Chris Tatham of ETC Institute told the Tempe City Council the city continues to perform well compared with peers, saying, "The city of Tempe performs very well across the board, and that continues this year." The presentation covered roughly 1,000 resident surveys and 449 business surveys, with a stated precision of about plus or minus 3 percentage points at the 95% confidence level.

Tatham highlighted areas where Tempe scored well above national averages, including residential trash collection, recycling, transit service and customer service. He said overall resident perceptions of safety were higher than national and midsize averages and that residents rated the value they get from taxes about 26% above U.S. averages.

But the survey also identified standing concerns. Tatham said residents ranked services for people experiencing homelessness, the condition of streets and traffic safety among their top priorities. "So right now, the only thing, and I think you have plans to address it, are some of the concerns that people have about city streets," he said.

Waddell Holmes, director of Strategic Management and Innovation, told council staff will forward contact information from business respondents who requested follow-up, and the office will offer dashboard training and further analysis. Holmes described the START tool and the December 11 work session when councilor distributions will be reviewed, noting the exercise is for prioritization and not a funding allocation.

During the call-to-the-audience period, resident David Sokolowski urged the council to "increase funding for low income housing," warning the city faces a growing shortage and advocating for a generous density bonus program. The mayor responded that he did not support cuts to Section 8 benefits and that council members did not favor cutting benefits for vulnerable residents.

The next step: staff said they will publish revised findings in the final packet and follow up with departments and partner agencies on outreach to businesses and targeted focus groups on traffic safety.