Residents consider the City of Greer an excellent place to live and would highly recommend it to someone who asks, according to results of the National Citizen Survey.

The survey, mailed to 1,200 City of Greer residents last November, sought input on such areas as quality of life, emergency services, quality of local government services, and how residents use and view city services.  Erin Caldwell, senior research assistant with the National Research Center in Boulder, Colo., presented the survey results to Greer City Council Feb. 23 at its annual planning retreat.

“The National Citizen Survey is one of the most reliable tools available to municipalities that want to measure government performance,” assistant city administrator Mike Sell said. “It not only gives us an idea of the areas in which we excel, but also to measure all programs and track improvement through periodic surveying.”

Because the National Research Center, Inc. has administered the National Citizen Survey in 41 states, it provides a benchmark to determine how local government services compare nationwide.

The City of Greer scored well above the benchmark for availability of affordable quality housing, quality of new development, economic development, employment opportunities, being a good place to work, city parks, contact with neighbors, traffic flow, drinking water, storm drainage, and the availability of affordable health care, among others.

Sell said the survey results and more specific follow up questions will assist strategic planning.

“One of the more encouraging results is that respondents are very pleased with the direction the city is taking,” he said.  “Everything we do has the goal of improving the city and the quality of life for residents, so getting feedback from those who benefit from city services is invaluable.”

Sell noted that additional feedback will be sought on areas that fell below the benchmark —such as participation in the city’s recycling program — because they may reflect personal choices or habits instead of a problem with services. The survey, he said, provides a starting point for follow up studies.

“This is our first experience with the National Citizen Survey and it has helped create our own benchmark. We’ll take these results and continue to work to make the City of Greer a great place to live, work, and play,” Sell said.