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1
City of Oshkosh
Citizen Survey 2011
Introduction
A survey of citizens in Oshkosh was undertaken by the Public Policy Analysis
class at the University of Wisconsin – Oshkosh in cooperation with the City of Oshkosh
in the Spring of 2011. This report will analyze the results of this survey and provide
insight into the perspectives of the citizens on a variety of issues. The 2011 Oshkosh
Citizen Survey included seven primary sections and multiple sub-sections, along with a
question requesting general demographic data as well as an opportunity for comments
from the respondents. Two hundred and forty-eight (248) surveys were returned and the
resulting data has been entered into a statistical analysis program. Depending upon the
nature of the question, individuals were asked to respond to each question based on three
following possible rating options: 1.) excellent, good, fair and poor 2.) very important,
somewhat important, no opinion, somewhat unimportant, and very unimportant or 3.)
strongly agree, somewhat agree, neither agree/disagree, somewhat disagree, strongly
disagree and no opinion. The survey was sent to 1,500 properties chosen randomly from
the 19,037 residential parcels provided from a data base by the City of Oshkosh. The 248
responses constitute a 16.5 percent response rate which is lower than the norm for citizen
surveys and similar to the 17 percent return in 2009 but below the 22.5 percent return in
2010. The relationship between sample size and precision of the survey instrument at a
95 percent confidence rate frequently used in surveys is shown below.
Sample Size Margin of Error
100 10%
300 5.5%
400 5.0%
800 3.5%
The 248 responses create a confidence level of approximately 6.7 percent. A level of 5
percent is considered acceptable for most survey results.
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How Citizens of Oshkosh Feel About Their City – Section One
The following is an analysis of section one “How the citizens of Oshkosh feel
about their city” and its sub-sections. Graph 1 provides an overall view of how the
citizens of Oshkosh feel about their city. The original responses of excellent and good
were combined into a single category of “positive”, while fair and poor responses were
combined to form a category of “negative”. This may equalize some of the potential
variances resulting from personality differences and specific, temporary situations (a bad
day at the office, winter weather, etc.). By displaying the results in this manner, it seems
apparent that respondents generally feel “positive” about their city, except when asked
about the city’s future, the city’s appearance, and the city as a retirement option. These
areas with a negative majority mirror the categories concluded as negative in 2010.
GRAPH 1
Positive vs. Negative Responses
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The following table shows the responses in more detail.
How Oshkosh Citizens Feel About Their City Results
Excellent Good Fair Poor
No
Opinion
As A Place To Live 46 137 54 5 0
Sense Of Community 17 119 74 20 5
Overall Appearance Of The City 2 105 110 24 0
Overall Safety Of Residents 39 156 42 4 0
Neighborhood As A Place To Live 80 119 35 8 0
As A Place To Raise Children 50 125 41 8 17
As A Place To Retire 32 81 67 48 15
Community Openness/Acceptance 12 110 83 24 10
Overall Quality Of Life 22 150 58 7 1
Environmentally Friendly 12 119 91 11 7
As A Place To Work 15 103 78 20 25
How Oshkosh Citizens Feel About Their City Results Summary
Positive Negative No Opinion
As A Place To Live 183 59 0
Sense Of Community 136 94 5
Overall Appearance Of The City 107 134 0
Overall Safety Of Residents 195 46 0
Neighborhood As A Place To Live 199 43 0
As A Place To Raise Children 175 49 17
As A Place To Retire 113 115 15
Community Openness/Acceptance 122 107 10
Overall Quality Of Life 172 65 1
Environmentally Friendly 131 102 7
As A Place To Work 118 98 25
Positive = Excellent or Good Negative=Fair or Poor
The following is an analysis of the above tables:
How would you rate Oshkosh as a place to live?
There were 242 valid responses. Of the four rating options available with 4 being
excellent, 3 good, 2 fair, and 1 poor, on average the respondents rated the City of
Oshkosh a 2.93. This shows that Oshkosh averaged out just below “good,” and well
above “fair.” Overall, the cumulative percentage results show that nearly 76 percent of
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survey respondents thought Oshkosh was an excellent or good place to live. The 2.93
average rating is slightly higher than the 2.91 average for the 2010 Oshkosh Survey, and
a fairly large increase from the 2.14 average rating in the 2009 survey. Analysis of cross-
tabulations shows that about 86% of people who have lived in Oshkosh over 20 years
gave a positive response to this question. In comparison, roughly 60% of people who
have lived in Oshkosh less than five years gave similar ratings. This seems to show that
long-time residents are pleased with their city. The percentage of positive responses
among respondents living in Oshkosh over 20 years rose 6% from last year’s survey,
while the figure decreased by 7% among respondents living in the city 5 years or less.
How would you rate the sense of community in Oshkosh?
There were 235 valid responses to the sense of community rating with 5 answers
of “no opinion.” The average score for sense of community was 2.52 placing it half way
between good and fair. This is a slight increase from the 2010 Oshkosh Survey result of
2.5. 60% of respondents feel a “positive” sense of community in Oshkosh. This figure
remains the same when accounting for gender; 60% of both male and female respondents
indicated a “positive” sense of community. Again, “positive” refers to a combination of
‘excellent’ and ‘good’ responses.
When cross-tabulating the data for sense of community and homeowner status it
shows that 61% percent of homeowners who responded have a “positive” sense of
community, an increase from the 2010 Oshkosh Survey result of 55%.
How would you rate the overall appearance of the city?
There were 241 valid responses rating the appearance of the city, with an average
score of 2.35. Using the original four rating options, 46% of respondents rated the
appearance of the city as “fair.” 44% scored appearance as “good” and less than 1% of
respondents rated the appearance of the city as “excellent.” The majority of scores in this
category are negative, 55%, compared to 45% positive answers. These numbers show a
5% increase in positive feelings compared to the 2010 survey result, which is a step in the
right direction.
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It is important to point out that consideration should be given to the time of year
when this survey was administered. February tends to be a “dull” month in Wisconsin, in
which there are often dirty snow banks lining the streets and a lack of leaves on the trees
or flowers blooming. This may have had an impact on how respondents felt about the
city’s appearance.
How would you rate the overall safety of the residents?
There were 241 valid responses to this question with an average score of 2.95,
very close to the “good” rating. Of the four rating options, “good” had the highest
response rate of 65 percent, which far out-weighed the responses of any other category.
When converting the ratings into the “positive/negative” scale, 81 percent of the
respondents rated the safety of Oshkosh as “positive,” while 19 percent rated it as
“negative”. These numbers are almost identical to the past two years of survey results.
Cross tabulations between safety and time lived in Oshkosh show that those living in
Oshkosh for over six years feel far safer in the city. Roughly 70% of responses landed in
the good category compared to 53% for those residents living in Oshkosh less than five
years. Respondents indicating that they lived in the city between 6 and 20 years, and
those that have lived in Oshkosh over 20 years, both gave 83% positive ratings for overall
safety of residents. Considering that Oshkosh is also a “college town,” which brings in a
variety of activities, it would be helpful to examine any areas that may need attention for
improvement by correlating the feelings of safety with the demographic information.
This information would be beneficial for community service/program providers as they
develop their action plans for meeting the needs of the community.
