Overall, Nags Head fares well in town survey  

By Mark Jurkowitz | Outer Banks Voice on November 2, 2023

Over-occupancy of vacation rentals and lack of affordable quality housing seen as problems

Presenting the results of the Town of Nags Head 2023 Community Survey at the Nov. 1 Nags Head Board of Commissioners meeting, Town Manager Andy Garman summed up the results this way: “We’re not perfect, but overall the responses are favorable.”

The survey was mailed to 3,000 randomly selected residents and homeowners starting in July 2023. It provided the opportunity for respondents to “rate the quality of quality of life in the Town of Nags Head as well as the quality of service delivery and overall performance of local government,” according to the language in the executive summary of the survey.

In total, 1,074 surveys were completed, yielding a solid response rate of 36%. In addition, a link to an online open-participation survey was publicized by the Town through various channels. A total of 62 open participation surveys were completed. Garman told the Nags Head Commissioners that the survey questionnaire contained close to 60 questions.

Here are some of the interesting findings from the results.

• The town got very solid grades on some key questions. In all, 90% of the respondents rated the quality of services provided by Nags Head as either excellent (30%) or good (60%). In addition, a combined 86% rated the ease of access to Nags Head services as either excellent (29%) or good (57%). Only slightly fewer (82%) were positive about the overall direction the town is moving in—divided between 20% who said the direction was excellent and the 62% who characterized it as good.
• The results were still positive but more mixed when respondents were asked to rate the overall value they receive in town services and programs for the taxes, charges and fees they pay. About six in ten (62%) rated that value as excellent (15%) or good (47%). A little less than four-in-ten (38%) graded that value as fair (31%) or poor (7%).
• Respondents were also asked to assess both the importance of certain functions and priorities in the preservation and enhancement of Nags Head as well as evaluate how well the town has performed that function. The smallest gap between the two ratings came on the issue of providing public beach access—with 90% saying that it was important and 89% saying the town had been successful at it—as well as providing sidewalks and paths (85% said it was important and 84% rated it successful.) The largest gap was pretty conspicuous. Fully 93% of the respondents rated regulating development and controlling density as an important function. But only about half (51%) said the town had been successful at it.
• Asked to identify which issues are a problem in Nags Head, one issue stood out. Four out of five respondents, (80%) said over-occupancy of vacation rentals was a problem, with 40% strongly agreeing with that and 40% somewhat agreeing. Coming in second on the list of problem issues was residential light spillover/glare onto adjacent properties, with a total of two-thirds of the respondents (67%) either strongly agreeing (27%) or somewhat agreeing (40%).
• Addressing safety problems in Nags, the top problem, according to the survey results, is traffic speeding, with 65% identifying it as either a major problem (27%) or a moderate problem (38%). Right behind was drugs, with 63% seeing it as either a major problem (28%) or a minor problem (35%). The safety problem of least concern is violent crime, with only one-in-ten respondents (10%) identifying it as either a major or moderate problem.
• Those who took the survey were asked to evaluate the status of building issues and housing options in Nags Head. Between roughly half and three-quarters of them expressed positive assessments about the physical condition of residential buildings in the town, the physical condition of commercial buildings and the variety of housing options. What gets the lowest rating, by far, is the availability of affordable quality housing. Only about one-in five (19%) offered positive assessments on that issue—with 4% saying excellent and 15% saying good.

To view the full survey report see Microsoft Word – 2023 NAGS HEAD SURVEY -JULY 19 (nagsheadnc.gov)

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