Village residents more receptive to 2nd survey

Second time’s a charm.

After being shut out in its first attempt to get community input on a village branding strategy, Fredonia’s Economic Development Committee’s second effort went much better, garnering 40 responses.

Committee Chairman T.J. Meyers-Jansky called the results “promising.”

The committee’s first try in August involved getting people to attend brainstorming sessions, for which no one registered.

The second try was to include surveys in October water bills that were mailed to about 500 customers.

Meyers-Jansky said another survey will be sent out in the December water bill.

“One of the things we were pleased about was how consistent their responses were and the things they like about Fredonia,” she said.

Asked what they liked most about Fredonia, more than half said being a small, close-knit community and they also considered that as making Fredonia unique.

Asked what they first look for when visiting another community, 30 of the 40 respondents said they look for a place that is clean and well-kept.

Meyers-Jansky said she hopes to include students from Ozaukee High School in the project.

“Part of what we’re doing for economic development is building for the future, and it’s important to get input from high school kids because their perspective on life is so different,” she said. “We hope to get a few hundred responses from the high school.”