How would you rate your neighborhood as a place to live?
There were 242 valid responses to the neighborhood as a place to live question.
Using the four rating options, the average response is 3.12, the highest average score
among the questions in this section of the Oshkosh Survey. This indicates that residents
feel their neighborhoods in Oshkosh are slightly better than “good” places to live. 49%
percent of respondents felt their neighborhood is a good place to live while 33% felt that
it is an excellent place to live. Only 18 percent of respondents had negative feelings
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about their neighborhood, as a place to live. This positive response is similar to the 2010
Oshkosh Survey result, which was a slight increase in positive responses over the 2009
survey.
How would you rate Oshkosh as a place to raise children?
There 241 valid responses and 17 answers of “no-opinion” to this question, with
an average score of 2.75. Nearly 73% of respondents indicated a positive response to
Oshkosh as a place to raise children. Along gender lines, 75% of men listed Oshkosh as a
positive place to raise children, whereas women graded Oshkosh positively at a rate of
70%. A look at the following crosstab tells us that among men, 22.6% scored Oshkosh
excellent, 53% marked good and 15.7% chose fair. Among women, 19.2 % chose
excellent, 50.8% chose good, and 18.3% chose fair.
As A Place To Raise Children * Gender Crosstabulation
26 23 49
22.6%19.2%20.9%
61 61 122
53.0%50.8%51.9%
18 22 40
15.7%18.3%17.0%
3 4 7
2.6%3.3%3.0%
7 10 17
6.1%8.3%7.2%
115 120 235
100.0%100.0%100.0%
Count
% within Gender
Count
% within Gender
Count
% within Gender
Count
% within Gender
Count
% within Gender
Count
% within Gender
Excellent
Good
Fair
Poor
No Opinion
As A Place
To Raise
Children
Total
Male Female
Gender
Total
There was not a significant gap in any scoring category by gender. Thus, we can
conclude from the above chart, that both male and female respondents grade Oshkosh
similarly as a place to raise children. We found that 75 % of married people think
Oshkosh is a positive place to raise children, while 66% of unmarried people and 64% of
widowed people think the same. One thing is clear is that Oshkosh is a good place to
raise children.
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How would you rate Oshkosh as a place to retire?
There were 243 valid responses and 15 answers without an opinion to this
question. The mean score was 2.27. The results were split almost evenly, 47.3% negative
and 46.5% positive, with roughly 6% undecided. The following chart indicates that those
respondents age 65+, rate Oshkosh more favorably (62% positive) than those under 65
(40% positive).
As A Place To Retire * Age Crosstabulation
13 19 32
8.4%24.7%13.8%
49 29 78
31.6%37.7%33.6%
41 20 61
26.5%26.0%26.3%
38 8 46
24.5%10.4%19.8%
14 1 15
9.0%1.3%6.5%
155 77 232
100.0%100.0%100.0%
Count
% within Age
Count
% within Age
Count
% within Age
Count
% within Age
Count
% within Age
Count
% within Age
Excellent
Good
Fair
Poor
No Opinion
As A
Place To
Retire
Total
Under 65 65+
Age
Total
Younger residents represent the future of the city. Oshkosh cannot afford to lose a
great number of them as they age. Consideration should be given to help make Oshkosh
more attractive to these residents, so that in their retirement years, they will still likely
reside in Oshkosh.
Survey results indicate that people who have lived in Oshkosh for over 20 years
rate Oshkosh far more positively as a replace to retire (54%), compared to those between
6 and 20 years (37%), which is even greater than those who have lived in Oshkosh for
less than 5 years (27%). Despite any margin of error between these numbers, we can
conclude that the longer residents have lived in Oshkosh, the more positively they view
the city as a place to retire.
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How would you rate Oshkosh's community openness and acceptance to diversity?
There were 239 valid responses and 10 no-opinion answers to this question. 51%
of these valid responses grade Oshkosh as positive regarding community openness and
acceptance to diversity. 44.7% of respondents scored a negative answer to this question.
The overwhelming majority of respondents indentified their race as “white.”
Among those of other races, one each gave an answer of “no-opinion” and “good,” while
three answered “fair” for community openness and acceptance to diversity. Due to the
limited sample size of those identifying their race as “non-white,” the results likely
cannot be construed as statistically significant.
How would you rate the overall quality of life in Oshkosh?
There were 238 valid responses and 1 no- opinion answer in grading the overall
quality of life in Oshkosh. The results indicate that 72% of respondents view quality of
life as positive in Oshkosh. These same results translate across gender lines, as 72% of
both males and females gave a positive rating. This is an increase of 6% over last year’s
survey for males, and a decrease of 6% for females. The results are similar regardless of
marital status. 74% of homeowners favor the quality of life in the City of Oshkosh, while
66% of renters indicated a positive response.
Respondents living in Oshkosh longer than five years, rated quality of life
positively over 70% of the time, while those residing in Oshkosh for five years or less,
were deadlocked at 50% positive and negative.
How would you rate Oshkosh as an environmental friendly city?
There were 240 valid responses and 7 no-opinion answers to this question. The
respondents feel positive that Oshkosh is an environmentally friendly city, at 54%.
Respondents age 65+ scored positive 69% of the time, while those under 65 rated the city
at 49.7% positive.
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How would you rate Oshkosh as a place to work?
There were 241 valid responses and 25 no-opinion answers to this question. This
question was not asked on the 2010 Oshkosh Survey last year, so it is not possible to
provide a comparison to historical data. Overall, 49% of all respondents view Oshkosh as
a positive place to work, 41% scored Oshkosh negatively, and 10% indicated no opinion.
When accounting for education, 50% of respondents with a Master Degree or Higher rate
Oshkosh as a “good” place to work. The majority of respondents from almost all levels of
education scored Oshkosh as a “good” place to work, while a majority of those with an
associate degree rate Oshkosh in the “fair category.”
How would you rate the direction Oshkosh is moving for the future?
There were 242 valid responses and 17 no-opinion answers to this question.
About 40% of these valid responses express a positive attitude towards Oshkosh’s plans
for the future, which is a large increase from 29% positive response in the 2010 Oshkosh
Survey; however 52% of respondents view Oshkosh’s direction for the future negatively.
Our analysis for a satisfaction score reveals the lowest rating in this question than all the
other questions in this section of the 2011 Oshkosh Survey, with an average score of 2.12
(just above fair).
The City Oshkosh has to think about strategic ways to meet citizens’ expectations.
This area of the survey scored negatively, along with the appearance of the city and
respondent’s views on Oshkosh as a place to retire. These same categories scored
negatively in last year’s Oshkosh Survey as well.
Taking into account that the survey is conducted in February, when roadways and
other public areas are covered in dirty snow, it is certainly reasonable to expect a not-so-
favorable rating on city appearance. Conducting the survey at another point during the
year may adjust/account for weather and environmental conditions occurring during
particular seasons.
For those looking down the road and who scored the city negatively as a place to
retire, it certainly seems plausible that they would also not view the future of the city
favorably. While the future direction of the city scored negatively, the fact that this
section gained an 11% increase in favorable responses over last year’s survey is a sign of
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hope for the future. This analysis does not aim to solve any issues, but rather report on
current trends in how citizens of Oshkosh feel about their city.
