San Jose City Hall, 801 North First Street, Room 436, San Jose, CA 95110 (408)277-5131

And the Survey Says...
Nearly 70% of San José residents rate quality of life “good or excellent”

San José, California – In a recent survey of San José residents, nearly seven out of 10 rated the quality of life in San José as good or excellent. The City of San José today (January 31, 2001) released results of a survey conducted in November 2000, by an independent market research firm. Other key findings of the 2000 City of San José Community Survey include:

• 92% of residents surveyed feel safe in their community during the day. 70% of respondents still feel safe in their neighborhoods after dark.
• 74% of residents surveyed are satisfied or very satisfied with the quality of City services.
• More than three-quarters of those surveyed, who had recent contact with the City of San José, were satisfied or very satisfied with the courtesy (83%), competence (77%) and timeliness (78%) of the services they received.
• Over two-thirds of those polled (68%) rate the physical condition of parks, residential properties, and trees in their neighborhood as good or excellent.
• 77% of residents surveyed (who have had recent contact with a police officer) rated the police officer/s they had contact with as courteous and pleasant to deal with. 72% rated the officer/s as helpful, and nearly two-thirds of those polled believe the San José Police Department treats members of the public fairly.
• Two-thirds of those surveyed believe their neighbors have pride in San José.

“Our residents are telling us that we are doing a great job for San Jose neighborhoods, ” said Mayor Ron Gonzales. “These survey results also point out how we can make our city even better, a goal I certainly share with this community,” stated Gonzales.

Among those surveyed, residents ranked traffic congestion (28%) and housing costs (25%) as the two most critical areas of concern.

The 2000 City of San José Community Survey was conducted by the City to use as a benchmark for performance measures and to identify areas where the City can do a better job in serving its customers -- the residents of San José. Results will be used to evaluate the quality, timeliness and customer satisfaction of services and City departments will be held accountable for improving services. Evaluation of improvements will be based on a comparison of results between the 2000 survey and future surveys, which the City intends to conduct annually.

The 2000 survey was conducted by the firm of Fairbank, Maslin, Maullin and Associates, as part of the City’s Investing in Results initiative. Investing in Results is being implemented in all departments to ensure that City services are aligned with community expectations. Copies of the complete survey are available by calling (408) 277-3364.

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