More than 1,300 people took CBJ’s new City Hall survey. Here’s how they responded.

As the City and Borough of Juneau considers the development of a new City Hall, the Engineering and Public Works Department conducted a community-wide survey from mid-October to mid-November looking for public input. The survey yielded more than 1,300 responses. Read the full report on the survey results here.

CBJ offices are currently spread across five facilities downtown with annual rental costs of about $750,000. CBJ is weighing options for a new City Hall with the aim of reducing long-term operating costs and improving service to the public. CBJ contracted with McKinley Research Group to help design and analyze the survey.

Key findings:

• About three-fourths (74%) of respondents said they are supportive or strongly supportive of developing a new City Hall instead of continuing to rent office space, while 18% said they are opposed or strongly opposed, and 9% don’t know.
• Of the two-thirds of respondents that recommended a location, the top suggestions were the old Walmart building (32%) and “Downtown” (27%).
• Respondents placed a high value on parking for the public and staff, with 73% rating it high priority.
• The highest construction priority was design for a long service life, with 73% of respondents rating it high priority, followed by high energy efficiency, deemed high priority by 65%.

Read the full report on the survey results here. Read comments from the survey here.

The Assembly Public Works & Facilities Committee (PWFC) will continue to work on planning for a new City Hall. The committee will review the sites recommended in the survey at the December 20 PWFC meeting. CBJ appreciates and thanks everyone who took the time to complete the survey.

For more information, contact Engineering/Public Works Director Katie Koester at 907-586-0800 or [email protected], or go to the new City Hall webpage.