GRAPHS 2-6
All Responses – 2011
Survey
11
Excellent Responses
Good Responses
12
Fair Responses
Poor Responses
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Importance and Quality of Services - Section Two and Three
Importance of Services
The data collected through the 2011 City of Oshkosh Survey will help provide
some validity to the 2010 citizen survey and offer a deeper insight into the general
opinions of its citizens. By surveying the citizens of Oshkosh in this manner, the city
manager and elected officials can get a clear picture as to what services the general public
sees as important and which services are of little importance to them. In order for services
to improve, stay relevant or change altogether, the City of Oshkosh polls its citizens and
from this data helps determine the City of Oshkosh’s policies and procedures based on
level of perceived importance. It is important to note that the information provided in
these sections is indicative of the individuals that were polled and although a fairly large
sample was obtained, in the end the results reflect the demographic that was polled.
After analyzing the results from the 2011 City of Oshkosh survey it appears that
certain services are deemed very important, by reflecting greater than 70% of the
responses in the “very important” category of the survey. These four services are
Emergency Medical Services (80.2%), Fire and Protection (79.0%), Snow Removal
(77.4%), and Police Services (77%). Once again these are the services that have been
deemed by the respondents of the 2011 City of Oshkosh survey to be most important and
the results are similar to the 2010 City of Oshkosh survey where each of these same
services were reported most important.
After the 2011 City of Oshkosh survey was analyzed, three services reflected the
least important to the respondents. The three services with the lowest perceived level of
importance are the Lake Shore Golf Course (7.3%), Pollock Aquatic Center (23.4%), and
the Transit System (30.6%). The percentage total reflected above was the percentage of
“very important” responses. The decision to rate these services low may include such
factors as: (i) the timing of the survey (the golf course and aquatic center haven’t been
used in nearly six (6) months); (ii) the respondents may not find the transit system
important because it is not used by the respondents.; (iii) the age of average respondents
may have also impacted the importance scales of these results.
We have included a table summarizing the responses and a bar chart to illustrate
the services, from most to least important, as surveyed from respondent citizens.
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Very
Important
Somewhat
Important
Somewhat
Unimportant
Very Un-
important
No
Opinion
Animal Control 23.30% 45.00% 19.20% 4.20% 8.30%
Bike/Pedestrian Trails 34.60% 42.10% 12.90% 6.70% 3.80%
Building Permits 28.90% 44.80% 15.10% 5.00% 6.30%
Community Media 27.00% 47.30% 18.30% 5.40% 2.10%
City Parking 24.80% 49.60% 16.50% 6.20% 2.90%
Support Neighborhood Orgs 25.80% 50.00% 12.50% 5.80% 5.80%
City's Sidewalk 43.40% 47.90% 5.00% 2.10% 1.70%
Econ Development 41.30% 37.50% 13.30% 3.80% 4.20%
Improve Housing 40.00% 42.10% 11.70% 2.90% 3.30%
Emergency Medical Services 82.20% 14.90% 1.20% 0.80% 0.80%
Enforcement-Property Codes 45.50% 40.90% 9.50% 2.50% 1.70%
Fire and Protection 82.00% 13.80% 2.50% 1.30% 0.40%
Lake Shore Golf Course 7.40% 21.80% 27.60% 32.50% 10.70%
Leaf/Brush Pick Up 32.60% 55.40% 7.90% 2.50% 1.70%
Maintenance Parks/Greenways 44.70% 48.00% 4.90% 1.60% 0.80%
Maintenance City Buildings 35.10% 53.10% 8.80% 1.30% 1.70%
Public Museum 28.50% 47.50% 14.00% 6.60% 3.30%
Police Services 78.00% 18.40% 1.20% 1.60% 0.80%
Pollack Aquatic Center 23.80% 38.50% 16.40% 13.50% 7.80%
Public Health 51.00% 34.00% 9.50% 2.10% 3.30%
Public Library 49.40% 38.30% 7.40% 1.60% 3.30%
Refuse Collection/Recycling 66.30% 27.60% 4.10% 1.20% 0.80%
Regulation/Zoning for Land Use 31.40% 41.30% 17.80% 2.50% 7.00%
Snow Removal 79.00% 18.10% 2.10% 0.80% 0.00%
Citizen Complaints 53.90% 38.30% 5.30% 1.20% 1.20%
Senior Services Center 31.00% 45.70% 11.00% 4.90% 7.30%
Storm Drainage 69.80% 26.40% 1.20% 0.40% 2.10%
Street Lighting 53.10% 39.40% 5.40% 1.20% 0.80%
Street Paving 73.40% 23.80% 2.00% 0.00% 0.80%
Transit System 31.50% 36.10% 18.70% 7.50% 6.20%
Transportation Planning 40.10% 45.00% 7.40% 3.30% 4.10%
15
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Quality of Service
The survey offers insight into citizenry attitudes in regards to quality of services
provided. Question three is an attempt to quantify the attitudes of the City of Oshkosh
citizenry. The 2011 survey shows a similar result as found in the 2010 survey regarding
attitudes on the quality of service. The 2010 survey found Fire Protection and Prevention
Services, Emergency Medical Services, Police Protection and Public Library Services to
rate highest in terms perceived quality with a fair or above rating.
In the 2011 survey results, these same four services rated in the combined good
and excellent ranking in over (80%) of the respondents. In addition, Refuse Collection
and Recycled Services rated good or excellent (86.4%). Specifically, the combined good
or excellent ratings were: Fire Protection and Prevention Services (91.0%), Emergency
Medical Services (87.5%), Police Protection (81.7%) and Public Library Services
(81.6%), Refuse Collection and Recycled Services (86.4%). Since these services can be
viewed as key elements of public safety and health and welfare, it would be important to
have the citizenry perceive the services as being provided in a high quality manner.
In the 2010 survey respondents reported Street Paving, Maintenance Sweeping
and Repair (35.8%); Storm Drainage System (29.4%); Transportation Plans for Traffic
(18.8%); Bike and Pedestrian Trails (18.3%); Economic and Development Assistance to
Business (17.9%) and Building Permits and Inspections (17.3%) as perceived as poor in
quality. The results of the 2011 survey reflect similar, but better results. Except for
Storm Drainage Systems all others are down in terms of the percentage of respondents
who perceive the quality to be poor. The results in 2011 are Street Paving, Maintenance
Sweeping and Repair (31.9%); Transportation Plans for Traffic (11.1%); Bike and
Pedestrian Trails (12.4%); Economic and Development Assistance to Business (7.7%)
and Building Permits and Inspections (13.7%) in terms of poor quality rating. Storm
Drainage System (32.6%) is the only category that was rated poor quality in 2010 that has
not been perceived as improved in the 2011 survey. In addition, Removal of Snow and
Ice from City Streets was rated poor by 21.3% (up from 15.3% in 2010) of respondents.
Timing is most certainly a factor in the poor rating for this item, since the survey was
completed during a particularly bad weather time period.
