Town of Gypsum 2022 Community Survey

Magellan Strategies is pleased to present the topline results of an online survey of 467 adult residents in the Town of Gypsum, Colorado. The interviews were conducted from September 7th to 21st , 2022.

Residents of Gypsum generally rated their quality of life quite positively, expressing strong satisfaction with the town as a place to live, raise a family, and as an overall community. However, dining and restaurant options stood out as a significant weak point, receiving overwhelmingly poor ratings. Residents were also lukewarm about Gypsum’s appeal as a place to work, start a business, or retire.

When evaluating specific community characteristics, residents rated recreational opportunities and walkability favorably, though they expressed more mixed feelings about bicycle infrastructure and social connectedness. Traffic flow received middling marks, and housing availability was seen as a clear shortcoming, with a large majority rating it poorly.

Satisfaction with town services was broadly high across most categories. Street maintenance, park landscaping, trash service, community events, and utility billing all earned strong approval. Services like municipal court, land use planning, and economic development efforts were rated lower, though this was partly due to a high share of residents having no opinion on those more specialized functions.

When asked to prioritize the town budget, residents overwhelmingly placed public infrastructure improvements — including roadway expansion, bike paths, and sidewalks — at the top of the list. Roadway maintenance and police services followed as secondary priorities, while trash service and building permits ranked at the bottom.

On the topic of growth and development, residents felt that retail and commercial development had been far too slow over the past five years, while opinions on residential growth were more divided. In terms of land use priorities, recreational amenities, water conservation, parks and open space, and maintaining small-town character all ranked as highly important to residents.

Public safety sentiment was strongly positive, with the vast majority of residents reporting they felt safe living in Gypsum. The police department received solid approval ratings overall, though speeding and ATV or dirt bike misuse in inappropriate areas emerged as the most commonly cited safety concerns in neighborhoods.

Residents relied primarily on the Vail Daily, Facebook, and word of mouth to stay informed about town news. Library usage was moderate, with a majority of residents or their families using the Gypsum branch. Most residents felt the town offered the right number of events, though a notable share believed more events would be welcome. The mosquito mitigation program enjoyed broad support, even among those who were not particularly familiar with it.