2026 Budget Public Opinion Survey Result Highlights

The City of Elliot Lake is pleased to share a few highlights from a recent independent public-opinion survey conducted by Mainstreet Research, one of Canada’s leading and most accurate polling firms regarding the Rogers Arena project. The survey utilized randomized phone sampling of Elliot Lake residents and Census-based weighting to ensure that its findings accurately reflect the broader population of Elliot Lake.

Random sampling was used for this survey as it is an important element of statistically valid polling because it gives each resident an equal chance of being selected. This sample is then adjusted and weighted to match the City’s demographics by age, gender, and education to help ensure that the results are accurately representative and can be used to reliably understand community perspectives.  

Survey highlights:

• Over 70% of residents that were surveyed expressed that the rehabilitation of the Rogers Arena was either a high or very high priority in their mind. Support was particularly strong among residents under the age of 50, where priority levels exceeded 80% for those who provided an opinion.

• Additionally, 73% of those surveyed expressed their support for multi-level government funding for the arena project.

• When asked about how to address budget pressures the most commonly selected approach among those surveyed was a mix of both taxes and user fees. This option received more support than choosing either higher taxes alone or higher user fees alone.

The City of Elliot Lake will use these findings as well as others present in the survey data, as part of the information considered during development of the 2026 municipal budget.

If you would like to review the full Public Opinion and Survey Results the complete report can be viewed in the attachments of the December 1 Ad Hoc Budget Committee meeting on the City’s Website at this link