Happiness Survey Data Release - City Council Presentation - November 2025 - for review — File 25-1738

Happiness Survey 2025: Data Release CITY OF SOMERVILLE, MASSACHUSETTS SOMERSTAT KATJANA BALLANTYNE MAYOR

What we’re doing today Introduction Why does the City run the Somerville Happiness Survey? 2025 Details Distribution of the most recent survey 2025 Data Release Exploration of findings Next Steps Further analysis Topics & questions for 2027

Overview & Purpose • The Happiness Survey measures residents’ overall happiness and satisfaction with various aspects of life in Somerville and informs City decisions that support and enhance residents’ happiness. • SomerStat has conducted the survey every two years since 2011. • Data from the Happiness Survey is used in: • Tracking performance in long-range goals • Evaluating pilot programs (e.g., composting) • Setting budget and resource priorities

Biennial survey allows for longitudinal analysis, where it’s easier to see if a result is part of a trend or a one-off anomaly. Why run the Happiness Survey? Surveying a random sample of residents + targeted outreach to special populations provides insight into a broad cross-section of opinions that aren’t always heard in public meetings and online comments. Asking about a lot of topics forces respondents to consider them relative to each other.

2025 Survey Distribution • The 2025 survey was sent to randomly-selected households in Somerville in April-May 2025. • Paper surveys in English, Spanish, Portuguese, and Haitian Creole • Online option in above languages + Nepali, Traditional Chinese, and Simplified Chinese • Sent out by postcard & paper surveys as a test of methodology: paper response rate is much higher • We received nearly 1,400 responses. • Our sample overrepresents women, white people, homeowners, and high-income households, but almost all demographic groups have enough respondents to analyze/report. • Keep in mind that results reflect sentiment in spring 2025!

New in 2025 • Results viewable on a map by census tract, from a geographically-representative sample • “Deep dives” into some themes of City work • This year: community & governance, public health, public space, infrastructure, commercial development & arts, and education • Open-response questions for what the City is doing well (up to 3) and what it could improve (up to 3) • Almost 1000 people left comments in both! • Open-response questions about your last interaction with the City, and where the City should spend more and fewer resources

How to read the charts Results are shown as average scores and as percentages of responses by answer choice. Percentages of responses exclude “not sure” and blank responses and offer the most detail in understanding responses. Satisfaction and Agreement Questions • 5-point scale, from 1 (Very Unsatisfied) to 5 (Very Satisfied), or from 1 (Strongly Disagree) to 5 (Strongly Agree) • Generally, an average score near or above 4.0 (average response of “Satisfied” or “Agree”) will be on the higher side of what we see in this dataset. However, whether that is considered “good” will depend on the question. • For comparing average scores, a difference of 0.2 or less is generally negligible, while a difference of 1.0 or more is marked. Concern Questions • 3-point scale, from 1 (Not Concerned), to 3 (Very Concerned) • Because the 3-point scale offers few selection options, percentages of responses are more helpful than averages in assessing differences. Open Ended Questions • Open ended question add explanation, context, and nuance to the quantitative/scale questions.

Overall, Somerville residents are happy! Although it’s gone down a bit recently.

However, they continue to be happy with Somerville as a place to live. This has been steady since the COVID-19 pandemic.

People also feel safe in Somerville. Everywhere.

Themes: Core City Services Respondents are highly satisfied with the overall quality of City services they receive, including emergency response services, reliability of water & sewer services, and the availability of information about City services. There are about 170 comments about 311 and 2/3 are positive. Quality of City Services Quality of emergency response services Reliability of water & sewer services Availability of information about services Contacting 311 is easy, but I'm not sure if actual action was taken afterwards. 311 has been great. They are polite and full of information. Professional when taking down my concern it is great to speak with human. 311 is always extra helpful whenever I call!!!

Opportunities for civic participation Information to vote in local elections Visible and understandable processes Themes: Governance Respondents are highly satisfied with opportunities for civic participation and having the information to vote in Somerville. Respondents are less likely to feel that government processes are visible and understandable. There are about 80 comments about city processes, largely focused on processes for permitting, parking permits, paying tickets, etc. Comments are split about 1/3 positive to 2/3 improvement suggestions. I went in person to pick up my permit. It was easy and quick. However, the reason I went in person was because my mother who also lives in Somerville warned me that she ordered hers online and it never came. Easy to use website and online payments We had contractors who won't work [in Somerville] because it's too hard to get anything done

Proximity to a park you like Proximity to other public spaces Layout and design of streets Themes: City Design Respondents are highly satisfied with proximity to parks they want to use and other public spaces. Respondents are less likely to be satisfied with the layout and design of streets in their neighborhood. There are about 200 comments about street layout and design, largely focused on availability of bike & pedestrian infrastructure and availability of parking. Comments are split about 50/50 positive to improvement suggestions. Taking away parking with no alternatives Bike and pedestrian infrastructure has improved a lot. Please keep it up. Crosswalks should not be placed right where cars enter/exit roundabouts; interrupts the roundabout flow and is unsafe for pedestrians.

