Concerns We Raised in 2021

By Tim Schaefer (Sunnyside Resident)

The City of Calgary (CoC) provides summary level data on 311 requests from its website calgary.ca. Let’s take a look at what the data tells us about the requests made in Hillhurst Sunnyside (HS) last year. 

In 2021, there were a total of 7,019 requests made in the 311 system for the HS area.  That works out to an average of 20 requests submitted every day!  This quantity of requests puts HS in the top quartile of neighbourhoods for the number of 311 requests submitted per resident.  Great job everyone, let's keep it up because concerns that are not raised are less likely to be addressed. 

What sort of requests did residents submit in 2021 for HS? 

From a privacy perspective, specific details of 311 requests such as the name of the reporter and description of request are not provided by the CoC.  However, information that is shared includes the neighbourhood, assigned City Agency, and assigned category for the request.  This information provides good insight about the types of requests submitted and in turn what kinds of issues and opportunities are being reported in our neighbourhood relating to CoC services.

Agencies 

From the 44 different CoC Agencies listed in all 2021 requests citywide, there were 31 agencies assigned to the requests made for the HS area.  The top 10 Agencies by request in HS were: 

  1. Community Standards - 1,621 

  2. Roads - 1,316 

  3. Building Services - 738 

  4. Waste & Recycling - 649 

  5. Parks - 627 

  6. Water Services - 603 

  7. Finance - 532 

  8. Transit - 299 

  9. Customer Service - 193 

  10. Fire Dept - 163 

Categories 

From the 492 different categories used in requests logged citywide in 2021, there were 275 categories assigned to the requests made for HS. The top 10 Categories by request in HS were: 

  1. Graffiti Concern - 585 

  2. Waste Cart Management - 307 

  3. Parks Tree Concern - 225 

  4. Property Tax Inquiry - 220 

  5. Snow & Ice on Sidewalk - 215 

  6. TIPP Application - 196 

  7. Request for contact - 157 

  8. Road sign missing/damage - 132 

  9. Building Inspection - 127 

  10. Encampment Concern - 121 

Looking at these top 10 results, the main theme is our interest in the state of public space in our neighbourhood (graffiti, trees, snow on sidewalk, damaged signs & encampments).  This demonstrates how much we care about our public spaces and how we want to keep them safe for everyone.   

What is also interesting is how HS results compare with the top 10 in the Rest of Calgary (ROC).  The top 10 agencies for the ROC are identical to HS with the exception of Building Services being at the top for ROC (up from 3rd) and Finance being in 4th for ROC (up from 7th).  This makes sense as a more established neighbourhood like HS would typically have less development occurring and have residents that are more familiar with the property tax and available payment program options. 

Comparing HS categories with the ROC, there are fewer similarities.  While tax, trees and building inspections are also top items for ROC, Graffiti drops to 7th and topics like Snow on Sidewalk, damaged signs, requests for contact and encampments don’t even show up in the top 10 for ROC. 

How do HS residents prefer to submit their 311 requests? 

In 2021, requests made for HS continue to show a preference for being called-in with 47% being made by phone. The 311 Smartphone App was used 22% of the time for HS requests which is better than the City average of only 14%.   

Photo: Calgary 311 Smartphone App screen 

If you haven’t downloaded the 311 App to your phone, you really should consider it.  The 311 App provides a fast and easy way to report non-urgent concerns to the City. It is particularly useful if you come upon an important concern while out in the neighbourhood such as a downed stop sign.  

Other great features of the App include the ability to quickly look up the status of requests you’ve submitted as well as the ability to view new requests that anyone has submitted (note: requestor info remains private and you can submit request anonymously from the App).  It even has a map option to see the locations for the latest requests. 

The HSCA encourages all Calgary residents to submit 311 service requests by any method and thanks you for your support of the community!