Polco (NRC/Polco) presented results of the National Community Survey to Charlottesville City Council during the Aug. 15 retreat, summarizing resident views on quality of life, local government performance and service priorities. Grace Arneson, Polco project manager, briefed council on response rates, methodology and key findings from the most recent administration, carried out after the city's 2022 survey.

Polco mailed 3,000 randomly selected addresses and received a statistically weighted sample of 386 responses, plus 664 open-participation responses. Arneson said the statistical sample provides longitudinal trend data for comparison with past surveys; the open-participation responses provide broader community comment but were not combined with the random sample for the benchmarked results.

Key findings presented to council included:
- High ratings for overall quality of life, with residents rating the city's natural environment, arts and recreation and health and wellness above the national benchmark.
- Mobility and some aspects of community design rated below national benchmarks; ease of travel by car and public transportation were areas of concern, and mobility was the second most important focus residents identified for the next two years.
- Affordability concerns: availability of affordable, quality housing and child care and cost of living were below the national averages.
- Public safety perceptions were positive for daytime neighborhood safety and for emergency services; fire services and emergency medical services received especially high marks.

Polco staff and city staff also fielded council questions on methodology: Arneson explained the mailed-random-sample design, the availability of a Spanish version and online translation compatibility, and the purpose and potential use of the open-participation results. Council members asked whether Polco would compare the open-participation responses with the random sample; Arneson said she would follow up with such a comparison and provide demographic breakdowns on response rates.

City staff said the full report and the larger dataset would be published for public review and would be used to inform the retreat's work on priorities and future budget decisions.