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Community Survey Results
In February 2022, 4,200 Woodbury households, selected at random, were invited by mail to participate in the Community Survey. There were 966 survey respondents, including 794 surveys completed online, yielding a response rate of 25%. The margin of error is plus or minus three percentage points around any given percentage for all respondents.
Survey results were weighted so that respondent gender, age, race, ethnicity, housing unit type (attached or detached) and housing tenure (rent or own) were represented in proportions reflective of the entire city. Reported responses are for those who had an opinion - "don't know" responses were removed from the analysis.
Survey results were weighted so that respondent gender, age, race, ethnicity, housing unit type (attached or detached) and housing tenure (rent or own) were represented in proportions reflective of the entire city. Reported responses are for those who had an opinion – “don’t know” responses were removed from the analyses.
Comparisons between the 2022 survey results and those from prior years were made when similar questions were included on the 2022 survey. Woodbury also elected to have its results compared to those of other jurisdictions around the nation, those in Minnesota and those with populations between 55,000 and 75,000, comparisons made possible through a national benchmark database created and maintained by Polco/NRC. This database contains resident perspectives gathered in community surveys from over 500 communities across the United States.
Survey results are summarized on this page, or you can view the full survey results (PDF).
- Residents continue to enjoy Woodbury’s quality of life and community amenities.
- Ratings for economic aspects of the city are especially robust and above average.
- Many residents indicate strong community connections and feel that the city is inclusive.
- Improving drinking water quality and ensuring an adequate water supply are increasingly urgent priorities for residents.
- Government performance and City service delivery continue to receive high marks from residents.
- Safety is a growing concern for residents.
- Residents feel positively about the value of their taxes paid to Woodbury and are increasingly supportive of a property tax increase to maintain current service levels.
Nearly all respondents said the overall quality of life in the city was excellent or good. A similar proportion gave excellent or good reviews to the city as a place to raise children and to live and their neighborhood as a place to live. Roughly two-thirds of residents gave favorable scores to Woodbury as a place to retire. These ratings were similar to those given in previous survey years.
Survey results for many questions were compared to results from other communities across the nation, those in Minnesota and those with populations between 55,000 and 75,000. Evaluations for aspects of quality of life tended to be similar to the three benchmark peer groups.
About 9 in 10 respondents gave excellent or good assessments to the City’s overall image or reputation, health and wellness opportunities, and fitness and exercise opportunities; these assessments were on par with those given in previous years.
These three community characteristics were rated higher when compared to the nation, and similar to other Minnesota communities and communities with a similar population size. Additionally, Woodbury ranked fifth out of 23 other jurisdictions in Minnesota for health and wellness opportunities, and third out of 23 for fitness and exercise opportunities.
About 9 in 10 Woodbury residents gave excellent or good reviews to the overall economic health of Woodbury and the shopping opportunities available in the city, while 8 in 10 gave favorable ratings to the overall quality of business and service establishments in Woodbury and the city as a place to work. About two-thirds of respondents felt that Woodbury was an excellent or good place to visit. These evaluations were on par with those given in previous survey years except for the city as a place to work, which increased in 2022.
When compared to other communities across the nation, in Minnesota, and to other communities of similar population size, ratings for overall economic health, shopping opportunities, and the overall quality of business and service establishments tended to be higher or much higher than the benchmark comparisons, while the ratings for Woodbury as a place to work and to visit were similar to ratings given elsewhere.
Residents indicated how close they felt to their neighborhood and to the city overall. Ninety-one percent of residents reported having good relationships with their neighbors, while about 8 in 10 agreed that they could rely on neighbors and that they felt connected to their neighborhood and the overall Woodbury community.
The sense of community in Woodbury and the community’s openness and acceptance toward people from diverse backgrounds were rated as excellent or good by about two-thirds of residents. These evaluations have remained stable since 2019 and received a similar rating when compared to the three benchmark peer groups.
About 7 in 10 respondents felt the community does an excellent or good job providing a safe and secure environment for residents of all backgrounds, making all residents feel welcome, and treating all residents fairly. Two-thirds of respondents felt that the Woodbury community did well at demonstrating respect for residents of different cultures and belief systems and valuing residents from diverse backgrounds. These ratings held steady from 2019 except for providing a safe and secure environment for residents of all backgrounds, which declined in 2022.
