I note with pleasure that the City is conducting a comprehensive survey about people’s attitudes as it considers an update to the Open Space and Recreation Plan. (Deadline, by the way, of 13 February.) This is a thoughtful and well constructed instrument.
Simple question: Why not do the same for people’s thoughts about what attributes and programs (and locations) they would desire for the Senior Center. That step has yet to be taken by the administration. Why aren’t the city councilors requesting it as part of their oversight responsibility?
There already was a detailed and big survey on desired “attributes and programs” of a new senior center, done within the last few years. It was undertaken before they began any planning for a possible building design or site selection. Talk to the Council on Aging or the Senior Services staff at City Hall if you want to find out more about the results of the survey.
@Bill – are the results of the survey available online anywhere? It would be good for them to be easily read by the public.
Yes, I have been provided with links to the survey results and responses so that I can post them here for you all:
Questionnaire results
https://newcal.projects.nv5.com/download/program_design/2018-12-04-NewCAL-Questionnaire-Analysis.pdf
Narrative:
https://newcal.projects.nv5.com/download/community-feedback/2019-01-07-NewCAL-Questionnaire-Narrative-Responses.pdf
I hope that helps.
– Councilor Humphrey
If I am correct there were 205 respondents to this survey. That seems like a pretty small number and from what I heard a lot of seniors were not aware of the survey. Now that the senior center is really front and center perhaps a new opportunity to respond to a survey would be a good idea.
Thanks Bill. It seems like a really badly constructed survey that was done in a somewhat incomprehensible way (speaking as a researcher).
Bill – I never received this survey so I’m wondering how the 205 people got one.
I think something like 3 responders requested a gym
Correction. 4% requested a gym
The cited survey was not widely circulated.
And the approach to the survey and its design were deeply flawed.
It short, the results presented are useless in assessing the needs and hopes of the 50-plus-year-old senior community. Please don’t give it any more credibility than it deserves.
Never seen this survey either, and despite a Newton sign on the header, the footer reads, “The Conway School”. Was this even sponsored by Newton?
Matt Lai asks: “Was this [open space and recreation survey] even sponsored by Newton?”
Yes. In addition to the link directly to the survey that Paul Levy included in the original post, there is also a link to the survey on the City’s website, at the page for the Open Space & Recreation Plan update:
http://www.newtonma.gov/gov/planning/lrplan/os/default.asp
The City has partnered with students from the Conway School for Landscape Design to help with updating our Open Space & Recreation Plan.
The survey that collected information on “attributes and programs” for NewCAL was conducted in 2018 by Steffian Bradley Architects the original firm hired by the city. As has been pointed out, the methodology, sample sizes, representative sampling, and the validity of the questions are all opaque. I don’t know if there was a clear statement of purpose for this survey.
Although the findings may be interesting about what different kinds of programs some people may want, there isn’t valid information about what a Senior Center for Newton could and should look like and who it serves. Before we talk about programs and spaces, we need an in-depth needs assessment to determine, first, what the true needs and wishes of Newton seniors from ages 50 – 100+ are and, second, how to respond to those defined needs.
This is not about programs or sizes of rooms. It is about what we value as a city and how to acknowledge the important position that we seniors have in the community. What could and should a Senior Center provide that is not on the existing lists of programming ideas? For example, what is the need for an Adult Day Health or Social Day facility; or for Senior Housing; or how to plan for the current and future needs of all of us aging residents? What do we really need to know to make Newton’s Senior Center a model of creative and innovative thinking?
Gabriel, since this is an official City of Newton survey of the Open Space and Recreation update, why after submitting answers does it ask if the survey taker wants to take it again? – What purpose is served by collecting multiple answers from the same resident?
Why aren’t any identifying measures used to limit survey takers to residents of newton and to one set of survey answers from one resident? Why is the question about which village the survey taker identify with included? Are the answers weighted differently.
What prompted the question if there is need for “Stronger legal protections for existing open spaces facing development pressure?” Are existing open spaces in Newton facing development pressure from any place other than the city of a Newton? What stronger legal protections could Newton take to preserve existing open spaces?