Is Fort Worth on the right track? Here’s what voters are saying, according to poll
Jobs and the economy are the top priorities for Fort Worth voters, who think leadership is on the right track, according to a recent poll.
The poll found that job growth and the economy are tied with education for the biggest issues facing Fort Worth. Taxes fell to third place since a similar survey was done in 2019. Most voters, 57%, said the city is headed in the right direction, but the number has fallen from 62% in 2019.
While the number of people who strongly believe Fort Worth is headed in the right direction is up from 28% in 2019 to 33% this year, the number of people who strongly believe the city is moving the wrong direction jumped from 12% to 21%.
Karen Vermaire Fox, executive director of the Real Estate Council of Greater Fort Worth, said the shift may be related to the coronavirus pandemic and unrest around race relations and equity issues.
“We know these are major issues in Fort Worth right now,” she said.
Regarding COVID-19, more than half said they approve of the way Fort Worth’s leadership has handled the pandemic, but only 43% of Black voters agree.
Austin-based Perception Insight conducted the survey for the Real Estate Council of Greater Fort Worth in January, polling 400 registered voters with a margin of error of 4.9%. This is the second year the Real Estate Council has conducted a voter survey.
A large majority, 72%, of those polled said they support using city and county tax incentives to bring high paying jobs to Fort Worth. Those incentives should go to boosting small business, according to 84% of respondents. Sixty-seven percent said they would also support incentives for tech companies.
Fox said she thinks those results mean the city should focus on uplifting local entrepreneurs rather than luring a large company to Fort Worth. Fort Worth’s property tax base leans heavily on residential payers, which the city hopes to address by luring more business.
“Maybe we need to really pay attention to buy local, support local,” she said.
While a growing number of voters, 71%, said they approve of developments that mix commercial and residential, they’re split on how much should be set aside for affordable housing. The majority, 55%, oppose high density housing in neighborhoods, but there is support of high density housing if it’s aimed at a younger, more educated work force.
The poll shows widespread support for funding transportation projects through sales tax with roadways and mass transit being the top priorities. While 56% of respondents said they approve of using a half cent sales tax for transit programs, most were against a 50 cent monthly fee for street maintenance or transit service.
“We need a city council and mayor who are going to be forward thinking about transportation, forward thinking about housing,” Fox said.
This story was originally published March 22, 2021 at 5:06 PM.
