication of the depth of public concern
about the local economy, an
overwhelming majority (86 percent) favor giving a business a
temporary property tax break to bring jobs to the county.
Top spending priorities
Education, roads, economic development are citizens’ top
spending priorities. Among those who believe more money needs to
be spent in some areas, education tops the list (28 percent),
followed by roads/transportation (12 percent), economic
development (9 percent) and affordable housing (6 percent).
Parks, beaches lead list for cuts
Government and citizens must make tough choices about what
things to cut back on first when resources are limited. When
asked what two service areas should be reduced first, if
necessary, leisure-related services – parks (17 percent) and
beaches (13 percent) – led the list.
Asked
whether service levels should remain the same, be cut back, or
expanded (and if so, how to pay for it), 36 percent favor
creating a new revenue source (other than the property tax) and
earmarking it to a specific service or project.
Residents feel safe
During periods of economic downturn, personal fears about safety
generally increase. When the Citizen Opinion Survey asked
Sarasota County residents how safe they feel in their own
neighborhood, 70 percent feel very safe and 28 percent feel
somewhat safe. Just 3 percent say they do not feel safe.
Support for solar energy
In
the future, citizens may be relying more heavily on solar
energy. To gauge citizens’ interest in speeding up that
transition, the survey asked respondents whether they would be
willing to pay a small amount more on their electric bill if it
were used to produce solar energy. Even in these tough times,
over half (53 percent) say “yes” while 42 percent say “no.”
Citizens treated with respect
The
overwhelming majority (86 percent) of citizen contactors say
they were treated with respect by county officials and
employees. Eighty-two percent say they were given correct
information. Over three-fourths acknowledge they were helped in
a timely fashion by county personnel.
Residents satisfied with county services
Residents are considerably more satisfied (78 percent) than
dissatisfied (10 percent) with the services offered by Sarasota
County. Significantly, in this year’s survey, the proportion of
residents who say they are “very” satisfied with services rose
slightly for the first time since 2007. Dissatisfaction levels
fell.
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