An exercise class at Herndon Community Center.
Herndon residents are extremely satisfied with their quality of life in the historic town.
According to a survey conducted by Continental Research Associates (CRA), residents find most town services to be exemplary.
“Without question, Herndon has much to be proud of,” according to CRA’s executive summary presented to the Herndon Town Council. “The proportion of ratings that exceeds ‘90 percent satisfied’ is definitely among the highest we see.”
The Herndon Community Center was ranked 99.4 percent and the golf course ranked 99.3 percent satisfactory among the residents polled in the survey.
Director at Herndon Centennial Golf Course Gene Fleming said there were several reasons why residents ranked the town resource highly.
“The golf course provides residents and their families or friends an opportunity to recreate together and improve health and wellness in a beautiful outdoor setting,” he said.
He also noted that, because of funding from Herndon Town Council, the golf course is able to provide high quality conditions and well-trained staff.
Town Parks and Recreation director Cindy Roeder said a welcoming staff is key to making residents’ experiences at the Herndon Community Center a positive one.
“What we commonly hear is that people feel very welcomed and the staff is very helpful,” she said. “One of the most important things, too, is to keep the building fresh and in repair.”
She said the fitness equipment is expected to be replaced by the end of the year in order to keep them up-to-date.
CRA, based in Norfolk, has done surveys in Herndon in the past, according to a press release, with the most recent being in 2008. More than 300 residents were polled between Oct. 20 and Nov. 18 about “customer service at town facilities, the condition of town streets and parks, satisfaction with town services and more”, according to the press release. According to Anne Curtis, town Chief Communications Officer, the town has 24,300 residents. This number includes residents under 18 years old.
“These survey results indicate that we are achieving – and even exceeding – our service goals, and they provide a benchmark against which to measure our efforts going forward,” said Mayor Lisa Merkel in a press release. “We will use these results to budget town resources in ways that our citizens have indicated are important to them.”
The only town service that was ranked below 80 percent was the flow of traffic on town streets - which ranked 74 percent.
“Citizens’ concerns about traffic patterns, as noted in the survey results, will continue to be top-of-mind as we consider new development as well as strategies to move people onto the Herndon Parkway, which was designed to alleviate traffic congestion around town,” said Mayor Merkel.