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BACKGROUND <br /> The purpose of conducting this survey was to ascertain community opinion about key <br /> issues relating to the Civic Center/Library Master Plan. The survey was conducted by <br /> Fairbank, Maslin, Maullin, Metz & Associates - FM3, the same public opinion research <br /> and strategy consultants that have performed past community satisfaction surveys for <br /> the City. Six hundred and one interviews were conducted via phone between June 16 - <br /> 26, 2016 with Pleasanton voters likely to participate in the November 2016 election. <br /> The survey included questions about the general direction of the City, the preferred <br /> characteristics of the downtown area, general and specific concerns about the condition <br /> of the Civic Center structures, the size of the library, planned and potential changes to <br /> the land use plan for the Bernal property, components of a potential new civic center <br /> that are important to the community, the level of interest in relocation of the civic center <br /> and library or rebuilding on the existing site, and the level of support for various funding <br /> measures. <br /> Consideration of the future of the Civic Center and the Library involves three <br /> interconnected processes: the completion of the Civic Center/Library Master Plan, the <br /> completion of the Downtown Specific Plan and its conclusions regarding use of the <br /> existing civic center site, downtown parking, etc., and preparation of a financing plan. <br /> Once the Downtown Specific Plan process is completed, staff will take steps to bring <br /> forward a financing plan as appropriate based on the results of the specific plan <br /> deliberations, assuming continued support by the City Council. <br /> DISCUSSION <br /> The following summarizes the responses to survey questions in several categories. <br /> General Questions and Questions about Downtown Pleasanton <br /> The following is a summary of some of the answers to questions about the general <br /> direction of the City and some specific questions about the downtown. The survey found <br /> that 70% of residents believe that the City is generally headed in the right direction. <br /> When asked how often they visit various locations relating to this discussion, 80 percent <br /> of respondents said they visit downtown at least monthly, 38 percent said they visit the <br /> library at least monthly, and 24 percent say they visit the Bernal Property at least <br /> monthly. Respondents visit the Civic Center and the Police station much less frequently. <br /> When asked about statements that describe the downtown area, 96 percent said that <br /> downtown has a small-town feel, 70 percent said there is not enough parking <br /> downtown, and 64 percent said there are fewer shopping opportunities in downtown <br /> Pleasanton compared to neighboring cities. Fifty-one percent said that we could use <br /> more nightlife downtown. Sixty three percent disagreed with a statement that we have <br /> too few restaurants downtown and 75 percent did not support more housing downtown. <br /> Questions about the Condition of the existing Civic Center <br /> Forty five percent of respondents agreed that our Civic Center is rundown and outdated, <br /> while 28 percent disagreed with that statement. Forty two percent agreed that the <br /> library is overcrowded while 37 percent disagreed with that statement. Thirty nine <br /> Page 2 of 4 <br />