Dearborn Resident Phone Survey Underway
Dozens of you have written us over the last few days asking about the legitimacy of a telephone survey some residents have received in recent days. Rest assured, the telephone survey is an official one.
The City of Dearborn has hired a company to conduct a phone survey of its residents to best determine what residents want and likely get an idea of what services it could scale back or cut altogether.
Dearborn Mayor John B. O’Reilly, Jr., mentioned the telephone survey in his State of the City speech Wednesday
Dearborn is conducting the phone survey to determine what services residents value most.
night, telling residents that the community survey was being conducted to help Dearborn better understand the priorities of its residents. The complete copy of that speech can be found at our earlier post on DeepSaidWhat by clicking HERE
“I know it’s hard to talk about pushing forward when facing such difficult conditions,” O’Reilly said in his speech. “But our brightest dreams are generally conceived in our darker hours. So now is a chance to dream and to plan and to position our city for a promising future.
“I want to make you an integral part of that process. That’s why we’re reaching out in a number of ways to get your input and feedback.”
The survey company, according to residents who have already received the calls, asks about city services and to rank them in order of importance.
Resident Mary Jo Durivage is reminding residents to not forgot the importance of keeping our libraries at the top of our minds, too. And, she is right. Our libraries are even more important in these trying times.
“If you do receive a call, please tell them about the importance of keeping the libraries, including the branches (especially Bryant) open,” Durivage says. “During bad economic times, the library becomes even more important for a myriad of reasons — job searching, reading magazines we cannot afford to subscribe to, movies and music for some free entertainment, a place of respite, and computers. We all have our own reasons. Libraries are often the first to go on the chopping block. Please express your support.”
February 22nd, 2009 at 1:09 pm
Sorry, but how much is this survey costing us?
February 22nd, 2009 at 1:56 pm
Donna: Does it really matter? How do you propose the city make educated cuts to its budget and services? Go house to house? Doesn’t that cost money, too, if city workers are doing that on city time?
This is affordable, I am sure. Anything less than asking residents to get feedback would be dumb. It is money well spent.
February 22nd, 2009 at 2:00 pm
Time will tell won’t it. I just feel that if people have been calling Deep to find out if this is ‘real’ are they even bothering to answer the questions.
February 22nd, 2009 at 2:53 pm
What worries me most is that valuable taxpayer-financed city services that are underutilized could be cut. That would make sense. What doesn’t make sense is that residents don’t take advantage of them.
The SMART buses, senior citizens center, libraries, and city health department immediately come to mind as being vulnerable.
What about free tuition for Dearborn senior citizens (60 years and older) at Henry Ford Community College?
If we don’t start using these services, they will be cut, and I predict our taxes won’t…
February 22nd, 2009 at 3:07 pm
It would be interesting to see the questions that are asked. I am sure they could be set up so some of the citizens real concerns are not adressed.
February 22nd, 2009 at 4:20 pm
Donna: so if I am to understand you, the City should have sent out a mailer, which costs money, to tell residents a phone survey would be taking place? Huh, that sounds smart. and you were worried about dollars being spent on the survey? we accept calls during elections on who we might vote for (without advance notice) but when someone calls on behalf of our city we suddenly expect advance notice. Get over it. If someone calls take the survey or do not. Until then mail your suggestions directly to Mayor Jack and be done with it. No waiting for that magical call.
February 22nd, 2009 at 4:56 pm
Just as a historical note. Mayor O’Reilly, Jr. is following the playbook of his father who conducted a door-to-door survey in 1978. Personally, as long as the costs are low, i think its a good idea
February 22nd, 2009 at 5:25 pm
Sorry Robert B but I didn’t say anything about sending out a mailer nor did I say anything about advanced notice. I email the mayor, council and school board with my comments quite often and don’t expect a magical call from any of them.
February 22nd, 2009 at 7:54 pm
Let me see if I have this straight. The same people who complain that the city never listens to them now are now complaining about a phone survey that affords them the ear of the city? The same ones who complain about how high their city taxes are and how bad the city is run now want to waste limited taxpayer funds with an advance notice mailer? The same people who complain the so much refuse to answer the city phone call survey?
Lets just put tons of city employees on the streets taking surveys house to house for months. Lets also give them city cars so they can spend city gas money and wear out these cars. Lets make sure we give them cell phones to call all of you as well and we might as well pay that too. Then when the survey is done we will know what all of you want with the 100 that are turned in.
