The Blackfoot Valley's News Source Since 1980

Town Hall meeting discusses Community Master Plan Survey

The results of a survey designed to gather feedback for the development of a master plan for Lincoln revealed an overwhelming desire to see the town remain a small town, with a high value placed on its character, it's people and the sense of community.

Two weeks ago, Dustin deYong of Freestone Development, the consultant hired to guide the master planning process, provided an initial look at some of the results from the online answers to the community survey. At the second Lincoln Master Plan Town Hall meeting Wednesday, April 27, he discussed the full set of results compiled from both the online and hard copy surveys, and an analysis of the open-ended questions that allowed people to answer in their own words.

"When I created the survey, I did a lot of open-ended questions. I did that so we didn't just have multiple choice, where you just had one thing that didn't really fit what your answer might or might not be," deYong said.

DeYong said in the end they received a total of 150 unique surveys. Although the response rate fell below 20 percent, he still considered it a good rate for such a survey.

"I've experienced less in doing these things in the past in other communities," he said. "That's good. It shows the community is passionate about their future and concerned as to what kind of changes might take place."

He said change is a big word that come up over and over in the survey. "If you're concerned about change one way or another, participating in this process is your way to help control the changes that happen in the community for years to come by putting your thoughts and your stamp on the master plan."

Looking at the surveys, deYong found that most of the respondents – 72 percent- were full time residents, while the majority of the part time resident who respond live in Lincoln during the summer and fall.

The answers to 43-question survey provided a detailed and complex look at the sometimes conflicting attitudes about Lincoln and it's future, but they also revealed overarching themes that recurred time and again.

"When we go through these responses it's easy to see the polarity between the negative and the positive between one viewpoint and another, but something that comes through over and over again...throughout the responses was that this community really cherishes the people and the type of community that it is," deYong said. He referred to a response to a question that said essentially "you can get help when you need it."

"To me that defines community and that's probably the utmost cherished value that came through in these survey responses," he said. "So, keep that in mind ...there might be polarity and differing issues, but by and large, everyone is here because they cherish this place as a community, not just the surroundings.

Throughout the questions on descriptions of Lincoln and characteristics of Lincoln, there was an emphasis on the small town/ rural nature of the town, the sense of community, pride in the type of people who live here, as well as the beauty of the area and the value of the outdoors and recreation.

Concerns about Highway 200/Main Street also came up repeatedly, either as a top characteristic people would like to see changed, or due to safety concerns

'Nineteen percent said Highway 200 and main street is something that folks would like to see some change on," deYong said. "Second would be 'nothing.'"

DeYong noted that among the 'nothing' responses, there were about half a dozen people who consistently responded with only 'nothing,' while others who said nothing often included qualifiers regarding things they might be amenable to, such as an additional crosswalk.

"There's definitely a notable resistance to change in general that should be recognized."

The Highway 200 corridor was the most important safety concern people had for Lincoln, with speed topping worries related to driving on main street and walking, cycling or skating in Lincoln. Improved highway safety and appearance are among the topmost concerns among all Lincoln business owners, behind trails for area connectivity. Among the 11 downtown business owners who filled out the survey, speed control or traffic calming and OHV safety on main street were the top two concerns about downtown revitalization.

It's also clear there isn't support for drastic changes to Lincoln's identity. Most people want to retain the small town/rural identity it currently has, although there is interest in improving Lincolns identity as a tourist or recreation hub and for increased business and amenities.

Tourism and recreation came in "hard and heavy" as the biggest opportunity for Lincolns economy, which a majority of respondents said is stagnant.

"That's not an outstanding place to be, but if you're focused on not rapidly changing that's kind of a good place to be," deYong said. There is kind of some opportunity for a little bit of growth and a little bit of improvement, but there's not going to be this sweeping drive for change."

Given Lincolns location amid national forest and its past economic base centered on natural resources, deYong said it isn't surprising that Government is seen as the largest roadblock to Lincoln's economic development by 23 percent of the respondents.

"But duly noted here next would be mindset," he said. "I think that's sort of the resistance against change ... we're talking about there. Folks just don't want to see that amount of change come into town.

Community came to the forefront again when it comes to buy-in for future planning or development, but that buy in doesn't necessarily mean money. While a clear majority of the respondents are willing to volunteer for collaborative community improvements if they have time, most are unwilling to contribute to them financially. For many it's a matter of disposable income, for others it depends on the benefit to the community or whether a project is community driven and focused.

The additional analysis also didn't change the "hard no" when it comes to incorporation or any sort of taxes to finance projects. Instead, volunteer labor, community fundraising and grants are seen as better options.

While there is general satisfaction with the past volunteer led projects, the survey also revealed that volunteer burnout, poor organization and lack of outreach are seen as the top reasons for past project failures.

"There's a call from the community to embrace community more and have that momentum from the community," deYong said.

The survey response presentation slides can be found at https://drive.google.com/file/d/1sRV5myshZbxNrKXUaf0IAdDlpbR2mPRG/view?usp=sharing

 

Reader Comments(0)