Envision Escambia 2028: County Releases First Round Of Survey Results

September 16, 2014

Just after Labor Day, Escambia County launched an online survey to gauge the opinions of residents about a variety of topics of importance to the future of Escambia County.

Called “Envision Escambia 2028: Tell Us What’s Important to You,” it was the first in a series of articles, videos, public meetings and surveys developed to facilitate an ongoing dialog about issues of concern to the community.

A second survey entitled “Envision Escambia: Traffic Safety” is currently available online. Future surveys will ask questions about storm water drainage, public safety, parks and recreation, job growth and natural resources.

“Envision Escambia 2028: Tell Us What You Think” Results

Question 1: In which area of Escambia County do you currently live?

Residents who live in the area south of State Road 98, west of Navy Boulevard and out to Innerarity Point were most represented in the survey results, followed closely by people living between north of Cantonment, between Cantonment and Nine Mile Road and residents on the West Side, as well as residents in the area bounded by I-10, Pine Forest Road and Saulfley Field Road. No one on Pensacola Beach responded.

Question #2: What do you like most about your neighborhood?

More than 44 percent of respondents said their neighborhood was a good place to raise a family, 42 percent touted the safety of their neighborhood and 40 percent like their neighbors. Almost 32 percent felt their neighborhood was attractive and 30 percent cited its location near amenities and entertainment.

Among the comments received:

“I can safely walk and bicycle to my daily needs without having to get into a car.”

“Live Oak trees and awesome parks”

“It’s rural so far so the houses are not as close together as they are in other parts. The future land use maps seem to be changing that and I am disappointed with the increased density”

Question #3: Use of revenue generated from the Local Option Sales Tax is restricted to specific project categories. Rank which of the following categories you think exemplifies the best expenditure of Local Option Sales Tax funds, with #1 being your highest priority and #10 being your lowest priority.

Storm water drainage system improvement projects were the number one priority of the survey’s respondents with close to 73 percent ranking it in their top three. Transportation improvements – including bridges and dirt road paving – came in at number two with almost 60 percent. Ranked third with almost 32 percent of the vote was public safety improvements, including the purchase of fire trucks and ambulances, as well as enhancements to fire stations and training facilities.

Here’s the list of answers to Question #3 ranked in order of priority according to the survey respondents:

  1. Storm Water Drainage improvements
  2. Transportation improvements
  3. Public Safety improvements
  4. Sidewalk construction
  5. Initiatives to support and facilitate job growth
  6. Protection of natural resources (beach restoration and water quality)
  7. Development and improvement of parks and community centers
  8. Enhancements to public libraries
  9. Americans with Disabilities Act enhancements to public facilities and properties
  10. Improvements to correctional facilities

Question #4: This fall County staff would like to meet with community members to gather ideas from neighborhoods across Escambia County with the goal of understanding residents’ priorities for funding potential future Local Option Sales Tax projects. With that in mind, what kind of event or activity are you most likely to participate in?

Almost 72 percent of the people who answered the online survey would answer another online survey. Other popular results included attending community meetings, either near their home or at a central location that could be streamed onto Escambia County Television (ECTV).

Question #5; Do you have any comments, questions or suggestions for us?

Here are some of the answers we received:

“New fire station in the Beulah area would be very much needed”

“Emphasis on Economic Development and Public Safety”

“Remember the working class neighborhoods, families and concerns.”

“The west side needs more attention”.

“Keep Pensacola clean, welcoming, and mindful of our prized resources”

“The elected officials need to listen to their community. You are our voice in government, use it the right way.”


Comments

2 Responses to “Envision Escambia 2028: County Releases First Round Of Survey Results”

  1. anit groover on September 18th, 2014 4:40 pm

    hopefully the county commissioner for district #4 will read the above by J. Fontaine, and any other cc that voted for the ecat/redistribution tax.

    Your County Commissioners are:
    Commissioner Wilson Robertson, District 1.
    Commissioner Gene M. Valentino, District 2.
    Commissioner Lumon May, District 3 (Chairman)

    Commissioner Grover C. Robinson, IV, District 4.

    Commissioner Steven Barry, District 5 (Vice Chairman)

  2. J. fontaine on September 17th, 2014 6:23 pm

    County commissioners need to remember that they work for us. They need not vote on things such as gas tax to help fund ECAT without public getting a chance to weigh on on it. They put this tax in place and put the burden on people who are already are getting ripped off at the pump. So that the county can give out free bus passes out to those already milking the system.

Written by William Reynolds · Filed Under News