The survey kicks off with randomized mail invitations Sept. 5 and then opens to the entire community Oct. 3.

Your voice matters! The City of Boulder will launch the 2023 Community Survey on Sept. 5 to ask community members about their priorities for the city, quality of life and their overall satisfaction with government services. Six thousand households will be randomly selected to participate in the community survey via mailed invitations. Beginning Oct. 3, an online version of the same survey will open to any community member who wishes to participate. Both versions of the survey will close for participation on Oct. 17.

Boulder-based survey firm National Research Center, now a subsidiary of Polco, is working with the city to gather community members’ input on issues facing Boulder. The survey results will help inform City Council decisions and planning priorities and will provide crucial information to help the City of Boulder provide the best services possible.

“Surveys like these are incredibly valuable for understanding the perspectives of the community we serve, for measuring progress on key outcomes, and for setting priorities for future work,” City Manager Nuria Rivera-Vandermyde said. “The value of the data, however, depends on broad participation. Please use this opportunity to let us know what you think.”

If you are randomly selected to participate this year, the city is asking that you complete the survey as soon as possible. Invited participants have the option of completing a paper survey and returning it in a postage-paid envelope or completing the survey online.

A link to the second version of the survey, which will go live on Oct. 3, will be available on the city’s BeHeardBoulder page.

Surveys are available in English, Spanish and Nepali. All responses will remain completely anonymous; no personally identifying information will be collected. Responses will be reported in summary form only.

This year’s survey combines a shortened-version of template survey that has been used previously in Boulder called the National Community Survey with several new Boulder-specific questions that focus on racial equity. This blend will allow the city to analyze trend data for questions asked over the past decade while recognizing emerging issues of importance and attention in our community.

The survey analysis and results will be included in a report submitted to City Council this winter. The report will also be made available on the city’s website.

Boulder last conducted a full community survey in 2018. That survey informed City Council on issues such as transportation, city planning, affordable housing, public safety, perceptions about community engagement and quality of life issues. The survey was paused over the past several years due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Previous surveys and their results are available online.

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