OSHKOSH (NBC 26) — As the results of Oshkosh's Citizen Survey were made available, residents shared thoughts on what the city does well, and what it does poorly, with limited affordable housing and poor street conditions emerging as areas of particular concern.
The survey found that only 15% of respondents said that the city does a good job with street repair. That number is down six percentage points from 2022 and well below the national benchmark, according to survey company, Polco.
Oshkosh resident Cory Lee Collins says that the city's side streets especially need work.
“I know they’re doing pretty good as far as trying to get the main roads, but the backroads over here on the north side of town need to be worked on a little bit," he said.
Oshkosh City Manager Mark Rohloff says the city government is aware of the poor street conditions and is working to fix the problem.
“We are doing a campaign to educate people about where street projects are, where a street, in particular, might be showing up in the next five to 10 years," said Rohloff, "so even though we may not have the street done next year, we do have a plan for it.”
The numbers also showed only 28% of those surveyed were pleased with the availability of affordable housing in Oshkosh, down 41% from 2021. Although Polco says that number is in line with the nationwide benchmark, Carol Klabune says Oshkosh seniors are still feeling the squeeze
“Senior housing that is affordable is getting very hard to find…" she said, "I know our facility has some 40 people on a waiting list… of course, some of those people will not even live long enough to get in.”
Rohloff says the survey showed there's still plenty to be proud of though, as public safety and the arts got very favorable feedback.
“Our library continues to get very high marks… 80 something percent of the people say they feel safe in their neighborhood…" he said, "they rate our police, fire, and ambulance services very high…so those are very good things."