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Sixteen, over (50%), of the survey categories had a good or excellent rating by
more than 50% of the respondents. The worst quality ratings received were Storm
Drainage and Street paving. A rating of poor was given to Storm Drainage by (32.6%) of
the respondents. A rating of poor was given to Street Paving by (31.9%) of the
respondents.
Only eight of the categories (25.8%) had a poor rating by (10%) or more of the
respondents. The spread on quality of service perception in the City of Oshkosh is (50%)
of the categories are rated good or excellent and (25.8%) of the categories are rated poor.
The other (25%) of categories would, therefore, fall into the middle or more neutral
range. Depending on the discussion in Analysis of Importance and Quality of Services
section of this paper, these survey results provide quality guidance for allocation of
resources in the attitudes of the citizenry of the City of Oshkosh.
18
Excellent
Quality
Good
Quality
Fair
Quality
Poor
Quality
Don't
know
Animal Control 7.30% 42.70% 19.20% 3.00% 27.80%
Bike and Pedestrian Trails 4.70% 35.90% 31.60% 12.40% 15.40%
Building Permits 5.60% 29.50% 26.90% 13.70% 24.40%
Community Media 9.40% 45.30% 27.80% 5.60% 12.00%
City Parking 5.10% 41.10% 38.60% 8.50% 6.80%
City Support Neighborhood Orgs 3.50% 30.30% 29.90% 4.80% 31.60%
City's Sidewalk 5.50% 50.60% 33.20% 7.70% 3.00%
Economic Development 3.40% 28.60% 27.80% 7.70% 32.50%
Improve Housing 2.60% 27.80% 29.60% 10.00% 30.00%
Emergency Medical Services 37.90% 49.60% 3.40% 0.40% 8.60%
Enforcement of Property Costs 5.60% 27.60% 29.30% 12.50% 25.00%
Fire and Protection 42.40% 46.60% 5.50% 0.00% 5.50%
Lake Shore Golf Course 5.10% 32.90% 16.70% 0.90% 44.40%
Leaf and Brush Pick Up 17.70% 57.10% 19.00% 2.20% 3.90%
Maintenance of Parks/Greenways 13.20% 58.30% 21.30% 5.10% 2.10%
Maintenance of City Buildings 6.50% 47.80% 25.90% 5.20% 14.70%
Oshkosh Public Museum 25.50% 47.70% 10.60% 1.30% 14.90%
Police Services 36.60% 45.10% 12.80% 4.70% 0.90%
Pollack Aquatic Center 21.80% 39.30% 9.00% 0.00% 29.90%
Public Health 10.70% 41.20% 18.00% 1.70% 28.30%
Public Library 34.20% 47.40% 10.30% 0.90% 7.30%
Refuse Collection and Recycling 33.20% 53.20% 8.50% 2.10% 3.00%
Regulation/Zoning for Land Use 2.60% 35.20% 20.40% 7.00% 34.80%
Snow Removal 12.80% 37.90% 28.10% 21.30% 0.00%
Citizen Complaints 7.30% 29.20% 22.30% 13.30% 27.90%
Senior Services Center 16.10% 39.80% 11.00% 0.40% 32.60%
Storm Drainage 3.40% 22.30% 34.80% 32.60% 6.90%
Street Lighting 6.40% 56.80% 27.80% 8.10% 0.90%
Street Paving 3.80% 28.90% 34.50% 31.90% 0.90%
Transit System 10.30% 42.70% 20.10% 2.10% 24.80%
Transportation Planning for Traffic 3.00% 35.00% 28.20% 11.10% 22.60%
19
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20
Analysis of Importance and Quality of Services
Upon statistical analysis of the importance and quality of services, it was found
through the use of cross tab analysis that some of the services are rated very important
and excellent quality. These services include the core protection services mainly; Fire
Protection and Prevention Services, Police Services and Emergency Medical and Rescue
Services.
The analysis of the 2011 City of Oshkosh survey demonstrated that certain
services where viewed by the respondents as important but lacked quality. These services
received 80% or higher from the combined score of the “very important” and the
“somewhat important” responses but received 55% or lower from the combined score of
the “excellent quality” and the “good quality” responses in the quality of services
category. These services are City’s Sidewalks with a combined importance of (89.1%)
and a combined quality score of (53.2%), Enforcement of Property Codes with a
combined importance of (84.3%) and a combined quality of score of (31%), Maintenance
of City Owned Buildings with a combined importance of (85.1%) and a combined quality
score of (50.8%), Public Health with a combined importance of (82.7%) and a combined
quality score of (48.8%), Citizens Complaints with a combined importance of (90.3%)
and a combined quality of (34.3%), Storm Drainage with a combined importance of
(93.9%) and a combined quality of (24.2%), and Street Paving etc with a combined
importance of (95.6%) and a combine quality of (31%). These comparisons show a
minimal discrepancy of (34.3%) for Maintenance of City Owned Buildings and a
maximum discrepancy of (69.7%) for Storm Drainage.
At the conclusion of the analysis of the importance and quality of services, it is a
fair statement that services that had the least discrepancies between the importance and
Quality of services where the essential services like Medical Services, Police Services,
and Fire Protection Services. It is also safe to conclude that the services that neglected to
rank high in the level of importance where the services that were not in season like Lake
Shore Golf Course and Pollock Aquatic Center, which could be in part to the fact that the
services are no longer being utilized at the time of the survey. These services although
they did not rank high on the level of importance, they did show highest balance among
their level of importance and the quality that they provide. Finally, there are several
21
services outlined in this analysis that need the attention of the city manager, which
demonstrated a high level of discrepancy between the level of importance and the quality
of the service.
22
Section 2 and 3 Response Comparison
23
Budgeting Priorities – Section Four and Five
Section four, as with last year’s survey, asked survey respondents to give dollar
amounts to nine city service areas using a hypothetical $1 million dollar budget surplus.
The nine service areas listed were community services, economic development, refuse
and recycling, finance and administration, police protection, fire, parks, storm water, and
road maintenance. Road maintenance ranked number one, followed by storm water,
economic development, and police protection. Ranking last was finance and
administration. Of the nine categories, only two received any survey responses allotting
the full one million: storm water and road maintenance. The rankings are reflective of
how the cities priorities should be set in the eyes of the residents of Oshkosh.
The mean value of responses for increasing the road maintenance budget was
$254,870. The second highest mean value was for storm water improvements, with an
average increase of $222,360. This supports the responses provided by residents when
asked to rate the quality of services the city provides. The responses for quality of street
paving, maintenance and repair were predominantly negative with 30.2% rating the street
quality poor and 32.7% rating it fair. Similarly, the storm water improvements received a
30.6% poor quality rating along with a 32.7% fair rating.
When looking at this year’s survey responses compared to last year’s, the
rankings are almost identical. The only exception is parks moved ahead of police and fire
suppression this year. Last year the difference between those two categories was 13.76%
while this year the margin narrowed to 3.89%.
One item to note is that while the rankings remained almost identical, the raw
mean percentages varied widely when compared to the 2010 values. An interesting
comparison is the mean allocation for road maintenance decreased $520,630 between
2010 and 2011 while the storm water allocation increased $510,420. In 2010 several
areas around the city suffered flood damage due to ineffective storm water systems. An
argument can be made there is a direct correlation between these incidents and the
increased funding allocation for storm water in 2011.
