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i <br />been too fast, too slow, or just right. Fifty-five percent felt that the speed of population growth is ;' <br />just right, up from 49% in 2003. <br />Economic Opportunity in Eugene <br />Sixty percent of respondents feel that their economic opportunity in Eugene during the past five <br />years has gotten better or stayed the same, compared with SO% in 2003, and 56% in 2002. <br />Thirty-six percent feel the situation has worsened, compared with 45% in 2003 and 35% in 2002. <br />City's Role in Economic Development <br />City residents support the concept of the City taking an active role assisting businesses in order <br />to provide more jobs in the community, though the level of support varies significantly <br />depending on what form that assistance takes and whether it is provided to local businesses or <br />outside companies. Eighty-three percent of respondents feel the City should provide problem- <br />solving assistance to businesses for siting, permit,: and development issues (down from 88% in <br />2003). Roughly the same percentage (86%) feel the City should take an active role helping local <br />businesses create and retain jobs (virtually unchanged from 88% in 2002). A large majority (80%) <br />feel the City should take an active role helping outside companies come to Eugene in order to <br />increase economic opportunities, up substantially from previous years, while 60% feel the City <br />should provide assistance with road, sewer, and utility costs to new and expanding businesses, <br />virtually the same as 2003. Sixty-seven percent feel the City should provide tax incentives to <br />businesses creating new jobs, up substantially from 2003. Fifty-three percent feel the City should <br />provide financial support to businesses in targeted areas, such as Downtown (up slightly from <br />the previous two years). <br />Public Safety <br />Sixty-three percent of respondents feel "very" or "somewhat" safe walking alone in business <br />areas after dark, while 87% feel "very" or "somewhat" safe walking alone in their neighborhood <br />after dark. There was a historic low of respondents who felt "very safe" after dark in both their <br />neighborhood and business areas. Thirty-five percent feel "somewhat" or "very" unsafe after <br />dark in business areas, up from 2003. The mean scores for both areas also dropped slightly. <br />Neighborhood Associations <br />Sixty-two percent of respondents are aware of their neighborhood association, up from 54% in <br />2003. An additional 8% are aware of neighborhood associations, but report that theirs is inactive. <br />Twenty-nine percent are not aware of their neighborhood association, down from 44% in 2003. <br />Seventy-three percent of those who are aware of an active neighborhood association (n=250) <br />feel the neighborhood association is having a positive impact on their neighborhood, while 14% <br />do not. <br />City's Environmental Practices <br />.More than half (53%) of respondents say that it is very important the City engage in <br />environmentally sustainable practices, while only 9% feel that the City is doing an "excellent" job <br />of employing such practices. The importance of the City engaging in sustainable practices has. a <br />mean rating of 4.2 compared to a 3.4 mean rating of perceptions of the City's performance. <br />OREGON SURVEY RESEt,RCH LABORATORY, UNIVERSITY OF OREGON <br />CITY OF EUGENE, FEBRUARY 2005 Page 4 <br />