Middlesex County Resident Life Survey TM

Transcription

1 May 10, 2017 Page 1 of 24 Middlesex County Resident Life Survey TM May 10, 2017 Cara A. Finn Director of Economic Development Great survey, should be done more often, and hoping to see results and what others in my community have to say! -- Middlesex County Resident

2 May 10, 2017 Page 2 of 24 Presentation Roadmap I. Introduction II. Survey Design III. Results Demographics Attraction, Satisfaction, and Deterring Factors Additional Feedback & Open Dialogue IV. Conclusions V. Questions

3 May 10, 2017 Page 3 of 24 I. Introduction - Background Points Survey closed January 31 st 1,148 responses County wide Municipal Reports Contain data from just one municipality Have been distributed to all municipal offices for dissemination County Report Contains data from all municipalities Makes comparisons between proximal and peripheral municipalities Presentation to County Council May 23, 2017 and available to all local municipalities

4 May 10, 2017 Page 4 of 24 Introduction - Survey Context Dynamic and diverse population of 71,511 in Middlesex County (Statistics Canada, 2016) 2011 to 2016 saw 1.1% in population growth County-wide with growth taking place in those municipalities closest to London Many municipal differences (e.g. demographics and economics) Also big differences in the needs and beliefs of residents based on where they live in the County Future developments must consider all unique aspects of each municipality to accommodate and attract an increasing population The needs and beliefs are especially important for resident accommodation, attraction, and retention

5 May 10, 2017 Page 5 of 24 Introduction Primary Objective Learn more about residents in each municipality by finding out: 1. What attracted residents to live in Middlesex County? (Attraction factors) 2. Why do residents continue to live in Middlesex County? (Satisfaction factors) 3. What would cause current residents to relocate outside of Middlesex County? (Deterring factors)

6 May 10, 2017 Page 6 of 24 II. Survey Design - Question Overview Survey reliability maximized with numerous proven methods (Dillman, Smyth, & Christian, 2014a) 18 questions Designed in partnership between Department of Economic Development, Middlesex County; and survey design students under direction of their Psychology Professor, Donald Saklofske PhD

7 May 10, 2017 Page 7 of 24 Survey Design - Distribution and Response Rate After testing, survey distributed online via multiple means (e.g. by municipal representatives, community organizations, social media, and in-person) Residents only allowed to complete survey once Response rate: 1.6% of all Middlesex County residents responded to survey (1% required for survey validity) Response rate in Middlesex Centre: 1.9%

8 May 10, 2017 Page 8 of 24 Responses per Municipality Adelaide Metcalfe 44 Lucan-Biddulph 80 Middlesex Centre 328 Newbury Village 6 North Middlesex 83 Southwest Middlesex 130 Strathroy-Caradoc 275 Thames Centre 202

9 May 10, 2017 Page 9 of 24 Survey Design - Limitations Two Limitations 1. Representativeness: reflects how closely respondents to the survey match the whole County population Likely only small decrease in accuracy of results 1. Overall confidence level and margin of error: Varies depending on response rate and is a guide Middlesex County: Confidence Level: 90% and Margin of Error: 2% Interpretation: 31% of residents indicated that they were in part attracted to Middlesex County by its clean environment. Therefore, 90% likelihood that the actual percentage is approximately between 29 and 33% for all of Middlesex County

10 May 10, 2017 Page 10 of 24 III. Results Overview 1. Demographics 2. Attraction Factors 3. Satisfaction Factors 4. Deterrence Factors 5. Additional Feedback

11 1. Demographics May 10, 2017 Page 11 of 24 Age Figure presents the age distribution of the whole population of Middlesex Centre and respondents to the Resident Life Survey from the municipality Gender From Statistics Canada, the gender distribution of the Municipality of Middlesex Centre was 50% female and 50% male in The distribution of the respondents to the survey from the municipality was 63% female and 34% male.

12 May 10, 2017 Page 12 of 24 Demographics Type of Residence A considerable number of Middlesex Centre residents that responded to the survey defined their type of residence as a detached house (81% of respondents) and farm (17%). The distribution of the types of residences of survey respondents is close to the distribution of the whole population; this demonstrates that the results of the survey will also be representative of residents that live in all types of residences.

