Town of Morinville officials hope enough residents will fill out their census forms online this month that they won’t have to have pollsters risk spreading the coronavirus door-to-door.
The town put out a reminder April 7 that its 2020 census would be underway from April 1 to June 30. The poll aims to survey some 3,950 households to create a detailed look at the size and shape of Morinville’s population, which will be used to plan programs and infrastructure.
Town residents received unique PIN numbers in the mail last month that they can use to fill out their census forms online.
Census co-ordinator Melodie Steele said the town had an excellent response rate during the first week of the census, especially from seniors, with some 925 responses as of April 8.
The town’s reminder urged people to fill out their census forms online before the May 15 deadline and strongly implied that, unlike in previous years, the town might not send out enumerators to visit those who do not complete their forms online.
That’s because the town’s not sure if federal and provincial authorities will let them do door-to-door polling during the current COVID-19 outbreak, Steele explained. Past surveys saw about 10 enumerators visit about 300 households that did not fill in their census forms online, and doing so this time could potentially expose people to the coronavirus.
“We’re trying to do everything we can to do (the census) in a fully electronic way to keep everyone safe,” Steele said, adding the town might extend the online census deadline if there aren’t enough responses.
To encourage people to do the census online, anyone who fills out their form will be entered into a draw for $150 worth of gift certificates, Steele said. You can also do it over the phone by calling the town office.
While most of the census questions deal with demographics, the census also includes a question on whether or not residents would be interested in a transit service in Morinville. Steele said this is related to the town’s involvement in the proposed regional transit commission, and that this question would help inform the town’s decision on whether or not to stick with the group. The town is also working to set up a pilot bus service with St. Albert later this fall.
Steele said the town is also running a guess-the-population contest as part of the census. Whoever gets closest to the town’s actual head count without going over will win $150 in gift certificates. Steele refused to give any hints as to the town’s probable population, but noted it was 9,893 back in 2016.
The online census runs from April 1 to May 15. Residents can fill out the census at www.morinville.ca/census or by calling 780-939-4361.
