2017 Community Livability Report
See press release ' Resident Survey Shows Strong Support For Montgomery County As Desirable Place To Live, Gives High Marks To County Services ' for more information.
The National Citizen Survey™ (The NCS) report is about the "
livability" of Montgomery County. The phrase "livable community" is used here to evoke 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.
Great communities are partnerships of the government, private sector, community-based organizations and residents, all geographically connected. The NCS captures residents’ opinions within the three pillars of a community (Community Characteristics, Governance and Participation) across eight central facets of community (Safety, Mobility, Natural Environment, Built Environment, Economy, Recreation and Wellness, Education and Enrichment and Community Engagement).
The Community Livability Report provides the opinions of a representative sample of 1,075 residents of Montgomery County. The margin of error around any reported percentage is 3% for all respondents. The full description of methods used to garner these opinions can be found in the Technical Appendices provided under separate cover.
Summary of Report
About 4 in 5 residents rated the quality of life in Montgomery County as excellent or good. This rating was similar to the national benchmark comparison (see Appendix B of the Technical Appendices provided under separate cover).
Overall quality of community life represents the natural ambience, services and amenities that make for an attractive community. How residents rate their overall quality of life is an indicator of the overall health of a community. In the case of Montgomery County, 88% rated the County as an excellent or good place to live. Respondents’ ratings of Montgomery County as a place to live were similar to ratings in other communities across the nation.
An engaged community harnesses its most valuable resource, its residents. The connections and trust among residents, government, businesses and other organizations help to create a sense of community, a shared sense of membership, belonging and history. Most residents gave excellent or good marks to the overall sense of community and this rating was similar to the national benchmark. About 4 in 5 respondents were likely to recommend living in Montgomery County and planned to remain living in the County for the next five years.
Montgomery County included seven questions of special interest on The NCS. The first question asked residents to rate the level of effort they would like the County to place on several different potential areas of focus. About half or more of respondents felt the County should place high effort on making changes to public schools, crime, traffic, affordable housing and social services for those in need. A majority thought each area should have at least medium effort placed on it.
- Potential County Focus Areas
- Levels of Taxes and Services
- Needed County Government to Resolve an Issue
- Communication Methods
- Ease of Communicating and Resolving Issue
- Aspects of Montgomery County K-12 Public Schools
- Potential Information Sources
Conclusions
Montgomery County is a desirable place to live and raise a family.About 4 in 5 Montgomery County residents gave an excellent or good rating to the county as a place to live and to the overall quality of life. Additionally, about 8 in 10 respondents were pleased with their neighborhood as a place to live, the overall image of the community, the overall appearance of the County and the County as a place to raise children. Resident loyalty ratings were high with a strong majority of respondents reporting they would recommend living in Montgomery County and planned to remain in the community for the next five years.
Economy is a top priority.Montgomery residents identified Economy as one of the top community focus areas in the coming two years. Almost all ratings of aspects of Economy received high marks and were similar to or higher than national and peer comparisons. Additionally, Montgomery County participants’ praise for the County as a place to work, employment opportunities, shopping opportunities and vibrant downtowns/commercial areas were higher than national averages. More Montgomery County residents had a positive economic outlook in 2017 compared to the previous survey in 2009 (see the Trends over Time report under separate cover). However, cost of living received positive ratings from only about 1 in 5 respondents and this rating was lower than the national benchmark.
Safety is important and Safety ratings are solid.Residents also identified Safety as an important area of community focus. About 8 in 10 residents gave positive ratings to the overall feeling of safety in Montgomery County, and almost all reported feeling safe in their neighborhoods and in Montgomery County’s downtowns/commercial areas during the day. Further, almost all respondents gave excellent or good marks to fire services and ambulance/ems. Moreover, at least 8 in 10 participants reported they had NOT reported or been the victim of a crime in the previous 12 months.