24
When given a situation in which the City of Oshkosh’s budget must be trimmed
by $1 million, the rankings remain somewhat similar but not as close as the surplus data.
As with last year, the largest dollar amount change was in finance and administration. In
2010 finance and administration saw a decrease of $264,770 compared to $244,910 in
2011. Even with that decrease, finance and administration was overwhelmingly the most
popular service to make cuts. Also similar to last year’s survey the basic protective (i.e.
fire and police) services fared well in regards to not receiving large budget cuts. Even
though the proposed amount to cut was small, there was an increase in budget cuts for
police protection. Road maintenance and storm water did not receive a large budget cut
either. This is understandable considering both of these areas ranked low in perceived
quality and very high importance in section four of the survey.
SURVEY DATA – SECTIONS FOUR AND FIVE
# 4 - Extra $1 million 2010 Rank 2010 Mean* 2011 Rank 2011 Mean*
Road Maintenance 1 307.50 1 254.87
Storm Water 2 170.94 2 222.36
Economic Development 3 119.23 3 127.08
Police Protection 4 109.37 4 88.84
Community Services 5 88.86 5 78.21
Parks 7 66.94 6 77.68
Fire Suppression/ Prevention 6 80.70 7 73.79
Refuse and Recycling 8 39.63 8 43.06
Finance and Administration 9 17.15 9 34.13
# 5 - Reduce $1 million 2010 Rank 2010 Mean* 2011 Rank 2011 Mean*
Finance and Administration 1 264.77 1 244.91
Parks 4 113.42 2 154.41
Community Services 3 129.85 3 141.14
Economic Development 2 156.74 4 137.88
Refuse and Recycling 5 95.68 5 80.72
Police Protection 7 62.12 6 75.23
Road Maintenance 8 58.77 7 57.91
Fire Suppression/ Prevention 9 51.25 8 56.17
Storm Water 6 67.40 9 51.63
*In thousands
25
Another interesting way to look at the responses from the hypothetical addition
and subtraction of the $1 million is to combine the two numbers so that they reflect on
citizen opinion on a budget with neither a shortfall nor surplus. This can be very telling
of the priorities of the respondents. To make this statistically valid, only the surveys in
which the respondent completed both sections four and five (191 of the total 248
responses) were used.
Of the nine categories listed in this section, only four received a net positive
allocation in 2011: road maintenance, storm water, fire suppression and police protection.
Just like the conclusion from last year’s study, it seems to be the case once again those
basic services such as infrastructure and police and fire protection are what citizens of
Oshkosh feel most strongly about.
SECTION 4 AND 5 – NET CHANGE
2011 Add* 2011 Subtract* Difference*
Road Maintenance 254.87 57.91 196.96
Storm Water 222.36 51.63 170.73
Fire Suppression/Prevention 73.79 56.17 17.62
Police Protection 88.84 75.23 13.61
Economic Development 127.08 137.88 -10.80
Refuse and Recycling 43.06 80.72 -37.66
Community Services 78.21 141.14 -62.93
Parks 77.68 154.41 -76.73
Finance and Administration 34.13 244.91 -210.78
*In thousands
26
Funding of City Services – Section Six
Survey question #6 covers the satisfaction levels and what possible changes could
be made to the City of Oshkosh’s current tax process. The question is broken down into
five sections in which the citizens are asked to rate their level of satisfaction for the
current tax system, and to rate their level of agreement towards potential ways in which
the city could possible change this system for the better. The provided answer options for
each question ranged from “strongly agree, somewhat agree, neither agree/disagree,
somewhat disagree, strongly disagree.” Each answered survey is intended to give city
officials an idea of what the city can do to better satisfy its residents. Upon analysis, the
survey answers were then compared according to the demographics of each survey taker.
These demographics included age, sex, race, education level, occupation, income level,
area of Oshkosh in which the citizen resides, years as a citizen, marital status, and
whether or not children reside in the household. The city intended to use this
demographic information to attempt to understand why certain citizens may have
responded in a particular way to a particular tax question (i.e. were people with children
less likely to be in agreement to lower taxes by raising fees, because these people with
children are more likely to use services which require fees: swimming pools, parks, or
beaches.)
Question #6 was broken down and measured on the above mentioned scale, as
followed:
“I am satisfied with my taxes, aids and fees”
43.9% of respondents either somewhat or strongly agreed with the statement, “I
am satisfied with my taxes” which was a 3% increase as compared to 2010. 31.5% of
respondents either somewhat or strongly disagreed which was a 2.5% decrease from
2010. 24.6% of respondents neither agreed nor disagreed or expressed no opinion.
Respondents were asked which part of the city they lived in: North of the Fox River,
South of the Fox River and East of US 41, South of the Fox River and West of US 41.
Geographically, the responses were very similar throughout the city, regardless of the
area in which a citizen lived.
The largest three income brackets to respond to the survey were the $15-$24,999
bracket with 35 respondents, $35-$49,999 bracket with 39 respondents, and the $50-
27
$74,999 bracket with 46 respondents. Within these brackets the responses are very
similar to the overall results of the survey.
Strongly Agree 6%
Somewhat Agree 37.9%
Neither Agree/ Disagree 17.7%
Somewhat Disagree 19.0%
Strongly Disagree 12.5%
In general the results of this year’s question were very similar to 2010 with only single
digit plus or minus changes over the year. However, the income bracket ($15,000-
$24,999) replaced the $75,000-$99,999 on the top three respondents list.
“Reduce taxes through efficiency”
77.5% of respondents either somewhat or strongly agreed that the city should
focus on becoming more efficient with services that are currently offered. There was only
a slight 2% increase in the numbers this year; however there is still a strong indication
that the citizens of Oshkosh feel the city should focus on reducing taxes by becoming
more efficient. Particularly as state and local budgets are being scrutinized at a higher
level than the last few years.
“Reducing taxes through grants”
This option, as shown with the survey in 2010 as well, proved to be a popular
option, with overall positive responses of 60% strongly or somewhat agreeing with this
proposed change to the tax system. 11.5% of the respondents showed no desire to acquire
more grants to reduce taxes, with a somewhat or strongly disagree response. It should be
noted that 23% of responses were neither agree nor disagree and 5.5% of citizens had no
opinion on the subject.
Although demographics were taken into account, there was no particular
demographic that appeared to cause a person to choose a particular response. Citizens
simply tended to choose either a positive response or to not feel partial towards either
response. Whether male or female, owners or renters, or married, single, or widowed; the
strongest responses were either positive or neutral.
28
“Reduce taxes by raising service fees and charges”
The responses to this option were skewed slightly opposite to the prior option,
with more citizens tending to feel more negatively towards this option. 32.7% of citizens
responded with strong or somewhat agree, while 19.6% felt more neutral. The most
significant of responses were in the somewhat to strongly disagree categories, with 44.7%
of citizens against this type of change to the tax system. 3% of respondents answered this
question with no opinion.
