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Ensuring fast fire and emergency medical response times, reducing petty crime and burglary, and cracking down on illegal drug use and sales were the city services ranked most important in a statistically valid survey of Edmonds residents conducted last month. Yet, according to results shared Tuesday night with the Edmonds City Council, a majority of those surveyed also said the city was underperforming in reducing petty crime and drug use, and needed to do a better job of fixing potholes and sidewalks, strictly enforcing building and development codes, and planning for population growth.
The difference between what was important to residents and whether those same residents were satisfied with how the city was performing in those areas is called a gap analysis — and it’s a concept that will be in play as the council begins developing priorities for Edmonds’ 2025-27 biennial budget.
The council will be discussing the survey results further during its daylong budget retreat, scheduled to start at 8 a.m. this Friday, Aug. 16. Councilmembers and city staff have already committed to a priority-based budgeting process for this year, and agreed that conducting a survey to determine residents’ expectations is an important component of that effort.
Several nearby cities — including Redmond, Kirkland and Bellevue — conduct community surveys regularly as part of their budgeting process. Community, Culture and Economic Development Director Todd Tatum told the council that he was hopeful that Edmonds would do the same.
EMC Research was hired to perform the survey, which included 400 total interviews from July 17-23. Response data was weighted to be representative of Edmonds residents 18 and older, and reflected age, gender, ethnicity and geographic demographics based on the U.S. Census. Respondents were randomly selected and interviewed by both landline and mobile phone, or could also participate in a web survey via email or text invitations.
Survey questions were reviewed in advance by a community budget advisory panel and the council’s finance committee.
According to the report shared with the council Tuesday, the mood among Edmonds residents was “quite positive and satisfaction is high,” and the city received strong ratings on performance. Nearly all survey participants — 94% — gave a positive rating (good or excellent) for the quality of life in Edmonds, and three quarters of those surveyed — 74% — said they thought “things in Edmonds are generally moving in the right direction.”
However, the ratings varied by age, ethnicity, geography and homeowner status. Those 65 or older were the most positive about Edmonds’ quality of life (60% rating it excellent and 35% good) while those ages 18-49 gave it a 36% excellent/57% good rating. White residents came in at 49% excellent/46% good while BIPOC residents were at 26% excellent/65% good. And those living in the 98020 ZIP code (west Edmonds) were at 56%/41% compared to 35%/58% for residents in the 98026 (east Edmonds) ZIP code. Homeowners came in at 48%/46% while non-homeowners were 31%/63%.
According to Tatum, in addition the council discussion at the retreat Friday, next steps include giving the broader community an opportunity to respond to the survey, with plans to translate it into Spanish and Vietnamese. Because the current survey results were cross-tabulated by location, staff and councilmembers will also have a chance to do a deeper dive into where the survey responses came from — and that may reveal some specific concerns based on neighborhood, he said.
You can see the presentation summarizing the survey results here.
In other business Tuesday, the council decided not to move forward with annexation of 47 homes in the Meadowdale area, reversing previous support for the idea. The council in September 2023 passed a resolution asking that Snohomish County consider — in consultation with the cities of Edmonds and Lynnwood — a change in the county’s Municipal Urban Growth Area (also known as MUGA) that would annex the homes into the City of Edmonds. The homes are located in an area from 161st Place Southwest to the southern boundary of Meadowdale Beach Park and east of 68th Avenue West, and more than 60% of the affected homeowners signed a petition seeking annexation by Edmonds.
But the council reversed course after hearing from city staff that there were two reasons not to move forward with the annexation: For starters, there is nothing in the city’s Comprehensive Plan that addresses the idea of expanding Edmonds’ current MUGA, which currently only includes Esperance. City Attorney Jeff Taraday noted that the council’s 2023 resolution “says one thing and the Comp Plan saying something else,” adding that there should be a policy in place first prior to any annexation.
The other reason is that the city could incur significant costs related to the annexation. For example: All of the homes in the area are served by septic systems, and if any of those began to fail, the city would be required to provide sewer system hookups next to the property line, at an estimated cost of $4 million-$6 million, plus additional unanticipated expenses.
Councilmember Neil Tibbott said he wasn’t in favor of moving forward with the annexation idea “without a policy in place.”
And although Councilmember Jenna Nand complimented “the passion and drive” of the Meadowdale residents who organized the effort, including those who offered testimony Tuesday night, she later made a motion that the council not proceed with annexation.
The final vote was 5-1 (Councilmember Michelle Dotsch voting against) with Councilmember Will Chen abstaining.
The council also:
– Received a mid-year review of city finances from Acting Finance Director Kim Dunscombe. She began by describing the city’s recent financial challenges, beginning with the declaration of a fiscal emergency at the end of 2023 followed by Mayor Mike Rosen’s creation of a Blue Ribbon Panel of community financial advisors — led by consultant Mike Bailey — to guide next steps.