13 May 10, 2017 Page 13 of 24 Demographics Duration of Residency in the Municipality 55% of the local population has been living in Middlesex Centre for at least 11 years. 31% of the population has been living here for over 20 years.

14 May 10, 2017 Page 14 of 24 Demographics Previous Residency London 56.4% Other Municipalities in Middlesex County 5.1% Elsewhere in Ontario 15.9% Outside of Ontario 4.6% The majority of individuals choosing to relocate to MC are coming from London.

15 May 10, 2017 Page 15 of Attraction Factors The majority of residents consider MC to as they consider a great place to raise children. 50% of the population noted that they were attracted to the pace of lifestyle that MC offers.

16 May 10, 2017 Page 16 of Satisfaction Factors Overall, residents responded that they are satisfied with most aspects of life in Middlesex Centre; in particular, education (3.8 of 5.0), housing (3.7) and environment (3.7). They are neither satisfied nor unsatisfied with employment (3.0), residential growth (2.9), commercial businesses (2.9), shopping (2.8), taxes (2.7) and local politics (2.6).

17 May 10, 2017 Page 17 of 24 Reasons for travelling outside the municipality 91% of MC residents noted that they leave for shopping. 87% are leaving for entertainment. Health care access (68%), employment (66%), and sports and recreation (52%) are also reported by MC residents as being key reasons for them to have to travel outside the local municipality.

18 May 10, 2017 Page 18 of 24 Resident Engagement While in keeping with County averages, Middlesex Centre residents have reported that they are moderately engaged in local community events, sports and recreation and volunteer organizations but, not as active in local politics.

19 May 10, 2017 Page 19 of 24 Desire for Future Development 1 = A lot less ; 3 = Neither more nor less ; 5 = A lot more MC residents have reported strong desires for an increase in small businesses, community events, and jobs over the next 5 years. They are neutral on residential growth, large businesses and franchise operations coming to town.

20 May 10, 2017 Page 20 of 24 Deterring Factors A small majority of residents are likely to consider relocating out of Middlesex Centre if crime rates increase (57% of residents) or if there is an increase in housing costs (51%). An increase in residential development and lack of access to basic services would also cause some residents (41% and 31%, respectively) to consider relocating. Of the 31% of residents that would consider relocating for other reasons, the most frequently specified reason was an increase in water rates.

21 May 10, 2017 Page 21 of 24 Additional Feedback Please use three words to describe your municipality. Middlesex Centre

22 May 10, 2017 Page 22 of 24 Open Dialogue Middlesex Centre Respondents shared the following themes with respect to their open comments in the survey: A concern over the rising cost of living in the municipality. Support for commercial development. Concern over rapid residential development. Frustration with local politics (comments are generally related to the point above) Contentment with life in Middlesex Centre (family and community engagement).

23 IV. Conclusions May 10, 2017 Page 23 of The results of this report are derived from a representative and demographically assorted group of residents of the Municipality of Middlesex Centre. This enables the results to be extended to the whole population of the municipality. 2. Residents are most attracted to the municipality because they view it as a positive place to raise a family and they like the pace of lifestyle the municipality offers. 3. They are generally satisfied with most aspects of the municipality, although some aspects, such as commercial businesses and shopping may be improved. 4. Many residents travel outside of Middlesex Centre for multiple reasons, especially for shopping and entertainment. 5. Satisfaction levels for any aspect may be improved by concentrating on increasing engagement levels among local residents. 6. Residents made it clear that they want to see more small businesses and community events in Middlesex Centre. They also showed a preference for having the total number of residents and large businesses remain the same. 7. Resident retention efforts in the municipality should likely be focused on ensuring the crime rate, housing costs and any other compelling deterrence factor does not rise exponentially. 8. Residents most strongly associate the culture and identity of Middlesex Centre with the words quiet, safe, and rural. Growing and peaceful were next. 9. Additional feedback from residents of the Municipality of Middlesex Centre uncovered concerns with respect to how the municipality may change as a result of new developments. Distributing information to residents on the impacts of any new developments may reduce resident uncertainties.

24 May 10, 2017 Page 24 of 24 V. Questions?