Again, taking into consideration the demographics analyzed for this study, results
tended to be less positive, regardless of any demographic in particular. For example,
married, single, or widowed citizens voiced their opinions in a similar manner, with all
groups appearing to feel more negatively towards this option than positively. Single
people felt most negatively, with 50% somewhat to strongly disagreeing. Married couples
had a disagreement rating of 46.5% in these categories, while widowed citizens felt the
least negative with 25%. Only 6% of single respondents chose to be neutral, as opposed
to 35% of widowed respondents. Married respondents that were neutral responded at the
2010 average, which was 20%. In addition, citizens with or without children were
analyzed on the topic of raising fees to lower taxes. The outcomes were relatively similar,
with 33.9% and 31% strongly to somewhat agreeing, respectively, and 16.1% and 20.1%
feeling neutral. 48.2% of citizens with children were either somewhat or strongly against
this change, while 44.8% of childless citizens felt the same way.
“I will support an increase in taxes if it would maintain or increase services I value”
2011 was the second appearance of this question. Values of “somewhat agree and
strongly agree” were combined to form one category of positive responses. “Somewhat
disagree and strongly disagree” were combined to form a category of negative responses.
The “neither agree/ disagree” category was viewed as a neutral response. Demographics
were analyzed and were found to be relatively consistent towards an approval rating
averaging 44.5% for an increase in taxes, which was a 4% decrease in approval rating
from 2010. There was an average of 13.2% neutral responses, and an average of a 40.6%
29
against any increases. Citizens that were against any tax increases to maintain or
improve services rose 6% since 2010.
An interesting note, in regard to educational level, the higher level, the more
likely it appeared as though the respondent approved an increase. Five citizens, with an
education level below high school, responded and 3 supported tax increases, which in
turn was the exact opposite as 2010. Those with high school degrees (80 respondents)
agreed 33.8% of the time, while 23.8% were neutral, and 42.5% disagreed. 68 citizens
held bachelor’s degrees and agreed 36.8% of the time, while 7.4% were neutral, and
55.9% disagreed. 36 citizens responded with a master’s degree or higher and agreed
80.6% of the time, while 5.6% were neutral and only 13.9% disagreed. This portion of
question 6 had the biggest change from 2010. Although higher education equaled higher
support for increases, respondents with high school degrees that were willing to have an
increase in taxes dropped 11.3% from 2010. Interestingly enough, those with bachelor’s
degrees dropped 17.4% from last year. Contrarily, the 80.6% of people with masters
degrees or higher that supported tax increases rose from 56.9% in 2010, almost a 25%
increase.
30
Question 6 - Funding of City Services - Percentages
I am satisfied with the
current mix of taxes, aids,
grants and fees
6 37.9 17.7 19 12.5 6.9
The City could reduce
taxes and maintain current
services by being more
efficient.
41.9 35.6 8.9 5.5 5.5 2.5
The City should focus on
reducing taxes by pursuing
grants (many of which
require local funding
match)
20.4 39.6 23 7.7 3.8 5.5
The City should focus on
reducing taxes by
increasing service fees and
charges.
7.2 25.5 19.6 19.6 25.1 3
I support an increase in
taxes if it would maintain or
increase the services I
value
16.7 27.8 13.2 14.5 26.1 1.7
No
OpinionKey:Strongly
Agree
Somewhat
Agree
Neither
Agree/
Disagree
Somewhat
Disagree
Strongly
Disagree
31
City of Oshkosh Power Lines
Section 7
Support one-time charge to bury power lines if property owner
responsible for incurred costs?
To help understand the position of citizens regarding the potential to bury front
yard power lines at the expense of the property owner, it was decided to ask the question
on the 2011 Citizen Survey.
Based on the results, a majority of all respondents would not support the burying
of power lines. 81.6% of all respondents do not support the burying of power lines in
their front yard for a one-time charge between $3,300 and $6,500. 18.4% of all
respondents would support buried power lines at their expense. When accounting for
income demographics, almost all levels of income surveyed mirror the overall result in
not supporting the idea to bury power lines at the property owner’s expense.
.
32
Comments - Section Eight
In reviewing the written comments, the following major themes were noted:
The business development comments generally support business development
efforts. There were six comments that seem to support business development
activities in addition to the following:
○ Downtown: Don’t buy closed businesses
○ Need better marketing
○ Improve river front supported 6 to 1
○ Reduce public parking downtown - don’t supply parking for business with
public money.
○ Lack of shopping
○ Miller Bay utilities building is an eye sore
○ Building permit process is unfriendly
Streets were considered to be in poor condition. The comments reflected a
negative nature when addressing Public Works issues.
Infrastructure poor
○ Plowing poor
○ Better sidewalk snow removal needed
○ Sewer problems
○ Need better tree trimming
○ Want roundabout 9th/Westhaven
○ Want sidewalk west of Westhaven/9th
○ Need better street lighting
○ Need better stop light sequencing
● Administration comments leaned to the negative.
○ Police not providing services
○ Idle city workers
○ Cut high paying jobs
○ Police used cars for personal use
○ More taxes for better services
● Cable Company needs competition
● Pro Walker-cuts
● Bike trails needed
● Generally happy with city services
● Storm Water management was bad
● Miscellaneous
○ Need more green alternatives
○ UWO gets too much attention
33
○ Want help for Humane Society
○ Wealthy get preferential treatment
○ Want newsletter
○ Focus on basics
○ School money not used well
○ Improve municipality collaboration
○ Show more risk taking
○ More privatization
○ Regulate farmers market
○ Buried power lines scope too large
34
Analysis of Survey Results to Demographics of City – Section Nine
The following survey demographics were requested from the survey participants and
compared to the census data from 2005-09 for the City of Oshkosh. The column showing
population statistics Without Institutions was inserted to reflect the numbers of census
reports that come form institutions such as the correctional institutions and the campus
dormitories which were not included in the parcel base for this survey.
Surveys Surveys Oshkosh Without
Results % Census Institutions
Gender Male 118 49.0% 51.3%
Female 123 51.0% 48.7%
Missing 7
Year Born 18 to 65 158 66.9% 78.0% 74.6%
Over 65 78 33.1% 22.0% 25.4%
Missing 12
Marital Status Married 148 61.4% 37.9% 43.7%
Not Married 67 27.8% 55.9% 49.1%
Widowed 26 10.8% 6.2% 7.2%
Missing 7
Time Lived in
Oshkosh 5 or less 30 12.4%
6 to 20 59 24.5%
>20 152 63.1%
Missing 7
Rent or Own Own 197 81.7% 59.6%
Rent 44 18.3% 40.4%
Missing 7
Number of Children None 183 75.9% 72.9%
1 26 10.8% 27.1%
2 23 9.5%
3 9 3.7%
4 or more 0
Missing 7
Place of Residence North of Fox 78 32.9% 56.4% 50.8%
South of Fox/East of 41 98 41.4% 31.6% 35.7%
South of Fox/West of 41 61 25.7% 11.9% 13.5%
Missing 11
Income Under 10K 11 4.8% 6.9%
10 to 15K 4 1.8% 6.7%
15 to 25K 39 17.2% 14.4%
25 to 35K 16 7.0% 12.9%
35 to 50K 41 18.1% 16.4%
50 to 75K 48 21.1% 21.0%
75 to 100K 31 13.7% 11.2%
100 to 150K 28 12.3% 7.7%
150 to 200K 3 1.3% 1.5%
35
Over 200K 6 2.6% 1.3%
Missing 21
Employment Status Employed 122 51.3%
Student 11 4.6%
Unemployed 13 5.5% 5.9%
Retired 92 38.7%
Missing 10
Occupation Homemaker 5 3.2%
Service Occupation 27 17.1% 22.2%
Sales and Office 10 6.3% 26.3%
Education 22 13.9% 6.3%
Other 30 19.0% 0.2%
Management, professional 47 29.7% 21.1%
Construction 7 4.4% 4.8%
Production,Trans,Material Move 10 6.3% 19.1%
Missing 90
Education Less than HS 5 2.1% 13.3%
HS 86 36.3% 56.2%
Associates 37 15.6% 7.0%
Bachelors 71 30.0% 16.5%
MA or higher 38 16.0% 7.0%
Missing 11
Race White 230 97.9% 88.6%
Hispanic or Latino 1 0.4% 2.5%
Two or more races 4 1.7% 1.1%
African-American 0 2.9%
Asian 0 3.4%
American Indian 0 0.5%
Native Hawaiian 0 0.0%
Other 0 1.0%
Gender - Of the survey respondents, 49% of them were male while the remaining 51%
where female. This is fairly consistent with the Oshkosh census survey which forecast a
population of 51.3% male to 48.7% female ratio.