Neighborhood cleanliness & upkeep Maintenance of municipal buildings Maintenance of streets, sidewalks, bike lanes Themes: Maintenance Respondents are fairly satisfied with the beauty, cleanliness, and upkeep of their neighborhoods and the maintenance of municipal buildings. Respondents are less likely to be satisfied with the maintenance of streets, sidewalks, and bike lanes (which has been declining since before the COVID-19 pandemic). There are over 250 comments about maintenance of roadway infrastructure; they are split about 10% positive to 90% improvement suggestions. We need road repairs!!! Terrible street conditions make Somerville more unsafe for everyone. Finally fixing (part of) highland avenue Sidewalk repair, in general and after street work. Makes it difficult for seniors to walk.

Themes: Arts and Local Economy Social community events Ability to enjoy and create art Neighborhood restaurants, shops, and other businesses So many small businesses - easy to shop for almost everything Small and unique businesses abound - love the lack of big chains Businesses close and nothing reopens for years More support for local businesses, less big corporate development Respondents are highly satisfied with social community events, the ability to create and enjoy art in Somerville, and the restaurants, shops, and other businesses in their neighborhood. There are about 250 comments about local businesses, split about 50/50 positive to improvement suggestions. Respondents are happy with existing local businesses and want even more support for them.

Ages 0 - 4 Grades PK - 5 Grades 6 - 8 Grades 9 - 12 Themes: Education Supports (Parents/guardians) Parent/guardian responses about availability of childcare or out-of- school care by age group Parents and guardians report relatively high level of dissatisfaction with availability of childcare or out of school care for all age groups (somewhat improving with child’s age). There are about 45 comments about education supports, split about 1/3 positive to 2/3 improvement suggestions: • Positive mentions include the quality and availability of Pre-K, afterschool programs, new parent groups • Improvement mentions frequently include asks for youth programming/center, more affordable childcare options, and universal Pre-K.

Condition of your housing Quality & variety of housing options in budget Themes: Housing Respondents are highly satisfied with condition of their housing, but much more likely to be dissatisfied with the quality and variety of housing options in their budget. Respondents also report high rates of concern about being priced out of living in Somerville. Housing affordability is one of the most prevalent comment topics (around 350 mentions), and they are split about 10% positive to 90% improvement suggestions. Commitment to affordable housing access. Keep going + expand. Making Somerville housing more affordable for middle-income folks. Limiting the number of million-dollar condos going up. Who can afford these, really?

Respondents who report difficulty paying for food: responses about ability to access basic needs Ability to access basic needs Access to preferred grocery store Access to health support services Themes: Health Supports (Respondents who report difficulty paying for food) Respondents overall report very high levels of satisfaction with ability to access basic needs, grocery stores, services that support health, and relief from extreme heat. However, respondents who report difficulty paying for food have much lower scores (and represent thousands of residents). Cost-related comments by people who report difficulty paying for food generally reflect the desirability of living in Somerville and the need to continue improving on affordability. I love Somerville. I love to live in Somerville. I consider myself incredibly lucky to live in Somerville. We still must do better at making the community affordable and accessible. This is a special community and special place to live, but the rental system is totally broken… Childcare is insanely expensive. I cannot fully appreciate and engage in all the opportunities to socialize or volunteer with my neighbors because my entire human existence is devoted to paying rent and not becoming homeless again.

Split opinions: Respondents actively disagree on whether to repurpose parking for other uses 46% Agree 38% Disagree Higher agreement near T stations [The City is doing well at] converting street parking to outdoor dining. Remove bike lanes and reclaim parking spaces on Broadway. That idea was insane!

Split opinions: Respondents actively disagree on whether the City is doing enough to decrease the presence of rats and mice. 32% Satisfied 40% Unsatisfied Renters more satisfied than owners Offer composting to reduce rats and waste. Rat population curbing without harmful rodenticide. Do more to get rid of the rats Continue to combat rats. Cite restaurants when they let dumpsters overflow /need to increase frequency of rubbish pick-up. Satisfaction with the City’s efforts to decrease rats and mice

Exploratory Views Examples • Questions Over Time (2011-2025) • Demographics Over Time (2011- 2025) • Questions by Demographic (2011- 2025) • Questions by Geography (2025) • Concern Questions (2025) including map • Question Comparison (2025)

Geographic exploration example Happiness I feel like a part of the Somerville community Respondents in Assembly row are among the happiest but feel least connected to Somerville.

What’s available & what’s next Currently available products • Open Data (2011-2025) • Dataset • Data dictionary • Data visualization • While we’ve done extensive quality checks, this initial release is likely not perfect! If anything looks potentially inaccurate, please let us know. Further analysis and reporting • Finish processing open-response comments and publish comment categories in the open dataset. • Conduct internal assessments by focus area and department, and other by- request investigations for City departments. Topics & questions for 2027 • We welcome ideas for potential topics and questions for 2027. The 2027 survey will include deep dives on the remaining six focus areas: climate & sustainability, housing, mobility, public safety, modern & efficient government, and foundational City services. • As always, we’re balancing longitudinal data collection with new information. Contact Email: data@somervillema.gov

Questions? CITY OF SOMERVILLE, MASSACHUSETTS SOMERSTAT KATJANA BALLANTYNE MAYOR