The results of Sedona’s 2024 National Community Survey indicate that residents’ views of Sedona itself remain strongly positive in many respects, while the degree to which they view municipal government positively remains at previously low levels and participation in municipal affairs continues to decline.

A total of 2,704 households received invitations by mail to complete the survey and 551 responded. Ninety percent of respondents were age 55 or older, 9% were between the ages of 35 and 54 and 1% were between the ages of 18 and 34.

Ninety-four percent of survey respondents ranked their feeling of safety in Sedona positively — good or excellent, as opposed to fair or poor — while 82% rated their quality of life positively and 76% had a positive view of the community’s reputation, down from 82% in 2018. However, only 66% would recommend living in Sedona, down from 80% in 2018, while 15% do not plan to remain in Sedona for the next five years.

Rankings for government functions were similar to 2022’s results, with 34% of respondents rating municipal government positively, against 31% fair and 35% poor; 32% approving of the direction Sedona is taking; and 36% thinking the government is acting in the best interests of the community.

Fifty-two percent thought they were getting good or excellent value for their taxes, and 45% had a positive ranking for the city’s honesty.

On questions related to specific city functions or departments, 78% of respondents viewed city parks positively, but at the same time, 84% never use the Sedona Dog Park, 83% never use the Sedona Community Pool and 81% have never attended an event at the Sedona Posse Grounds Hub.

Street lighting and sidewalk maintenance received positive rankings from 74% and 73% of respondents, respectively, compared to street cleaning at 68% and snow removal at 63%. Forty-one percent rated code enforcement positively, down from 46% in 2018; 37% had a positive view of economic development services, down from 43% in 2022; and 27% had a positive view of the planning and zoning process, down from 34% in 2018. Favorable views of the city’s public spaces fell to 46% from 67% in 2018.

Only 38% percent of respondents attended a public meeting in the last year, down from 47% in 2022, and only 32% contacted their elected officials to make their views known, down from 42% in 2022. Viewership of public meetings fell from 39% to 32%. In spite of competitive elections and both local issues and state propositions on the ballot during the last two local elections in 2022 and 2024, the number of respondents who campaigned for an issue or candidate fell from 41% in 2018 to 32% in 2024.

Seventy percent of respondents expressed a generally positive view of Sedona’s economic health, but responses to individual topics related to economic health were more strongly negative. Forty-two percent rated the variety of businesses in town positively, compared to 39% who had a positive view of shopping opportunities; 30% expressed a positive view of employment opportunities. A mere 10% rated Sedona’s cost of living positively, down from 21% in 2018, and 27% expected economic conditions to affect their income in the next six months. Forty-nine percent said tourism should play less of an economic role, while 45% said its economic role should remain the same.

The quality of Sedona’s transport system was rated good or excellent by 41% of those surveyed. Walking was rated most positively for ease of travel, at 57%, followed by bikes at 46%, cars at 32% and public transport at 30%; only 18% ranked traffic flow positively. Only 14% of respondents had used public transport, while 48% had carpooled and 67% had walked or biked instead of driving.

Housing and planning were seen as Sedona’s weakest areas by respondents. A mere 8% ranked the availability of affordable housing in the community positively, down from 15% in 2018, and 11% had a positive view of the variety of housing options, down from 24% in 2018. Overall, 56% of respondents ranked community design negatively; from 2018 to 2024, positive views of neighborhood design fell from 48% to 37%, of the quality of new development from 39% to 31% and of the planning of residential growth from 32% to 25%.

Sedona’s utility services were highly ranked by those surveyed, with garbage, sewer and power services all receiving positive rankings from more than 80% of respondents. The Sedona Public Library — rebranded as Community Library Sedona in December — received a 94% positive assessment. An exception to the trend was ratings for the quality of recycling services, which declined from 80% positive in 2018 to 61% in 2024. Positive views of the availability of affordable health care fell from 36% in 2018 to 16%, and 71% of respondents rated the quality of local health services as fair or poor — but 81% nevertheless rated their own health as good or excellent.

Rankings for opportunities to participate in the arts showed sharp improvement, with 65% rating those positively, up from 42% in 2018. Positive views of the Sedona’s K-12 education opportunities, on the other hand, declined from 39% in 2018 to 24%; those who had a positive assessment of Sedona as a place to raise children declined from 50% in 2018 to 28%. However, 72% rated it positively as a place to retire.

The survey also indicated that 65% of respondents would strongly support and 20% somewhat support a new crossing over Oak Creek.

To view the full survey results, click here.