Appendix A: SURVEY OF STUDY AREA BUSINESSES



This is a copy of the survey instrument administered in person to the businesses on Springfield and South Orange Avenues from Bergen Street to 20th Street in Newark. The survey is in two parts. The first part, page one, is the section on the physical inventory, which was completed solely by the survey takers observations. The second part was administered as an in-person interview with an owner or manager of the establishment.

Survey Taker _______________________Day/Date__________Time___________

Corinthian Housing Development Corporation
Survey of Study Area Businesses

Section 1: Initial Review from Outside

  1. Code/Survey #:________
  2. Street #:__________
  3. Street Name:___________________________________
  4. Company Name:________________________________
  5. Land use:
    1. Vacant land
    2. parking lot
    3. single/ two family
    4. multi-family
    5. mixed use
    6. commercial/retail
    7. vacant building
    8. warehouse
    9. auto service/storage
    10. Public institution
    11. Private institution
  6. Type of Business:

    1)restaurant 2) fast food 3)convenience/food store

    4) dry cleaner/ Laundromat 5) Apparel/shoe store 6) Household good or service

    7) Medical related services 8) Social services 9) Professional services

    10) Auto repairs/sales/gas station 11) Manufacturing 12) Churches

    13) Salon/barber 14) Travel/phone center 15) Financial/check cashing

    16) Bar/liquor store 17) other____________________
  7. Building Condition: 1) good 2) fair 3) poor 4) bad
  8. Street Condition: 1) good 2) fair 3) poor 4) bad
  • Crime Prevention: 1) bars 2) lighting 3) alarm 4) fencing

    5) other________ 6) more than 1 7) 3 or more

    Survey Taker _______________________Day/Date__________Time___________

    Name of Business_________________________________Code________

    Section 2: Inventory Questions for Business Owner/Contact Person:

    Hi, my name is ____, I am conducting an interview of businesses for Corinthian Housing. We are trying to gather a list of neighborhood businesses as well as find out what types of needs you might have. This information will be used to provide future support to area businesses and all information is the confidential property of Corinthian Housing.

    1)What is your name?:__________________________________________

    • 2) Are you the owner? : 1) owner 2) employee 3) manager

    3) If not business owner, name of owner:___________________________________

    4) If you are speaking to the owner, DO NOT ASK FILL IN YOURSELF: Race of owner:

    1) Caucasian 2) African-American 3) Hispanic 4) Asian 5) Other

    5) What is the telephone #?:_______________________________________

    6) Does the owner live:

    1) neighborhood 2) elsewhere in Newark 3) other within 15 blocks

    7) How many years have you been in business at this location?:

    1) 1 year or less 2) 2-5 years

    3) 6-10 years 4) 11-20 years

    5) more than 20 years

    8) Do you own or rent this building? 1) own 2) rent

    9) How many employees are there?:

    1) zero 2) 1 to 5 3) 6 to 10

    4) 11 to 25 5) more than 25

    10) How many employees live within 15 blocks of this business?

    1) zero 2) 1-3 3) 4-10

    4) 11-25 5) more than 25

    11) Where are the majority of your suppliers located?

    1) neighborhood 2) Newark 3) other (within 15 blocks)

    12) Where are the majority of your customers located?

    1) neighborhood 2) Newark 3) other (within 15 blocks)

    If you are interviewing the owner, continue on Owner Survey, if not leave the survey and an envelope for owner to complete.

    Corinthian Housing Development Corporation

    Survey of Study Area Businesses

    Section 3: Business Information/Owner’s Survey ( Code/Survey #:           )

    (If owner is not available at time of survey, this section will be left behind for business owner.)

    Dear Business Owner,

    This survey is part of a project that Corinthian Housing and Project Community of Rutgers University are conducting. We are trying to understand the current state of businesses in this area and ways we can improve the area to better meet the needs of businesses. Please complete the application as soon as possible and send it in the enclosed envelope or drop it off at Corinthian Housing before Friday, April 4. After we receive your survey, Corinthian will deliver a copy of the business owner’s resource guide at the end of the month. We appreciate your cooperation.

