CINCINNATI — The City of Cincinnati this week released its 2025 resident survey, which found perceptions on a slew of city issues have worsened compared to two years ago.
The survey touched on working and raising kids in Cincinnati, safety, quality of life and more factors that will help city leaders tailor their work and citywide priorities going forward, according to the report.
A Kansas-based firm, ETC Institute, conducted the survey for the city in the winter. More than 1,200 randomly selected residents responded. According to the report, the demographics of those surveyed were in line with city demographics of gender, race, income and location.
"A closer review of the data suggests that these declines are best understood as a citywide shift in resident perceptions rather than the result of isolated service failures within individual departments," the report stated.
Watch: Council members discuss what the survey means
Among the top findings were that only 32% of respondents reported being satisfied with the overall feeling of safety in the city. That figure is down from 40% in 2023.
"What's clear is residents don't feel safe, they don't feel served," council member Mark Jeffreys said. "We need to put together a plan to make sure that they do feel safe and do feel served."
When the question shifted from overall safety to feelings of safety in respondents' own neighborhoods, the satisfaction rate rose to 50%, compared to 58% in 2023.
"As everyone knows, perception is reality," council member Meeka Owens said. "And so people need to see more around public safety, what that means in their neighborhoods, and just enjoying our business districts."
Owens said the timing of the survey may factor into safety perceptions. Researchers began conducting the survey just months removed from several high-profile crime incidents in downtown Cincinnati and Over-The-Rhine, including a viral downtown brawl and the stabbing death of an OTR gym owner.
"Things being inflamed on social media and in the national news, I think, also permeated the consciousness of our residents," Owens said.
With Cincinnati's budget season in full swing, Jeffreys said survey results came at the right time.
"It 100% plays into (budget season)," he said. "We put together our priorities, and the priorities I believe need to be public safety, public services. Over and out."
The survey also listed residents' top community priorities, using what it called the "Importance-Satisfaction" rating or "I-S" index. The survey asked residents to rank city services by importance. It combined that data with residents' overall reported satisfaction with those specific services.
The top three priorities, rated with high importance but low satisfaction, are as follows:
- Maintenance of city streets, sidewalks and infrastructure
- Police services
- Code enforcement
"These are very solvable problems, and now is the time with the budget and budget priorities that we need to put money towards addressing them," Jeffreys said.
Across just about all survey categories, satisfaction rates decreased compared to two years ago:
- Overall image of the city: 42% satisfied in 2025, down from 65% in 2023.
- As a place to live: 64% satisfied in 2025, down from 81% in 2023.
- As a place to raise children: 53% satisfied in 2025, down from 70% in 2023.
- As a place to work: 60% satisfied in 2025, down from 77% in 2023.
- Overall quality of life in the city: 48% satisfied in 2025, down from 65% in 2023.
- Overall quality of services provided by the city: 45% satisfied in 2025, down from 61% in 2023.
- As a place where I feel welcome: 58% satisfied in 2025, down from 74% in 2023.
- Overall value you receive for your city tax dollars and fees: 31% satisfied in 2025, down from 41% in 2023.
During a presentation of the findings on Monday, ETC Institute Director of Community Research Ryan Murray told city council that, "Over the last five years, we've seen a shift downward in perceptions across the country."
Owens said city leaders will take these results a step further, conducting focus groups with respondents starting in the spring.
"We're ready to do focus groups that will help us to go even more granular into some of these results," she said. "It'll be interesting to see people's perspectives."
Owens also touted some of the positive marks coming out of the survey.
"We also know that people are satisfied with services like parks and how we maintain those and recycling and trash collection," she said.
