City's resident survey says mobility and infrastructure are a big concern
Joey Brunelle
Rauschpfeife
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Zack Barowitz
NEWS RELEASE
Portland Unveils Community Survey Results
Customer Service, Core Operational Services & Public Safety are clear strengths;
Residents’ future concerns are driven more by nationwide community pressures than single services;
Public invited to hear an overview of the results at March 23 Council workshop
PORTLAND, Maine – The City of Portland conducted a community survey in late 2025, and the survey results are now available for the public to review. The survey provided an opportunity for Portland residents to share their feedback and insights regarding the programs and services provided by the City. The purpose of the survey was to objectively assess and collect opinions and feedback on City programs, services, and long-term investments; to support decision making that reflects community priorities; and to establish a benchmark to measure ongoing progress.
City staff worked with ETC Institute, a nationally recognized survey research firm specializing in municipal level resident surveys, on this effort. ETC compiled and analyzed the results, and will be presenting them to the City Council in a workshop on Monday, March 23, 2026. Because ETC administers these surveys nationwide, Portland’s results have been compared regionally and nationally to other municipalities.
“I’m so glad we made the funds available to complete this work as this data will go far in helping us direct our policy work,” said Mayor Mark Dion. “I look forward to reviewing these results further with my colleagues and the survey consultant. I encourage the public to attend the March 23 workshop so they can understand the results and see how we’re doing compared to other cities.”
“I want to thank the community for their survey responses,” said City Manager Danielle West. “It’s great to see the high level of satisfaction with many of our operational services. I look forward to reviewing these results further with the Mayor & Council to see how these results can shape our future work.”
One part of the survey asked about residents’ perceptions of Portland as a community. Respondents expressed high levels of satisfaction with many of these items, including the quality of life in neighborhoods and the city overall. However, 75% of respondents expressed dissatisfaction with the affordability of living in Portland and the availability of affordable housing, and nearly 50% expressed dissatisfaction with the value received for City taxes and fees.
Another part of the survey measured resident satisfaction with City services and programs. Respondents expressed high levels of satisfaction with many of those core services, including quality of public safety services, solid waste services, and customer service from City employees. More than 40% of respondents expressed dissatisfaction with the flow of traffic/ease of getting around within the City and maintenance of city streets, sidewalks, and infrastructure.
Based on residents’ reported satisfaction rates and priorities, ETC’s analysis determined that the City services that should receive the most emphasis over the next two years include maintenance of city streets, sidewalks, and infrastructure; flow of traffic/ease of getting around within the city; and quality of social services provided by the City.
According to the survey results, Portland residents are generally more satisfied with City services and programs than residents in other cities, including the quality of public safety and solid waste services, and the quality of customer service from City employees. However, compared to peer cities, Portland residents gave lower marks to the maintenance of streets, sidewalks and infrastructure as well as to the ease of travelling around the City.
The survey was administered by mail, phone, and online. A total of 1,112 surveys were collected, which surpassed the goal of receiving 1,100 completed surveys in order to be statistically valid based on the city’s population. The survey results have a +/- 2.9% margin of error at the 95% level of confidence. A minimum of 200 completed surveys were collected from each of the City’s five Council districts. The survey was available in multiple languages online and by phone. City staff also worked with community partners to make sure the voices of all Portland residents were represented in the survey results. This included engagement with those who utilize emergency shelter services.
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