THE recently released Markyt Community Scorecard is more an insight into the City’s psyche and whether the community believed it was on the right path than just a survey, according to Mayor Rhys Williams.
He said he was confident the City knew what the issues were “but we need to change how we liaise with residents,’’ he said,
In April, the City engaged external consultant Catalyse to administer a Markyt Community Scorecard to evaluate community priorities and measure the council’s performance against key indicators in its Stratetic Community Plan.
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READ NOWThe survey provides feedback on how the city is performing across a range of areas.
It found Mandurah residents loved the City’s closeness to the ocean and waterways and overall Mandurah was a strong performer as a place to live and as a governing organisation.
Perceived strengths included rubbish and recycling collections arts, festivals and cultural activities.
Areas that residents wanted the City to prioritise included safety and security, access to employment opportunities, traffic management, economic development and development of the city centre.
As a place to live, Mandurah scored 80 points out of 100 – one index point above the industry standard and an increase of 12 points since 2015.
But as a safe place to live, 40 per cent of respondents felt safe and 29 per cent were neutral while 30 per cent did not feel safe.
Mayor Williams said it was odd that while police reported falling crime figures, residents were feeling less safe.
Among residents’ concerns were a lack of business and industry, Mandurah’s retirement image, approval restrictions and limited entertainment.
The city centre was perceived as tired, although that was recorded before the City released its big foreshores and city centre redevelopment plans last week.