The city is “making really good progress” on the panel’s list of 15 recommendations, she said, including development of a monthly cash flow model, creation of financial policies that clarify boundaries and guidelines, taking a priority-based budgeting approach and prioritizing technology updates.
To address the city’s current budget shortfall, staff have been maintaining vacancies and identifying areas for immediate spending reductions. In addition, there have been cutbacks in professional services contracts.
More discussion on the budget will occur during the Aug. 16 retreat.
– Heard the 2023 annual report from the Edmonds Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility Commission. Accomplishments included the commission’s Diversity Film Series, production of a monthly newsletter, collaboration with other organizations on several events and working with diversity commissions in the cities of Lynnwood and Mountlake Terrace.
– Received a proclamation declaring September as National Suicide Prevention Month.
— By Teresa Wippel
There was discussion about Edmonds-addressed homes near Meadowdale Beach Park, but only our area shares a contiguous border with Edmonds, nearly twice the length of our border with Lynnwood. Other areas are separated by Lynnwood with no border with Edmonds. The city is revising its comprehensive plan, and Councilmember Tibbott’s concerns about policy misalignment are unfounded; the council has the authority to amend policy through resolutions. I appreciated Councilmember Chen’s abstention, as the decision was about re-designating the MUGA, not annexation. The financial analysis presented assumed immediate annexation, which is unrealistic. Esperance has remained un-annexed for over two decades. Annexation processes take years, even if the area is already in the MUGA. The city staff’s analysis was flawed, overstating potential liabilities and incorrectly claiming Edmonds would bear all costs for septic-to-sewer conversions. The confusing presentation led the council to believe all 47 households would be subject to the 200-foot rule, when in reality, only nine parcels are within 200 feet of Edmonds sewer mains. The likelihood of simultaneous, catastrophic septic failure is low, and existing infrastructure is likely sufficient. It’s disappointing that our case was dismissed based on this roughshod analysis, especially after positive indications from both Edmonds and Lynnwood about the re-designation. This, combined with the initial allocation into Lynnwood’s MUGA without consultation, compounds our disappointment.
Thank you Teresa, I really appreciate the information in this report.
I question survey results of a small sample of people that are used to generate data that will be used to represent a much larger population. The data is interesting but does it really represent the population?
HI Patsy– I am not an expert but I do know that statistically valid surveys like this one are the standard for ensuring the population is accurately represented. Others who are experts may want to weigh in. — Teresa
Hi Patsy – certainly not an expert, but I wanted to share some ideas that might be relevant to your question. Random sampling allows survey results to accurately capture public sentiment without having to ask everyone – which would be costly and time-consuming.
Random sampling works on the principle that opinions in a population vary, and that by selecting a random sample, we increase the likelihood of capturing a representative cross-section of those opinions. It’s a bit like tasting a spoonful of soup to judge the whole pot: if you stir well first, that spoonful can give you a good sense of the overall flavor. Statistically speaking, the folks who ran this survey are 95% certain that the numbers listed in the survey are within 4.9% (above or below) of the numbers they’d get if they asked everyone in Edmonds these questions.
If survey participants weren’t randomly selected, and anyone who wanted to participate was able to, the results could be skewed by “participation bias”—the tendency for those with strong opinions to be more likely to share their views. While strong opinions are just as important as any other, they might not represent the overall population. Random sampling helps prevent over-representation of these strong views, allowing a survey to capture a balanced perspective of how the entire population feels about something.
Mackey, you explained this extremely well, brilliantly in fact. I can add only two tidbits~ First, a well-done random survey (often called a scientific survey) is repeatable. The same questions could be asked of a different random group from the same universe, and the results would be within the margin of error of the first survey. Second, for a good and valid survey in Edmonds, every adult resident has an equal chance of being selected for interview (I don’t know the details but hope that’s how it worked for this Edmonds survey).
The survey results regarding wish lists are satisfactory; however, they do not address the core issue of the city’s fiscal crisis. At least three council members appear to be on a mission akin to a fantasy, attempting to figure out how to spend other people’s money without financial accountability. Edmonds cash burn rate continues to lead it towards bankruptcy. The high personnel expenses must be addressed seriously, a matter which has been irresponsibly overlooked thus far.
The city’s website states that the council regular meetings for Aug 27 and Sept 3 are cancelled. Why?
The council is taking a two-week summer break, something they approved by ordinance earlier this year. I was told that they have been having extra special meetings to ensure all the work gets done.
And to clarify, the city clerk said the meetings shouldn’t have been listed as cancelled as they weren’t on the schedule for this year. He is removing them altogether.
That’s Great. They have been giving lots of time to try to help our city. Well-deserved Vacation. Have Fun.