ERIN – The Town of Erin has completed its 2026 budget citizen survey.
Between June 27 and Sept. 3 the town received a total of 230 responses, double last year’s total.
According to the results, road maintenance (84 per cent), emergency services (74%) and parks and recreation (54%) are the top three priorities for respondents.
Of the 242 respondents who gave their place of residence, 48% reside in the village of Erin, 17% reside in Hillsburgh, 25% were marked rural and 9% were divided between Orton, Ospringe, Ballinafad, Cedar Valley, Brisbane and Crewson’s Corners.
Those 45 and older made up 69% of surveys respondents, while those 18 to 44 account for 31%.
Asked how they would rate their quality of life in the Town of Erin, 19% responded excellent, 57% responded good, 21% responded fair/average and 3% responded poor.
Aside from the three areas listed previously, other areas of interest included municipal water services (41%), environmental initiatives (31%), bylaw enforcement (33%), and economic development/downtown areas (39%).
Respondents were invited to add comments after completing the survey. Comments range from concerns over taxation to requests for swimming pools and better roads.
“Spend tax revenue like it’s yours. Less consultants and less waste,” stated one response.
“We need a swimming pool in Erin. Right now we have to go to Orangeville as that is the closest pool,” stated another.
The majority of comments received criticized the amount of construction and the quality of local roads.
“It currently feels like the Town of Erin no longer cares what the longtime residents think about the [town]. You are pushing through large-scale residential projects which are taking away the small-town feel of community that we love,” said one commenter.
“Find resources to get the trucks off Main St.,” added another.
An overview of the survey results was presented to council on Sept. 25 and despite having more responses than last year, some councillors raised concerns about survey participation.
“How can we get more engagement,” said councillor Bridget Ryan. “We are looking at [13,000 to 14,000] residents now.”
“You’re actually up against a worldwide phenomenon right now; survey participation is dropping,” said senior communications officer Chris Vernon.
“It’s dropping for two reasons: voter fatigue and apathy.”
Vernon added the overuse of surveys in today’s world, as well as the feeling that one’s voice doesn’t matter, has led many to opt out of community input surveys.
“I don’t think there’s any surprises from the budget survey,” said councillor Cathy Aylard.
“Better roads, you know, they’re somewhat satisfied with the services; hasn’t changed so much from last year.”
She added, “I think the most important job that we can do collectively as council and staff, once we grind through all the budget and come up with a budget we can live with for next year, [is] really telling our community what they’re going to get for their tax dollars.”
A full breakdown of the survey can be found on the town’s website in the Sept. 25 regular council meeting agenda.
