Get AI Briefings, Transcripts & Alerts on Local & National Government Meetings — Forever.
2026 community survey: Garner'9s confidence in local government jumps, community design and mobility lag
Loading...
Summary
A city‑commissioned national community survey shows a notable 17‑point gain in public confidence in Garner government since 2024, but residents rated community design and mobility poorly; staff flagged a 44‑point gap between importance and perceived performance for design.
Garner — A town‑commissioned community survey released April 21 shows residents'9 confidence in local government rose sharply since 2024 even as concerns grew about community design and transportation.
Assistant Town Manager Matt Poole and Communications Director Rick Mercer presented the National Community Survey results, conducted by Polco and the International City/County Management Association. The town mailed 3,000 invitations and received 227 responses, an 8% response rate consistent with national comparisons; staff used weighting to adjust for demographics and estimated a margin of error around 6 percentage points.
Poole highlighted internal changes since 2024: "One of the most notable trends we saw was an improvement in confidence in Garner's government," he said, reporting a roughly 17‑point increase. Mercer said the town compared itself to a peer subgroup and to the national pool and performed well on cost of living, street repair and availability of affordable childcare, but fell behind peers on walkability, ease of biking and other mobility measures.
The presentations called attention to a widening quality‑importance gap in community design. Mercer said about 80% of respondents rated community design as "important or essential," while only 44% rated the town'9s performance as "excellent or good," creating a 44‑point gap, a deterioration from a 22‑point gap in 2024.
Officials said staff will post interactive results online (including demographic cross‑tabs) and use the findings to inform the strategic plan, departmental goals and the FY27 budget. Councilmembers asked staff to dig into the "why" behind the negative design and mobility perceptions, and to examine housing affordability indicators that emerged in the survey.
Poole and Mercer said the town will continue the biennial benchmarking program and use the interactive dashboard to guide departmental objectives and outreach.
