STEVENS POINT, Wis. (WSAU) – Stevens Point residents feel safe in their city, according to a new community safety survey.

The report, released last week to the city's police and fire commission, found that the overall perception of public safety was 4.2 with 5 as the highest score.

The survey found:

• Half of the nearly 500 respondents had witnessed or been a victim of criminal activity. But the survey found that the perception of crime was actually higher than the actual crime rate itself.
• 57 percent of respondents see police in their neighborhoods daily or weekly
• Men are somewhat more likely to generally feel safe in the city, especially at the university
• People younger than 44 are less satisfied with contacts they've had with public safety services

Commission administrative director Jeff Morris said the results show that police officers need to do a better job reaching out to younger residents.

Police will take the first steps toward doing that with a community listening session at Polito's Pizza February 28th at 7 p.m.