On March 25, Northlake published the results of the 2025 survey that asks citizens about what they like about the Town and what they hope to see improved.
This is the second year the Town has conducted a survey. A total of 1,280 residents completed a survey this year.
The survey asked participants whether they would refer Northlake to a friend, whether Northlake was going in the right or wrong direction and, the importance of amenities and how the Town compares to other cities.
Some key takeaways from the survey include:
- Most residents say Northlake is much better or somewhat better than other cities.
- The most important issues concerning residents are making sure roads can handle growth, maintaining streets and managing current traffic by widening streets.
- Residents rated road maintenance, new restaurants and new businesses as the most important new investments.
- The Town was perceived as safe and having a high quality of life, but fell short in value of services in relation to property taxes.
Most participants were from areas with big developments off of I-35W. Area No. 2’s participation dropped from 40 to 29 percent since 2024. Area No. 3’s participation rose from 43 to 52 percent since 2024, likely meaning Area No. 3’s population has risen since last year.
Pecan Square had the most participants this year with 500 responses. Next was Harvest with 253 and Canyon Falls with 170.
Most people responding to the survey, 52 percent, have lived in Northlake for 1-4 years. 27 percent of responses came from residents that have lived in the Town for 5-9 years and 14 percent have lived in the Town for less than one year.
Most participants were between the ages of 30-49 years old (55 percent).
What was most important?
The importance of road maintenance, widening and management was popular throughout the survey. It was listed as one of the most important issues with 67 percent of participants listing it as their most important issue. That is up from 57 percent last year.
Ensuring public streets can support growth was most important on 60 percent of surveys this year, up from 44 percent last year. Traffic congestion management increased from 35 percent to 52 percents, as well.
In the extra comments, 46 percent of them talked about traffic congestion and road infrastructure concerns.
Referring a friend
When asked if a participant would refer a friend to live in Northlake, 34 percent said they were extremely likely to do so. 40 percent said they were likely to refer. 18 percent said they likely would not and 8 percent were adamant about not referring someone.
This lines up about the same as in 2024.
Most participants that said they were likely to refer a friend, 66, have lived in Northlake for less than a year. The majority of participants, those that have lived in the Town for 1-4 years (669), had 56 responses say they would refer a friend.
Of the 33 responses that have lived in the Town for more than 15 years, 15 said they would refer a friend.
Is Northlake going in the right direction?
When asked if Northlake was trending in the right direction, most new residents were favorable. The percentage of responses saying the Town is trending in the wrong direction increases when participants live in the Town for longer.
76 percent of the participants said Northlake was heading in the right direction this year, down from 78 percent in 2024. 51 percent said the Town has improved in the last three years, compared to 56 percent the year before.
Areas No. 1 and No. 4 found issue with the direction of the Town. 40 percent of Area 1 said Northlake was trending in the wrong direction and 46 percent of Area 4 said so. Area 1 had 222 participants and Area 4 had 13.
Based on how long participants have lived in the Town, 71 percent of residents that have lived there for 20 or more years said it was going in the wrong directions. They make up 14 of the responses.
Of the 175 responses from residents that have lived in Northlake for less than a year, 93 percent said the Town is trending in the right direction.
What is working for the Town?
The positive takeaways from the survey say participants appreciate the quiet and rural feel, the development and how the Town is community and family-oriented. The fourth-best category was safety and low crime rates.
One of the most important attributes of Northlake is its good cost of living, according to the survey. The percentage of responses that said it was most important rose from 28 to 33 percent since last year.
Participants agreed the most important amenities are trail systems, open spaces in the Town and hosting festivals, concerts and events.
The Town Council will discuss its findings at its meeting on April 10.
