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Manager previews city budget survey; council weighs address and identity questions
Summary
City manager showed a draft budget survey covering demographics, service priorities and capital needs; councilors urged flexibility on address collection and suggested options to limit gaming while encouraging participation. Manager plans to circulate the draft to council for edits and post after members review.
City Manager Nicholas (last name not specified in transcript) presented a draft community budget survey to the council on Jan. 14, proposing questions on respondents’ relationship to the city, service priorities, capital needs and potential revenue sources.
The manager said the survey will include demographic items (ward, age, housing and income), a question about how residents get news and a section asking respondents to prioritize discretionary city services. He said the online tool can limit responses by IP address but warned that IP limits exclude valid shared locations such as libraries or workplaces.
Why it matters: The survey is intended to shape the fiscal year 2026 budget discussion and capture resident priorities ahead of council budget deliberations in February.
Councilors debated whether to require home addresses or other identity fields to ensure responses come from city residents. Councilor Guston and others suggested making name optional and adding options such as “registered voter” checkboxes or allowing respondents to list a municipal building (for example the Aldridge Library) if they do not want to provide a home address. Councilor Spalding and others stressed the importance of allowing the Parks & Rec committee and other outreach efforts to reach vulnerable populations without excluding them.
The manager said the platform limits the number of questions/data fields and that he would try to accommodate input while keeping the survey concise. He asked for 48 hours of council review before release; councillors agreed. Staff also discussed providing printed surveys and assisted entry points for those without computers.
Ending: The manager will circulate the draft survey to councilors for wording and tone edits and expects to post it after the council provides feedback; he noted the survey results will be used to inform the council’s mid-February budget discussion.
