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Business
BUSINESS OBSERVER
Development, real estate + business news
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Survey results
Residents’ satisfaction on some local economic indicators lags behind other cities
JONATHAN SIMMONS
NEWS EDITOR
Locals’ assessment of Palm Coast as a place to work — and to find work — is improving, but remains below national benchmarks, according to local results of the National Citizen Survey.
“We see a steady increase in the vibrancy of downtown areas and an increase in Palm Coast as a place to work, employment opportunities, the quality of businesses and services, and economic development,” Lauren Johnston, the city’s chief of staff, said in a presentation at a March 8 City Council workshop, summarizing survey responses.
Palm Coast is one of approximately 600 communities around the country that uses the National Citizen Survey.
A total of 35% of local
CITIZEN SURVEY BASICS
2,700
Palm Coast households were selected to receive the National Citizen Survey: 1,200 people were sent a mailed questionnaire, while 1,500 were sent a postcard with a weblink.
people completed the survey, a response rate of 19% (the national average is 15%).
3,690
responses were received to the city’s “open” version of the survey, which anyone could take online and which, therefore, is not considered scientific — unlike the regular National Citizen Survey. Responses to the open survey largely mirrored those of the regular survey.
53%
of Citizen Survey respondents in Palm Coast were women, 62% of respondents were 55 years old or older, and 74% own their own home.
3%
of the survey items improved at least 7% (considered a statistically significant difference) in rating from 2019, while 20% of survey items decreased at least 7% in rating.
LOCALS RATE PALM COAST
35%
of respondents rated Palm Coast as a “good” or “excellent” place to work — up from 19% in 2015, but still much lower than national the benchmark.
60%
rated Palm Coast’s overall quality of business and services establishments as “good” or “excellent,” similar to the national benchmark and up from 47% in 2015.
30%
rated Palm Coast’s employment opportunities as “good” or “excellent,” up from 8% in 2015 but below the national benchmark.
44%
rated Palm Coast’s shopping opportunities as “good” or “excellent.” The rating is similar to the national benchmark.
respondents rated Palm Coast as a “good” or “excellent” place to work — up from 19% in 2015, but still much lower than national the benchmark: It leaves Palm Coast with a rank of 357 out of 373 communities that used that question. Similarly, 30% gave positive ratings to the city’s employment opportunities — a number that’s an improvement from 8% in 2015, but still leaves Palm Coast ranked 264
46%
rated Palm Coast’s cost of living as “good” or “excellent.” The rating is similar to the national benchmark.
60%
of respondents gave positive marks to the city’s quality of businesses and services.
44%
of respondents gave positive marks (“excellent” or “good”) to the city’s economic development (up by 1% from 2019, within the margin of error).
44%
of respondents gave positive marks to the city’s shopping opportunities (down 11% from 2019).
64%
rated Palm Coast’s overall economic health as “excellent” or “good,” up from 46% in 2015 and 50% in 2019, and similar to the national benchmark.
out of 327 communities.
However, 64% of respondents rated the city’s overall economic health positively, a rating that places Palm Coast in line with the national benchmarks and an improvement from 46% in 2015.
See the box above for more data on how Palm Coast locals rated the city on a range of economic and business-related issues.
BIZ BUZZ
WOODY’S BARB-Q RECOGNIZES FLAGLER FRANCHISE
As the classic Southern BBQ chain kicks off its 42nd year in Florida, Woody’s Bar-B-Q is recognizing Woody’s Bar-B-Q of Flagler, which was named Franchise of the Year for increased sales, proactivity in marketing and customer experience, positive feedback from patrons and more.
It is owned by Matt Crews and located at 99 Flagler Plaza Drive.
There are 15 Woody’s Bar-B-Q locations in the U.S., from Ponte Vedra, Florida, to Huntingdon, Pennsylvania.
Three Florida locations — Ponte Vedra Beach, Green Cove Springs and the original Woody’s Bar-B-Q on University Boulevard in Jacksonville — are corporate owned. The rest are franchises.
The Palm Coast-Flagler Regional Chamber of Commerce has launched the third and final phase of its Small Business Program, made possible by a grant from CareerSource Flagler Volusia.
The Flagler County Small Business Expo & Conference will be 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, March 26, in Central Park.
Flagler County businesses can secure a vendor space for free at www.FlaglerCountyBizExpo.com.
The main goal of the Expo is to connect consumers with Flagler County small businesses, according to Greg Blosé, president and CEO of the Palm Coast Flagler Regional Chamber. The public is welcome to attend this free event to discover and shop local small businesses.
There will be a live DJ, giveaways, food trucks, inflatable obstacle course for kids and more.
Courtesy photo Woody’s VP of Operations Jay Vail, owner of Woody’s Bar-B-Q of Flagler Beach and Franchisee of the Year Matt Crews, and President/COO Yolanda Mills-Mawman.