Its no wonder the city is having troubles with people like you that don’t have a clue.
To the others who agree thank you for being wonderful citizens.
February 23rd, 2009 at 6:18 am
Are cell phones being included in the survey calls? If it’s only landlines being called, I wouldn’ worry about senior services getting cut. Senior services may be the only thing to survive without younger residents being called on their cell phones.
February 23rd, 2009 at 8:09 am
Funny, all I asked was how much was this costing.
February 23rd, 2009 at 9:24 am
Since the employees making the calls to residences are already on the payroll, it’s already a fixed cost. So take the damn call and answer the questions. Or simply continue to make mountains out of molehills and don’t take the call and then wonder why you never have a voice or hand in fixing anything in Dearborn.
God if some people just had a brain they’d be dangerous.
February 23rd, 2009 at 9:35 am
Dearborn Idol, whose payroll are these employees on?
February 23rd, 2009 at 9:40 am
Detroits – duh!
February 23rd, 2009 at 9:42 am
Dearborn Idol, why would the City of Dearborn hire Detroit to run a survey?
February 23rd, 2009 at 9:50 am
Because Inkster employees were not available.
February 23rd, 2009 at 10:01 am
Dearborn Idol, you stated “since the employees making the calls to residences are on the payroll, it’s already a fixed cost”. My question to you was and still is whose payroll are these people on or maybe I should have said who did the City hire to make the calls?
February 23rd, 2009 at 12:30 pm
I agree with an earlier reply that most NON – senior citizens will not get to reply, because we do not use landlines. Most of us only use cell phones these days. So there will not be a “true” response to reflect a younger opinion. And youth opinion is what Dearborn needs (along with a mature opinion)! Young people spend more money!
February 23rd, 2009 at 1:16 pm
If the youth today were as wise as they think they are, they’d know they could list their cell phone numbers as their main number in phone book directories in some cases free, in others for a small fee. If they weren’t too busy they’d also know they could simply call the city and give them their phone number if they really cared about this at all.
So since the youth today spend more money and want their opinions counted they cannot expect the city to be a mind reader, eh!
February 23rd, 2009 at 2:30 pm
hey “Idol” as far as listing the cell number in the directory, did you ever think that MAYBE we want to remain unlisted as to avoid telemarketers, creepy people, etc.
I never mentioned being “too busy” – those are your words…
Lastly, I did plan on calling the city for MYSELF, but my point is that many youth do not know about this topic (sorry – although I love this web site , not everyone reads this web site…you ASSUME too much “Idol”)…and I can not call the city for each person with a cell number that is interested.
Please keep it civil – eh?
February 24th, 2009 at 8:46 am
I guess it should not surprise any of us that in this toxic economy the city is taking a survey about what possible services they might have to scale back or cut altogether. Despite some who complain (even me occasionally), I think many of us realize that our city offers far more services than most. It is amazing to me that the city has still managed to continue to offer things such as snow removal on side streets and on business district sidewalks, eight outdoor public pools, four libraries and more through such tough economic times. Perhaps it has even amazed some of the city’s harshest critics and I am sure we will know soon after I write whether or not they agree or disagree.
It is also not going to be easy for me to rank services in order of priority because even though some of us hardly use some of the services, we are so used to having such unique services that I suspect if some are scaled back or eliminated, it may upset some people.
If the city has to scale back or cut some services, I hope we are reasonable enough to realize that this is just a sign of the times everywhere across America and let us be grateful that we have been fortunate enough to enjoy so much for so little all these years in Dearborn.
February 24th, 2009 at 3:40 pm
I would think that we pay the Mayor, his administration and all of our elected city officials enough money to make the big decisions for the City of Dearborn. Everyone is so wishy washy in this city. For goodness sake, step up to the plate make the necessary cuts. In these “tough economic times” the taxpayers will have to understand and live with the decisions. I find it absurb that we have to waste time and money on a survey at this point. Especially when we know nothing will come of it. These survey’s just seem to mucky up the waters and make people frustrated.
I want my elected officials to make the unpopular decisions regardless of how many votes he or she thinks they will receive. This is why we elect them in the first place. You are not going to please everyone in this city. Every city is making cuts and Dearborn shouldn’t be any different.
March 3rd, 2009 at 5:23 pm
The link below is to tomorrows Press and Guide story about this Resident Phone Survey details. I’m was quite surprised and not pleasantly may I add when I read this story.
http://www.pressandguide.com/stories/030409/loc_20090304009.shtml