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City Service Ratings: <br /> Eighty-five percent rated police services as "excellent" or"good,"while eighty-two percent felt <br /> the same way about"fire protection." Seventy-two percent awarded the Elk River City Library <br /> high ratings. Sixty-seven percent posted "excellent" or"good" ratings on animal control, sixty- <br /> six percent did so for drainage and flood control, and sixty-four percent felt similarly about snow <br /> plowing. Sixty percent gave "excellent" or"good"ratings for sewers and water; fifty eight <br /> percent did so for street lighting; and, forty-eight percent felt the maintenance and repair of city <br /> streets was "excellent" or"good." <br /> Since the 1989 study, ratings of city services had changed in both directions. Favorable ratings <br /> on the maintenance and repair of city streets dropped nineteen percent; high ratings on snow <br /> plowing dropped five percent; and, positive evaluations of the Library declined by an <br /> insignificant two percent. Favorable evaluations of street lighting increased three percent, while <br /> police services rose three percent and fire protection, by one percent. The change in opinions <br /> about street maintenance were in line with most communities across the State of Minnesota. <br /> Public Safety: <br /> Fifty-four percent reported direct contact with the Elk River Police Department during the past <br /> three years. <br /> Thirty-five percent reported their greatest public safety concern was "juvenile issues, such as <br /> curfews, underage drinking, and smoking." Twenty-one percent felt it was "property crime," <br /> while twenty percent saw it as "violent crime." Seventeen percent thought"traffic safety" was <br /> key. <br /> A solid ninety-one percent favored the Elk River Police Department continuing to provide DARE <br /> training in the local schools. <br /> Sixty-four percent favored in concept the construction of a pedestrian bridge over Highway 169 <br /> near School Street. But, support dropped to forty-eight percent if a tax increase were required to <br /> fund its construction. <br /> Elk River Community Center: <br /> When asked to suggest facilities for inclusion in a community center, twenty-seven percent <br /> mentioned a swimming pool. Only four percent mentioned this amenity in the 1989 study. A <br /> teen center was posted by eighteen percent, up seven percent since the 1989 study. A fitness <br /> center was key to eleven percent. Smaller numbers would include meeting rooms, a senior <br /> Page 5 <br />