Year Born- Individuals between the ages of 18 through 65 made up 66.9% of the
respondents with the remaining 33.1% being individuals age 65 and older. The Oshkosh
Census forecast a population consisting of 78% individuals between the ages of 18
through 65 and the remaining 22% individuals 65 years of age and older.
Marital Status- The 2011 City of Oshkosh Citizen survey results were 61.4% of the
individuals polled were married, 27.8% not married, and 10.8% widowed. These numbers
are very different from the Oshkosh Census numbers which showed a population which
is 37.9% married, 55.9% not married, and 6.2% widowed.
36
Time Lived in Oshkosh - The 2011 City of Oshkosh Survey demonstrated that 12.4% of
individuals polled have lived in Oshkosh 5 or fewer years, 24.5% have lived in Oshkosh
6 to 20 years, and 63.1% have lived in Oshkosh 20 years or longer. This information is
not obtained by the Oshkosh Census.
Rent or Own - The 2011 City of Oshkosh Survey shows that 81.7% of the individuals
polled own their own house with the remaining 18.3% renting. The Oshkosh Census
demonstrated a population of 59.6% home owners and the remaining 40.4% renting.
Number of Children - The 2011 City of Oshkosh had a respondent pool that showed
75.9% not having children, 10.8% having one child, 9.5% having two children, and 3.7%
having three children. The Oshkosh Census showed that 72.9% of Oshkosh’s population
had no children, and 27.1% having one or more children.
Place of Residence - Of the survey respondents for the 2011 City of Oshkosh survey
32.9% lived north of the Fox River, 41.4% lived south of the Fox River/east of highway
41, and 25.7% lived south of the Fox River/west of highway 41. The Oshkosh Census
showed 56.4% of the population of Oshkosh residing north of the Fox River, 31.6%
residing south of the Fox River/east of highway 41, and the remaining 11.9% of the
survey respondents reside south of the Fox River/west of highway 41.
Income – A slightly higher percentage of the survey respondents had incomes over
$50,0000 than in the census for the City.
Employment Status – The respondents to the survey were similar in the levels of
employment and unemployment as the census data.
Occupation - Although some of the figures are similar there are some dramatic
differences in a number of areas. Professions are represented more in the survey
responses than in the census.
Education – Generally, the higher the level of education yielded higher responses to the
survey.
Race - Of the survey respondents for the 2011 City of Oshkosh survey 97.9% of these
respondents identified as White compared to the Census 88.6% identified as white.
37
Internet Surveys
An opportunity for citizens who were not part of the randomly selected survey
base to complete the citizen survey was provided on the City of Oshkosh web page site.
One-hundred and fifty-five (155) citizens participated in this opportunity. While the
results of these surveys are not considered statistically significant for research
considerations, they are informative and are included in the Appendix A for
consideration.
38
Summary
The citizen survey for the City of Oshkosh resulted in 248 responses from a randomly
selected base of 1500 citizens. This 16.5 percent response rate, while considered slightly
low for citizen surveys, is statistically significant even though it is slightly higher than the
normally accepted margin of error rate of a 5.0%. The response rate of 248 is a decrease
from the 338 survey responses in 2010 and the 255 responses in 2009. The results of the
survey described in the body of this report should aid the officials in the City of Oshkosh
in helping to determine the future priorities and direction of the city.
39
Appendix A - Internet Surveys
Question 1 - How Oshkosh Citizens Feel About Their City Results
Excellent Good Fair Poor
No
Opinion
As a place to live 18 95 31 11 0
Sense of community 9 74 46 20 6
Overall appearance of the city 1 54 70 29 1
Overall safety of residents 23 95 31 6 0
Your neighborhood as a place to live 44 74 25 11 1
As a place to raise children 28 78 26 13 10
As a place to retire 9 48 52 38 8
Community openness/acceptance of
people 8 56 58 26 7
Overall quality of life 11 90 43 11 0
Environmentally friendly city 12 77 44 20 2
As a place to work 8 62 47 22 15
Direction moving for the future 3 49 61 30 12
Question 1 - How Oshkosh Citizens Feel About Their City Results Summary
Positive Negative No opinion
As a place to live 113 42 0
Sense of community 83 66 6
Overall appearance of the city 55 99 1
Overall safety of residents 118 38 0
Your neighborhood as a place to live 118 36 1
As a place to raise children 106 39 10
As a place to retire 57 90 8
Community openness/acceptance of people 65 84 7
Overall quality of life 101 54 0
Environmentally friendly city 89 64 2
As a place to work 70 69 15
Direction moving for the future 52 91 15
40
Question 3 - Importance of Services - Percentage
Importance of Services Very Im Some Im No Opin Some Un Very Un
Animal Control 25 65 8 42 15
Bike and Pedestrian Trails 40 74 1 18 22
Building Permits and Inspections 36 68 9 31 11
Community Media 26 81 3 33 13
City Parking Facilities 25 75 3 32 20
City Support for Neighborhood Organizations 34 71 8 30 12
City’s Sidewalk System 56 70 3 20 6
Economic Development Assistance to Businesses 50 61 3 25 16
Efforts to Improve the Quality of Housing 42 77 5 23 8
Emergency Medical and Rescue Services 108 38 1 7 1
Enforcement of Property Codes 54 69 4 20 8
Fire Protection and Prevention Services 113 37 0 2 3
Lake Shore Golf Course 4 29 9 46 67
Leaf and Brush Pick up 40 69 3 33 10
Maintenance/Appearance of City Parks & Greenways 54 82 2 13 4
