Darien Community Survey Asks Residents, ‘Are You Happy Living Here?’

Are you happy in the City of Darien? Are you satisfied with the city’s budget process? Are city services a good value for the taxes and fees you pay?

These questions and 33 more are all part of an online survey designed to gauge residents’ satisfaction with city services and seek their input to set priorities for Darien’s future.

Assistant City Administrator Scott Coren said the city had not sent out a general community-wide survey in several years, because historically, the response rate was quite low. In recent years, he said, city officials have been collecting feedback from residents through targeted surveys following the completion of projects such as road improvements, tree trimming or storm water improvements in their neighborhoods.

But now that the city has “significantly improved communication with residents over the last six years,” Coren said, City Administrator Bryon Vana has  identified the citizen survey as one of the staff’s goals for this year.

“With substantial improvements to the city's web site, development of the electronic weekly newsletter Direct Connect, publishing of the Darien Neighbors magazine and improvements to long-range capital projects planning, residents can now easily educate themselves and participate, in all aspects of the local city government,” Coren said.

Click here to participate in the City of Darien's online survey.

Residents can now visit the city’s website to view information packets for all city council and committee meetings, as well as city expenditures, employees’ salaries, contracts and budget/capital plans.

“We anticipate increased survey participation as residents are now better informed and educated on city issues as well as enhancements to electronic feedback opportunities,” Coren said.

The community-wide survey was sent out with the most recent issue of Darien Neighbors magazine, emailed to residents via the city’s Direct Connect newsletter and posted on the city’s website Jan. 4. Coren said that although there is no planned end date for the survey at this time, it may be revised periodically to include new aspects of city programming.

City staff will compile results of the community-wide survey and present them to elected officials for discussion, allowing residents’ concerns and suggestions to contribute to policy discussions such as budget or goal-setting sessions.

“We hope many residents take the time to complete our survey,” Coren said. “This helps Darien in ensuring our programs are effective and prioritizing services for the future.”