A September 2025 survey found most Salem residents satisfied with city services but deeply concerned about homelessness, public safety, housing affordability, and job opportunities.
Salem, OR. — Official Release: In September 2025, the City of Salem commissioned a Community Satisfaction Survey to assess residents’ satisfaction with City services and communications, gather opinions on the value and distribution of City resources and gauge residents’ sense of safety and livability.
More than two thirds of Salem residents report satisfaction with City services overall. Most residents are satisfied with fire and emergency services, street lighting, water services, parks and recreation and the library. Satisfaction with most key services in Salem has increased since 2022.
Homelessness and public safety are the most important issues for residents. Homelessness (43%) and public safety (19%) are the most important issues cited by residents for the City to address. The survey captured residents’ impressions of safety and livability, including:
- During the day, most residents feel safe in all parts of the city, and nearly all feel safe in their own neighborhoods. Daytime safety is high across all areas of the city.
- Residents have mixed feelings of safety at night. Most feel unsafe in north/northeast Salem and downtown at night.
- Residents rate the livability of their own neighborhoods the highest. South and West Salem are most positively rated.
- Nearly 9 in 10 residents visited downtown in the past month. Those who have visited feel a greater sense of safety downtown during the day and at night.
Areas for Improvement. The highest levels of dissatisfaction from survey respondents are around access to affordable housing, growing local job opportunities and City planning and development review. This decline in perception of job opportunities is consistent with negative economic sentiments nationally…