SILVER SPRING, MD – To help capture – and plan for – the changing face of Montgomery County, planners with the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission’s Research and Technology Center will survey some 30,000 randomly selected households during the second week of May.
The 2008 Census Update Survey provides the Montgomery County Planning Board with a detailed picture of the local population. The mailed survey will reach one in 12 households to collect basic demographic data such as age, race, education, employment and housing characteristics. The interim survey fills in the blanks between U.S. Census Bureau reports, issued just once a decade.
As Montgomery County continues to change rapidly, the survey results will inform planners about underlying population characteristics, such as suburbanization patterns as well as the needs of aging baby boomers and new immigrant households. For example, survey responses will help planners suggest appropriate service levels for transportation, schools, housing, social services, libraries and parks. Montgomery County government agencies, as well as private and nonprofit organizations, also rely on the population and housing data compiled from the Census Update Survey.
Planners urge everyone receiving the forms to complete the survey, which should only take minutes. Cooperation from residents is essential to ensure the statistical reliability of the findings. A prompt reply will save time and expense by eliminating the need for follow-up contact.
The household survey serves to update the federal census conducted in 2000. May marks the third Census Update Survey this decade, and the 2008 survey is the tenth household poll taken since 1974.
For the first time, households chosen to participate in the survey have the option to complete the form online, which is both quicker and saves M-NCPPC the expense of return postage and data entry.
Information gathered through the Census Update Survey is strictly confidential. Researchers use responses only for tabulating statistical summaries for large groups or geographic areas.
Results from the 2005 Census Update Survey are available at www.mcfacts.org. Survey results are the foundation of the Montgomery County Planning Department’s forecasts of population, household, and transportation, and provide a demographic snapshot for a community’s master plan. Other examples of how planners have used information from past household surveys include:
• Forecasting needs for parks, libraries and police stations based on population size and planning area characteristics
• Helping the Montgomery County Public Schools’ staff estimate the number of school-age children in each school district
• Anticipating and planning for government programs such as services for the elderly and children, and affordable housing by describing the characteristics of population groups.
• Updating federal census data that is used to obtain various types of federal and state grants.
• Determining the need for new retail within specific trade areas
• Facilitating transportation planning by describing current means of travel, commuting patterns, and other indicators of the transportation impacts of increases in housing and jobs.