A recently-commissioned independent survey shows residents in the City of Larkspur give the City good job performance ratings, and want the City to accelerate street, road and pothole repair as its top priority.

The survey, conducted February 17th– March 1st 2017 by the respected firm of FM3 Research, was commissioned to assess current resident perspectives on community priorities and service needs.  Respondents continue to give the City consistently positive overall job ratings, with a strong majority of more than 2 to 1 giving the Larkspur excellent or good performance rankings. 

As much as 85% of respondents identified “repairing streets, roads and potholes,” as being the top priority, followed by maintaining police/fire protection and 911/emergency response services and repairing storm drains to prevent contaminated spills into the Bay.

“We greatly appreciate the time our residents took to give us this important feedback,” said Larkspur City Manager Dan Schwarz. “Our goal is to incorporate these perspectives into this year’s budget planning process so our financial strategies reflect the community’s priorities.”

Said Public Works Director Julian Skinner, “I am not surprised by this helpful input from our public.  When I am out in the community, people tell me they want the City to make pothole and road repairs faster—and I agree.  Doing so prevents further deterioration and lowers our future maintenance costs.  Unfortunately, many of Larkspur’s neighborhood streets are still riddled with cracks and potholes and we must address these hazardous conditions so our motorists, public transit, and public safety vehicles are not at risk.”

The City commissioned the survey to get input on resident satisfaction with city services, service priorities, and community perspectives on renewing voter-approved local Larkspur funding. The survey indicated the public would support renewal of Larkspur’s existing voter-approved funding program at percentages as high as the low 70 percentiles (for a simple majority requirement measure) to continue to address infrastructure needs and vital services.

The City regularly surveys its residents to measure satisfaction and to gauge community priorities as it relates to City-provided services. The last survey taken was in 2013.

“Police and fire services, pothole/road maintenance and disaster preparedness are essential to maintaining our safety and quality of life,” continued Schwarz. “It’s incredibly helpful to know that residents not only value these services, but want more of them.  We are working on a plan to make accelerating street infrastructure repair our top priority, and we look forward to keeping the community informed.”

Survey Findings Summary

Final Report