The Village of Oswego hosted the popular Wine of the Fox event on the City Hall campus. (Village of Oswego photo)

Oswego residents seem to really like where they live.

That’s the bottom line result from a community survey conducted last October and presented to the Village Board earlier this month.

A total of 527 residents completed the survey, which measured views on a  variety of community  issues, including public safety, village services and overall quality of life.

Nearly 90 percent of respondents in the random sampling rated the village as an “excellent” or “good” place to live.

“We really appreciate the feedback from our residents,” Village President Ryan Kauffman said in a statement. “The survey results will help the Village Board and staff focus on which projects need more focus and funding, as well as areas where the Village excels.”

Key findings found that 89 percent of residents indicated the Oswego as an “excellent” or “good” place to live. This metric increased by 0.07 percent since 2018 and is well above the U.S. average of 48.5 percent and regional average of 49.4 percent.

Ninety percent of respondents said the Village is an “excellent” or “good” place to raise children, up 1.2 percent since 2018, and 31.8 percent higher than the regional average of 57.7 percent, and 28.1 percent higher than the regional average of 61.4 percent.

The overall feeling of safety in the Village is 85 percent, up 2 percent since 2018, and far above the national and regional averages of 66 percent and 64.9 percent, respectively.

Eighty-one percent are satisfied with the overall quality of police services, up 2 percent since 2018, and far above U.S. and regional averages of 53 percent and 57 percent.

The survey also indicated that 79 percent are satisfied with the overall appearance of the Village, up 1.3 percent since 2018 and far above U.S. and regional averages of 55 percent and 56 percent.

More than 73 percent respondents are satisfied with the quality of customer service from Village employees which is well above national and regional averages of 39.4 percent and 42 percent and up 2.3 percent since 2018,

Positive results were tallied on services from Public Works including water service and pressure, snow removal, streetlights and brush and leaf collection. Most Public Works ratings continue to be above national and regional averages.

The results defined predominant areas for improvement including traffic flow and congestion, maintenance of streets and sidewalks, quality of new development, availability of affordable housing and lack of transportation options.

ETC sent the survey by mail to a random sample of residents, with completion by 527 residents.

The company also performed surveys in 2016 and 2018 and the 2023 survey report compares the results from Oswego in 2018, as well as national and regional data.

These results will help the Village Board and staff to focus on improving existing programs and services, as well as develop strategic plans for the Oswego community.

To view all 2023 survey data below visit oswegoil.org/survey for results from 2018 and 2016.