The Lisbon Development Committee members discuss the Market Analysis survey findings during a meeting on Wednesday evening Screenshot

The majority of Lisbon’s residents who participated in a recent survey said they lacked good housing options within the town and are looking for alternatives.

While 41% of the residents said that the town has fair housing options, 26% said the housing options are poor, 28% of residents feel it is good, a meager 3% residents said it is very good. Only 2% of residents say the housing options are excellent, according to the market analysis survey findings.

In addition, 23% of the residents said they would move out of their current home in the next five years, within or outside the town. While 25% of residents said they might consider moving, 52% said they would not move.

Among those who are likely to move, 32% cited high taxes as a major reason, 23% specifically cited lifestyle changes, 13% cited an increase or decrease in the number of people living in their home, 16% cited changes in household member’s physical conditions and 10% cited changes in fiscal condition.

The respondents feel that while they currently have a good walking experience in the town that makes them feel safe and comfortable, they have poor to fair options on the availability of the places they can live, recreate, and work at or near one location.

The survey was conducted in October to identify commercial development opportunities, housing needs, and recreational amenities that will benefit the community. In September, the town council awarded a bid to The Chesapeake Group, an economic analysis, and development firm, to conduct the survey.

A little over 500 households participated in the survey. A similar survey was conducted last year. However, some residents criticized it, as only 306 people completed it out of nearly 10,000 residents.

Howard Kohn, Lisbon’s town consultant, said that when a survey is conducted nationally, they rely on 500 to 1,000 households’ sample sizes.

“This is the survey of your community and given the scale difference, it is a great response,” said Kohn. “It took us a little while to get there, but it was a good response.”

The town’s economic and development director, Brett Richardson, said the survey reached the goal of 500 responses, and that goal is based on traditional polling.

The survey also found that 59% of the residents prefer grocery shopping outside Lisbon, while only 33% prefer shopping within the community.

“I think that is fairly understood in Lisbon,” said Richardson. “The per capita retail sales in Lisbon are below the state average for the number of dollars residents spend in their community. That illustrates that folks who live in Lisbon are spending their dollars largely outside of Lisbon.”

Richardson added that they want to recapture those dollars, create opportunities, and support businesses that enable Lisbon residents to spend their money in the community.

The information about the survey findings can be found at worumbo.org.