They are most satisfied with their residential area In the old town, Žirmūnai ir in New City residents of Vilnius, and the residents of Šeškinė, Pilaitė and Vilkpėdė have the most comments on the living environment. The answers provided by the residents of the capital allow us to grasp the specific reasons why they feel this way.
These results were revealed by a survey conducted by the market and public opinion research company "Spinter tyrimi" on behalf of the "Sustainable City Laboratory", which gathers the competences established by the "Darnu Group" for the creation of a sustainable environment. During it, the aim was to find out the opinion of the residents of the city of Vilnius regarding their satisfaction with their residential area and the best residential area Vilnius district perception by asking to answer questions detailing the advantages and disadvantages.
The old town stands out
During the investigation, it became clear that the satisfaction index of Old Town residents with their living environment during the survey reached 9,19 points out of a possible 10 and was more than 1,2 points higher than the general average of the townspeople. Taking the second place in the survey Žirmūnas scored an average of 8,51 points, and New town - 8,47 points.
The survey shows that, from a general perspective, the residents of Vilnius are quite satisfied with their living environment - the overall satisfaction with the city district in which they live is estimated at 7,96 points out of 10 possible.
Even the residents who were the least satisfied with their place of residence gave ratings between 7,38 and 7,52 points when evaluating various features of their neighborhoods.
"We can be happy that the people of Vilnius like to live in their beloved city and they enjoy its advantages and value them. However, if you look more closely, the numbers of the survey, which reveal the pain points or shortcomings of each district, also catch the eye", comments Sigita Survilaitė-Mekionienė, CEO of Darnu Group, one of the largest companies in the country that creates spaces for life, business and recreation, which established the "Sustainable City Laboratory".
According to her, the results of the survey show that the lack of parking spaces is an obstacle for all Vilnius residents, but the residents of most districts of the capital rate well the development of the infrastructure of their living environment, communication with other parts of the city and the offer of services.
"According to the survey data, the most satisfaction or dissatisfaction with one's district is determined by the development of its infrastructure and public spaces, the quality of communication with the center and other districts, as well as traffic jams or their absence and parking issues. The residents of Vilnius also identified safety and orderliness of the environment as important features of a quality residential area," says S. Survilaitė-Mekionienė.
Objective data for finding the best solutions
This is already the second project of the "Sustainable City Laboratory", which examines urban problems and gathers specialists from different fields for discussion, proposal and implementation of specific solutions to the refined problems.
According to S. Survilaitė-Mekionienė, the goal of this year's social initiative is to raise questions about what should be the urban planning, architecture, infrastructure and solutions of Vilnius, so that they contribute to a more positive well-being and life of residents or guests of the city, not limited to the current possibilities.
"In carrying out a survey of Vilnius residents' satisfaction with their districts, we sought to identify those areas of the capital where, objectively, quality urban solutions or simply greater attention to the concerns of local communities are lacking the most. At the same time, we wanted to capture in sufficient detail the problems that the citizens are most concerned about and to identify the features of a particular district that make their residents the most happy", notes S. Survilaitė-Mekionienė.
According to her, Vilnius is the fastest growing capital in the region, which has accumulated great potential for continuous improvement and progress. However, the energy of growth should be channeled thoughtfully, making decisions that would create a quality environment for living, working or relaxing throughout the city, giving priority to sustainable, long-term solutions.
For example, research data shows that even for Vilnius residents living in different districts of the capital, open spaces, natural elements and light create good emotions in their environment. And vice versa - the source of negative thoughts is congestion, darkness or simple disorder.
"Now, having objective data and seeing the clear priorities of the people of Vilnius, we will invite experts from various fields, scientists and heads of district communities to discuss together possible solutions that improve the quality of life where it is lacking," reveals S. Survilaitė-Mekionienė.
The residents of Old Town feel the best, but the dream district is Žvērynas
in 2019 1006 residents of the capital participated in the survey conducted by the market research company "Spinter tyrimi" in November.
83 percent of the respondents lived in apartment buildings, and 69 percent survey participants have been living in the same micro-district for more than five years. Of them, 38 percent they have not changed their place of residence for more than 15 years, so the majority of respondents are well aware of the problems in their districts.
It is also interesting that when asked which district of Vilnius they consider the best to live in, most of the respondents named Žvērynas. Zoo and Antakalnis rated the best in the survey due to its greenery and good communication and short distance from the center. However, according to satisfaction with their place of residence, the residents of Zvėryn took only the sixth position, leaving above those living in Naujamiestis, Žirmūnai, and Lazdynas when in Antakalni.
Based on the survey data, the "Sustainable City Laboratory" has created a detailed barometer of the mood of the residents of individual micro-districts of the city of Vilnius, a more detailed picture of which is planned to be presented to the public in the spring.
