CITY OF CHARLOTTESVILLE, VIRGINIA
                 CITY COUNCIL AGENDA



 Agenda Date:           February 21, 2023

 Action Required:       None at this time.

 Presenter:             Joseph Dell'Olio

 Staff Contacts:        Ashley Marshall, Deputy City Manager

 Title:                 Polco National Community Survey Presentation


Background
The National Community Survey™ (The NCS™) report is about the “livability” of Charlottesville. A
livable community is a place that is not simply habitable, but that is desirable. It is not only where
people do live, but where they want to live. The survey was developed by the experts from National
Research Center at Polco. The report provides the opinions of a representative sample of 371 residents of the
City of Charlottesville collected from November 9th, 2022 to December 22nd, 2022. The margin of error around any
reported percentage is 5.1% for all respondents and the response rate for the 2022 survey was 14%. Survey results
were weighted so that the demographic profile of respondents was representative of the demographic profile of
adults in Charlottesville. In addition to the randomly selected “probability sample” of households, a link to an online
open participation survey was publicized by the City of Charlottesville

Discussion
Survey Methods
The 2,800 randomly selected households received mailings beginning on November 9th, 2022 and
the survey remained open for 7 weeks. The first mailing was a postcard inviting the household to
participate in the survey. The next mailing contained a cover letter with instructions, the survey
questionnaire, and a postage-paid return envelope. All mailings included a web link to give residents
the opportunity to respond to the survey online. All follow-up mailings asked those who had not
completed the survey to do so and those who had already done so to refrain from completing the
survey again. About 4% of the 2,800 mailed invitations or surveys were returned because the
household address was vacant or the postal service was unable to deliver the survey as addressed.
Of the remaining 2,682 households that received the invitations to participate, 371 completed the
survey, providing an overall response rate of 14%. The response rate was calculated using AAPOR’s
response rate #2* for mailed surveys of unnamed persons.

In addition to the randomly selected “probability sample” of households, a link to an online open
participation survey was publicized by the City of Charlottesville. The open participation survey was
identical to the probability sample survey with two small updates; it included a map at the beginning
asking where the respondent lives and a question about where they heard about the survey. The
open participation survey was open to all city residents and became available on December 7th,
2022. The survey remained open for 2 weeks. The data presented in the following tabs exclude the
open-participation survey data, but a tab at the end provides the complete frequency of responses to
questions by the open-participation respondents.

Key Findings

     • Residents generally feel safe in Charlottesville but have some concerns about police services.
     • Residents appreciate Charlottesville's natural environment and recreational opportunities.
     • Charlottesville residents widely use alternative forms of transport and support increasing
       transportation options.
     • While ratings for utilities are strong overall, Charlottesville residents point to affordable high-
       speed internet access as an area of opportunity.


Alignment with City Council's Vision and Strategic Plan
The National Community Survey aligns with Goal 5: A Well-Managed and Responsive Organization
as it will provide information for the City staff to utilize for service delivery and information for Council
to utilize as it begins strategic planning processes.

Community Engagement
The survey was both a random sampling of the community and had an open component so any
member of the community could have the opportunity to respond.

Budgetary Impact
Funding was budget neutral.

Recommendation
N/A.

Alternatives
N/A

Attachments
1.   The NCS Presentation Charlottesville VA 2023 Final