City of Bloomington Seeks Resident Opinion for Third Biennial Survey

This month, the City of Bloomington will ask residents to participate in the 2021 Bloomington Community Survey. This is the third community-wide, scientific survey of Bloomington residents, and is again being administered by National Research Center, Inc. (NRC). Like the first two surveys, conducted in 2017 and 2019, this survey will gauge residents’ perceptions of the quality and value of City services and current conditions in the community.  Against previous years’ results, the new results will provide data for use in comparison with peer cities, help inform decision-making, and help identify relevant shifts in public perceptions of city services and conditions.  This year’s survey is updated with several questions informed by the COVID-19 pandemic.  ​

“A scientifically administered survey helps government hear from the people we serve,” said Mayor John Hamilton.  “Our government is wide open and transparent in many ways, with lots of avenues for people to share their views, but this is one special way to hear from a true cross-section of the community, and what they think consistently every two years. It helps avoid what can sometimes be relatively amplified voices from those with more time to get involved or more privilege.  The vital feedback from this survey helps inform policy decisions and budget decisions -- investments City government makes on behalf of the Bloomington community.  If your household receives a survey, please fill it out and let us know how you believe our community is doing!”    

During the last week of March, a random and scientific sample of 3,000 households will be mailed invitations to participate in the survey; the first wave of invitations will be sent March 24 and the second, March 31.  Participants’ confidential responses will be weighted, analyzed, and published on the city’s open data portal B-Clear. Residents who do not participate in the randomized study have the option of completing the survey online.  The results of residents who opt in will be collected, analyzed, and published in a separate data set.  

The 2019 survey captured the responses of 610 households from a similar representative sample of 3,000 randomly selected residents, yielding a response rate of 21%. An additional 132 residents completed an opt-in survey online.  The results of the 2017 and the 2019 surveys are available at https://bloomington.in.gov/communitysurvey.  2021 survey results will be presented in a public meeting later this year and will be available alongside previous years’ results on B-Clear.

NRC is a survey research and evaluation firm focusing on the information requirements of the public sector, including local governments, non-profit agencies, and foundations.