Trust the county? Yes! No! Maybe!

A few weeks back I wrote about the county sending a survey out to a host of organizations as part of a “branding” process.

The county is paying a consultant a paltry sum — $8,000 — to come up with a communications strategy plan. This survey plays a role, though I’m a little unclear what that role is.

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As mentioned, the response was rather, um, minimal. Under 20. So, from a data standpoint, it’s somewhat useless. Can’t really get any measure of consistency from such a tiny sample.

I poked fun at the survey questions, and I won’t go over that again. But I will zero in on one question:

“Do Citrus County residents trust Citrus County government?”

Now. That is a good question.

Subjective, of course. But it certainly gets to the meat of what we’re doing here, right?

Citrus County commissioners seek your trust. They want to oversee a government structure that both anticipates and responds well to citizens’ needs. 

I reviewed 14 survey responses. Here are the answers to “Do Citrus County residents trust Citrus County government?”

• “No! Public squabbles among BOCC members…too much revisiting same topics, with same negative results, example, road repairs.”
• “I really don’t know, I have mixed emotions about this.”
• “Citizens don’t trust government at any level. The complete list of reasons is beyond the scope of this response but ignorance, lack of empathy, political bad actors and fear are huge drivers of government distrust.”
• “I think two thirds do.”
• “I would say no, but I think the perception is changing for the better.”
• “I believe most residents are cautiously optimistic about their trust of Citrus County government based on perception derived from news media.”
• “Most of them do; it’s only a handful that complain and we get a lot of compliments from residents.”
• “Probably not, because it is just the nature of people. Also, social media compounds the problem tremendously because of the falsehoods they put out.”
• “Residents want the paradise that’s offered here protected and Citrus County government through planning and zoning does not do enough to encourage density and growth in the cities. No one wants to see every piece of agriculture next to a roadway developed into homes and shopping malls.”
• “I would say that in general, yes. We are pretty consistent with our own policies. We push to correct things that are unfair but are out of our control. We let people speak their mind (just be nice!) When we have to make the tough decisions, they are defensible and justifiable. The polarization of politics means that not everyone is happy. But we are at least fair.”
• “Most do – but a vocal minority make the most negative noise.”
• “Tricky question — I really want to emphatically say yes, but I don't think so. Government doesn't move at the pace that people feel like it should — and then other times, people think decisions are made too quickly. It's a difficult balance.”
• “Many people have a distrust of government in general in the current political climate. Quite often they react automatically based on this assumption even when it is not accurate. Sometimes, but not always, local media affirms and reinforces these false assumptions and attitudes of mistrust.”
• “The majority — No. Our residents, like those throughout this great nation, are trained to not trust government.”

There you have it. As surveys go, this one is kind of a dud. But we encourage opinions here at Just Wright Citrus and that’s why it has my attention.

So, it’s Tuesday and here’s your question, Citrus County: Do you trust Citrus County government?

Not so easy to answer.

— Totally unrelated…I was in Ozello on Monday and grabbed today’s photo of high tide at the boat ramp. While there, drivers of two cars pulled in, rolled their windows down and asked me why the tide was so high.

How do you answer that question? I live on a lake. We don’t have tides.

I wish I came up with something pithy. “Well,” I could have said smugly, “the moon is in the Seventh House. That might have something to do with it.”

Instead, I shrugged and simply said, “Are you familiar with Ozello?”

Both nodded in understanding and drove off.

Gotta love this county.

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