The rating for treating all residents fairly was higher than the national average, while comparisons for other scores for community diversity and inclusivity, where available, were similar to the three sets of benchmark comparisons.
When asked about the top three most serious issues currently facing Woodbury, water quality emerged as the #1 most serious issue, selected by 45% of respondents.
About 4 in 10 survey respondents rating the quality of drinking water in Woodbury as excellent or good in 2022, a 17% decline since 2019 and a 30% decline since 2017. Ratings for this service were lower or much lower when comparing to the national, Minnesota and population size benchmarks.
Residents were asked to select the top three sustainable activities and services for the City to focus on in the next two years from a list of 10 potential priorities. In 2022, 22% of respondents indicated that reducing water use through conservation measures and efficiencies should be a top-three priority for the City.
Nearly 9 in 10 Woodbury residents thought the overall quality of City services was excellent or good. This was similar to ratings reported in previous survey years and was higher than the national benchmark and similar to the Minnesota and population size benchmarks.
Of the 22 individual City services asked about on the survey, fire services, police services, ambulance/EMS, sanitary sewer services, Eagle Valley Golf Course and its facilities, and HealthEast Sports Center programs and facilities received the highest evaluations, with 91% or more of respondents giving excellent or good reviews to each.
Overall, ratings for almost all services remained stable from 2019 to 2022. Evaluations of snow plowing on city streets decreased from 84% excellent or good in 2019 to 75% excellent or good in 2022. These 2022 ratings returned to 2017 levels. Although pavement repair and patching on city streets was among the lower-rated services, ratings have been trending up since 2015, and increased to 63% in 2022 from 55% in 2019.
Just over half of the services asked about on the survey could be compared to the benchmark database. Overall, when compared to the nation, other communities in Minnesota, and communities with populations similar to Woodbury, City services tended to be similar.
About two-thirds of respondents or more gave positive ratings to each of the five aspects of the City government’s performance evaluated on the survey. Ratings for aspects of public trust remained stable from previous survey years with the exceptions of the job City government does at welcoming citizen involvement and the overall direction of the City, which both declined from 2019 to 2022.
All aspects of Woodbury government performance were rated similar to the national average and were similar to the Minnesota and communities of a similar population size averages.
Eighty-six percent of respondents approved of the job the Mayor and City Council are doing, while about 13% of residents disapproved. Approval of the Mayor and Council was similar to past survey administrations.
About three-quarters of residents gave excellent or good ratings to the overall feeling of safety in the city. While this rating was similar to national, Minnesota, and population size benchmark averages, it declined notably in 2022 when compared to previous survey years.
When asked what the top policing priority should be for the Woodbury Police Department, crime prevention and education (selected by 46% of respondents) and promoting positive police-community relations (23%) topped the list in 2022, as they did in 2019 and 2017. Overall, resident priorities for the police were similar from 2019 and 2022, with the exception of crime prevention and education, which saw an 18% increase since the previous survey administration.
When gauging how safe they felt in different areas around the city, nearly all respondents reported feeling very or somewhat safe walking alone in their neighborhood during the day, and about 8 in 10 felt safe in commercial areas and in city parks and recreation facilities. The rating for feeling safe in the resident’s neighborhood remained stable from previous years, while evaluations for safety in commercial areas and in city parks and recreation facilities declined in 2022.
About half of respondents (49%) supported increasing property taxes to maintain city services at their current level, a level that has been increasing since 2015.
Overall, about 7 in 10 residents felt that they get an excellent or good value of services for the taxes they pay to Woodbury. This rating has remained stable since 2015 and was similar to other Minnesota communities and communities of a similar population size but higher than the nation.
About half of respondents felt that the current tax rate paid to Woodbury is about average and about 4 in 10 thought it was somewhat high (35%) or very high (8%). Only 6% of residents said the current City tax rate was somewhat or very low. Each of these were similar to 2019.
Past Survey Results
View past survey results.