    Sincerely,

    Gerald Bishop

    Executive Director, Corinthian Housing

    Section A: Business Status_________________________________________________

    13) Is your business currently: 1) growing 2) stable 3) declining

    14) Do you plan on expanding your business in the next five years?

    1) yes 2) no 3) do not know

    15) Has your business benefited from the recent housing developments built by Corinthian Housing?

    1) yes 2) no 3) don’t know

    Section B: Assistance______________________________________________________

    16) Are you aware of business assistance programs for your business? 1) yes 2) no

    17) Do you or have you in the past used a business assistance program? 1) yes 2) no

    18) If yes, what program(s)_________________________________________________________

    Section C: Labor_________________________________________________________

    19) Is finding well-prepared employees 1) very easy 2) easy 3) difficult 4) very difficult?

    Code #:_________

    Section C: Labor, continued________________________________________________

    20) If it is difficult, why?

    1) poor math skills 2) poor reading skills 3) poor communication skills

    4) did not arrive on time 5) child care issues 6) lack of transportation

    7) don’t know where to advertise 8) other______________________

    21) Where do you advertise for employees?

    1) city newspaper 2) cultural/community newspaper

    3) billboards 4) word of mouth

    5) job placement service 6) other______________________

    Section D: Financial/Insurance______________________________________________

    22) Is obtaining financial support: 1) very easy 2) easy 3) difficult 4) very difficult

    23) If you have had trouble getting financing in the past, was it because:

    1) you do not have enough insurance coverage 2) adverse credit 3) no credit history

    4) don’t know 5) other

    24) If there was a bank in the neighborhood, would you use this bank?

    1) yes 2) no 3) maybe

    25) What type of banking services do you use for this business?

    1) business checking account 2) savings account 3) mortgage

    4) other loans 5) payroll services 6) other____________________

    26) Is finding insurance

    1) very easy 2) easy 3) difficult 4) very difficult

    Section E: Crime_______________________________________________________

    27) Has this business ever been the victim of a major crime?:

    1) yes 2) no

    28) If yes, what type? (circle all that apply)

    1) armed robbery 2) vandalism 3) assault

    4) shoplifting 5) break-in 6) other

    Code #:____________

    Section F: Future Involvement______________________________________________

    29) Are you a member of a merchant organization? 1) yes 2) no

    1. If yes, please name__________________________________________________________________

    31) Would you be interested in joining a merchant association?: 1) yes 2) no 3) maybe

    32) Of this list of improvements which do you feel would benefit your business the most? (circle the top 2)

    1) Increased access to capital 2) More parking 3) A merchants association

    4) More transportation on this street 5) Special improvement district 6) Accounting/inventory assistance

    7) Other___________________________________________

    33) Of this list of improvements which do you feel would benefit the neighborhood around your business the most? (circle the top 2)

    1)More Housing 2) More police patrols 3) Improved city services, street cleaning, garbage pick up

    4) More street trees 5) More street lighting

    6) Other___________________________________________

    Thank your for your cooperation! Please send in your survey right away.

     

    Dear Business Owner,

    We would like to thank you for taking the time to complete this survey. If you have any questions regarding the survey or our research, please feel free to contact, David A. Lewis, at Rutgers University whose address and telephone number is listed below. A local community contact my be reached at Corinthian House Development Corporation, the sponsor of this project.

    Sincerely,

    Corinthian House and Project Community.

    Rutgers University Corinthian Housing Development Corp.

    Center for Urban Policy Research 595 South Tenth Avenue

    Project Community Newark, New Jersey 07103

    33 Livingston Avenue, Suite Phone: (201) 624-0111

    New Brunswick, New Jersey 08901 Fax: (201) 623-2060

    Attention: David A. Lewis

    Phone: (908) 932-4101 ext. 686


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