Maintenance of City-Owned Buildings 46 93 1 12 3
Oshkosh Public Museum 42 66 4 32 11
Police Services 113 29 2 7 4
Pollock Aquatic Center 18 74 6 32 25
Public Health Programs 40 78 4 25 8
Public Library Services 73 57 0 17 8
Refuse Collection and Recycling 84 61 0 6 4
Regulation and Zoning for Land Use 33 79 8 32 3
Removal of Snow and Ice From City Streets 104 40 0 10 1
Response to Citizen Complaints and Requests 79 67 0 6 3
Senior Services Center 28 89 1 24 13
Storm Drainage Systems 89 59 2 3 2
Street Lighting 51 77 3 22 2
Street Paving, Maintenance, Sweeping and Repair 100 49 1 1 4
Transit System 42 61 4 31 17
Transportation Planning For Traffic 48 76 1 23 7
Rating - Very Important - Somewhat Important - No Opinion - Somewhat Unimportant - Very Unimportant
41
Question 2 - Quality of Services - Percentage
Quality of Services Value Excellent Good Fair Poor
Animal Control 10 57 31 8
Bike and Pedestrian Trails 3 46 59 34
Building Permits and Inspections 7 50 41 18
Community Media 20 60 45 12
City Parking Facilities 9 49 65 20
City Support for Neighborhood Organizations 3 46 48 16
City’s Sidewalk System 5 74 58 16
Economic Development Assistance to Businesses 5 38 39 16
Efforts to Improve the Quality of Housing 4 37 47 17
Emergency Medical and Rescue Services 64 66 12 1
Enforcement of Property Codes 3 48 56 22
Fire Protection and Prevention Services 78 56 10 2
Lake Shore Golf Course 12 45 30 7
Leaf and Brush Pick up 32 76 30 8
Maintenance/Appearance of City Parks & Greenways 18 88 36 12
Maintenance of City-Owned Buildings 4 79 47 5
Oshkosh Public Museum 36 66 20 3
Police Services 61 63 19 9
Pollock Aquatic Center 33 55 9 5
Public Health Programs 10 53 29 9
Public Library Services 55 67 22 3
Refuse Collection and Recycling Services 59 71 16 8
Regulation and Zoning for Land Use 8 46 35 11
Removal of Snow and Ice from City Streets 18 63 39 34
Response to Citizen Complaints and Requests 9 42 40 26
Senior Services Center 17 65 18 3
Storm Drainage Systems 3 34 60 51
Street Lighting 9 83 50 11
Street Paving, Maintenance, Sweeping and Repair 6 38 53 56
Transit System 14 62 35 10
Transportation Planning For Traffic 3 46 46 29
42
Question 4 - Budgeting Priorities
# Minimum Maximum Mean Std. Deviation
# 4 - Extra $1 million
Community Services 148 0 $500 93.34 106.78
Economic Development 148 0 $600 104.25 131.05
Refuse and Recycling 148 0 $250 49.61 65.72
Finance and Administration 148 0 $200 26.77 41.44
Police Protection 148 0 $500 89.11 102.00
Fire Suppression/ Prevention 148 0 $350 78.81 84.52
Parks 148 0 $800 93.35 110.80
Storm Water Maintenance 148 0 $700 179.05 150.67
Road Maintenance 148 0 $1000 285.03 205.69
Question 5 - Budgeting Priorities
# Minimum Maximum Mean Std. Deviation
# 5 - Reduce $1 million
Community Services 142 0 $750 116.56 130.47
Economic Development 142 0 $1000 193.22 224.66
Refuse and Recycling 142 0 $300 69.87 79.54
Finance and Administration 142 0 $1000 214.88 180.21
Police Protection 142 0 $1000 102.16 204.13
Fire Suppression/ Prevention 142 0 $600 60.01 100.09
Parks 142 0 $750 134.95 143.41
Storm Water Maintenance 142 0 $700 60.26 106.29
Road Maintenance 142 0 $500 48.08 80.42
Question 6 - Funding of City Services - Percentages
Key:
Strongly
Agree
Some-
what
Agree
Neither
Agree/
Disagree
Some-
what
Disagree
Strongly
Disagree
No
Opinion
I am satisfied with the current mix of
taxes, aids, grants and fees 3 50 34 34 25 9
The City could reduce taxes and maintain
current services by being more efficient. 61 45 14 16 17 2
The City should focus on reducing taxes
by pursuing grants (many of which
require local funding match)
33 59 35 19 6 3
The City should focus on reducing taxes
by increasing service fees and charges. 16 39 26 34 39 1
I support an increase in taxes if it would
maintain or increase the services I value 38 45 12 14 44 2
43
Question 7 – Bury power lines if costs covered by property owner?
Yes No
Bury Power Lines 48 107
Question 9 - Analysis of Survey Results to Demographics of City
Surveys Surveys Oshkosh Without
Results % Census Institutions
Gender Male 92 59.3% 51.3%
Female 63 40.7% 48.7%
Missing 0 0.0%
Year Born 18 to 65 122 79.7% 78.0% 74.6%
Over 65 31 20.3% 22.0% 25.4%
Missing 2
Marital Status Married 106 68.4% 37.9% 43.1%
Not Married 42 27.1% 55.9% 49.1%
Widowed 7 6.2% 7.2%
Missing 0
Time Lived in Oshkosh 5 or less 19 12.3%
6 to 20 40 25.8%
>20 96 61.9%
Missing
Rent or Own Own 140 90.3% 59.6%
Rent 14 9.0% 40.4%
Missing 1
Number of Children None 104 67.1% 72.9%
1 20 12.9% 27.1%
2 21 13.5%
3 9 5.8%
4 or more 1 .6%
Missing 0
Place of Residence North of Fox 69 44.5% 56.4% 50.8%
South of Fox/East of 41 52 33.5% 31.6% 35.7%
South of Fox/West of 41 32 20.5% 11.9% 13.5%
Missing 2
Income <10K 3 1.9% 6.9%
10 to 15K 1 .6% 6.7%
15 to 25K 10 6.5% 14.4%
25 to 35K 10 6.5% 12.9%
35 to 50K 26 16.8% 16.4%
50 to 75K 52 33.5% 21.0%
75 to 100K 28 18.1% 11.2%
100 to 150K 16 10.3% 7.7%
150 to 200K 4 2.6% 1.5%
44
>200K 5 3.2% 2.6%
Missing 0
Employment Status Employed 106 68.4%
Student 3 1.9%
Unemployed 7 4.5% 5.9%
Retired 39 25.2%
Missing 0
Occupation Homemaker 5 4.3%
Service Occupation 19 16.4% 22.2%
Sales and Office 8 6.9% 26.3%
Education 11 9.5% 6.3%
Other 27 23.3% .2%
Production, Trans, Material 8 6.9% 19.1%
Management, professional 30 25.9% 21.1%
Farming, fishing, forestry 0 0%
Construction 8 6.9% 4.8%
Missing 39
Education Less than HS 4 2.6% 13.3%
HS 30 27.7% 56.2%
Associates 43 19.4% 7.0%
Bachelors 55 35.5% 16.5%
MA or higher 23 14.8% 7.0%
Missing 0
Race White 144 96.0% 88.6%
Hispanic or Latino 2 1.3% 2.5%
African-American 0 2.9%
Asian 0 3.4%
American Indian 1 .7% .5%
Native Hawaiian 1 .7% 0%
Other 2 1.3% 2.1%