Community

WATCH: Is quality of life declining in Kelowna?

New survey points to ‘strong sense of pessimism’

  • What a latest survey has to say about quality of life
  • Cost of living a major factor in sense of pessimism

A new survey for the City of Kelowna suggests while the majority of residents feel they continue to have a good quality of life, many figure things have worsened in the past three years.

The rising cost of living was the main area of concern but issues such as public safety also played a role. Also, 80 per cent of citizens were happy with the services they receive, down from 91 per cent in 2020.

The 2022 Citizen Survey, conducted by polling firm IPSOS in April, spoke with 300 adult Kelowna residents over the phone, split 75 per cent mobile users and 25 per cent on a landline. The final sample was weighted by gender/age and neighbourhood.

Ninety per cent of those surveyed said their quality of life was good, but 55 per cent of them said things had gotten worse.

Twenty-one per cent put the blame on the ‘rising cost of living.’ Among other findings: 14 per cent listed ‘safety concerns’, 11 per cent listed ‘housing affordability’, and 10 per cent found Kelowna ‘too crowded/busy’.

In the previous 2020 Citizen Survey, ‘rising cost of living’, was listed by only 9 per cent of those surveyed as a key issue. Safety was ranked at 12 per cent.

Overall, the survey showed a net reduction in perception of quality of life by -47 points, by far the worst level since these surveys started in 2012, and worse than the -13 net score of 2020.

“We’ve had this negative momentum in the past, but nothing to the extent that we’re seeing this year,” IPSOS director Catherine Knaus told city councilors Monday. “There is a strong sense of pessimism that the direction that the quality of life has taken.”

Knaus noted that anecdotally other municipalities were not seeing this same level of negative scores.

In the 2020 survey, 40 per cent said their quality of life was ‘very good’, but only 29 per cent held that view in the 2022 findings.

Councilors were unanimous in their sense of disappointment in the findings, but not surprised.

“We’re seeing big drops in some areas … it is real and I think it’s accurate, “ Coun. Luke Stack said.” It’s sobering, and it keeps our feet on the ground that these are the issues that we need to keep focusing on.”

Councilor Mohini Singh noted the rising cost of living was something that at least in part, could not be pinned on the city.

“These [figures] are not surprising, but I do feel there are issues beyond the control of municipalities… like expenses at the grocery store, gas prices; all that impacts people’s quality of life … and I wonder if that could colour their judgement as well,” she said.

The new survey also noted perceptions of improved quality of life, in particular the steady development growth in the city which was rated among 18 per cent of respondents.

The perception is that growth will lead to better/more parks, facilities, and services. That figure was at 10 per cent in the 2020 survey.

Published 2022-06-20 by Glenn Hicks

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