Joshua Imminger of Prabolsky Research presented results from a citywide community survey Tuesday that show residents place the greatest priority on jobs and economic development even as they rate many city services highly.

Imminger said the scientific survey, conducted Oct. 17–Nov. 12 with 300 respondents (margin of error about 5.8%), found 29% of residents listed jobs and the economy as the single most important issue facing Kenai. "Jobs and economy came out first at 29%," he said. The survey also asked respondents to pick top city priorities for the next five years; 56% identified roads and core infrastructure and 53% selected economic development support for local business.

The survey reports high satisfaction with core services: 88% said they were satisfied with police, fire and EMS, 82% with parks and recreation, and 80% with library services. Imminger noted that while many services score high on satisfaction, the largest discrepancy between importance and satisfaction — a 39‑point gap — was for "support local business, grow the economy, create jobs," where 53% ranked it important but only 13% were satisfied.

On planning and growth questions, the city was divided: 48% said they were satisfied with the city's efforts to guide land use and manage growth, and 40% said they were unsatisfied, with older residents and homeowners tending to be more dissatisfied. Housing responses were mixed: when asked whether Kenai faces an availability or affordability problem, respondents split among availability, affordability and both; single‑family homes (62%) and apartment rentals (57%) were the types of housing respondents said were most needed.

Imminger also reported that 62% of residents feel they are getting their money's worth from local taxes, yet 57% oppose raising local taxes to pay for priorities. Regarding outreach, Facebook/social media (49%), word‑of‑mouth (43%) and local radio (38%) were the top sources of city information.

Mayor and council members asked follow‑up questions during the presentation; Imminger offered to provide additional cross‑tabs and the full slide deck to staff. "If any thought pops in your head later…please feel free to just email us," he said.

The city manager indicated the administration will circulate additional data and a public safety slide deck to council for further review. The results are expected to inform priorities as the city develops its fiscal year 2027 budget and program decisions.