3.1. Innovations Introduced by Częstochowa City Commune, Poland
In the purview of the research and analyses conducted, it was agreed that the innovations included new enterprises, actions, and solutions, including those of organizational character. In addition, it was assumed that the enterprises, actions, and solutions were characterized by novelty in the cases when they were implemented no later than five years prior to the research. It was also assumed that they were characterized by novelty when they were new in the framework of the activity of the Częstochowa City Commune in the scope of public housing resource management. Innovations implemented by the Częstochowa City Commune were aimed at the improvement of the comfort and quality of life of the people inhabiting the public housing resource. Based on all the assumptions presented above, it was determined that the most important innovations related to public housing resource management by Częstochowa City Commune were:
An apartment exchange digital browser;
An electronic housing exchange finder;
A “Work for rent” program;
Actions increasing the safety of the youth and elderly;
The installation of carbon monoxide and natural gas detectors in the apartments located in multi-family buildings;
The establishment of green spaces on the property surrounding multi-family buildings;
The organization of so-called Neighbor Days, holiday events, and other activities for children living in the resource;
The participation of the tenants in the management of the Commune’s housing resource.
An apartment exchange program was introduced by the Ordinance of the Mayor of Częstochowa to facilitate the repayment of debt resulting from the use of the apartments belonging to the public housing resource of the Commune. The program was aimed at people in a difficult material situation who were potentially facing eviction. It included an opportunity to swap the apartment used by the debtor if the said apartment was not adequately suited to their needs, namely, if it had an excessively large area. This way, debtor could exchange the apartment they currently used for one of a smaller area, which, as a rule, resulted in the decrease of the rent and other utility bills, thereby allowing the adjustments of such burdens to the financial capabilities of the debtor. It should also be mentioned that the other party (often a family including several people) also benefitted from this program by obtaining a larger apartment that was better suited to the larger number of tenants. After the program was met with success, the Commune implemented a digital apartment exchange browser application (available at the address:
http://mieszkania.zgm-tbs.czest.pl/ accessed on 28 April 2023). This application allows people interested in such an exchange to find an apartment matching their need by using such search criteria as: living area, number of rooms, floor, or type of heating.
The aforementioned Ordinance issued by the Major of Częstochowa [
46] also allowed for the settlement of the debt resulting from the use of the apartment in the form of in-kind benefit. This form of benefit consisted of the repayment of the specified part of debt. This program was named “Work for rent”. People interested in this sort of benefit contacted the administrator of the properties owned by the Częstochowa City Commune to determine the possibility of working the debt off. When the criteria of the program participation were met, a participant was assigned specific works to complete, such as the delivery of correspondence sent by the administrator to other tenants, janitorial tasks, the supervision of the designated properties, or small repairs made in the buildings belonging to the housing resource of the City of Częstochowa, such as, e.g., interior painting. Participant were not remunerated for such tasks, and the total amount of ‘earned’ remuneration was deducted from the participant’s debt. It needs to be mentioned, however, that this program was addressed to people in a difficult financial situation.
In the recent years, the Częstochowa City Commune also undertook numerous actions dedicated to the safety of young and elderly people. These actions specifically included information campaigns related to protection against criminal activities, including obtaining financial resources under false pretenses, which often use the ‘grandson in need’ or ‘helpful policeman’ confidence methods. Importantly, such actions also included issues related to the cybersecurity of children, adolescents, and seniors. Campaigns primarily consisted of the publication of informational brochures and the creation and dissemination of short movie clips. It should also be noted that the security of the residents of the resource belonging to the Częstochowa City Commune was a subject of academic conferences organized in cooperation with academic circles, including scientists from the Częstochowa University of Technology and various other institutions, including, but not limited to, police or charity funds and associations. For example, during the conference organized in 2019, the following subjects were discussed: “Selected threats to popular operational systems and devices” by Kaspersky Poland, “How to speak to children about cybersecurity, so the will listen”, and “I say stop cyberbullying”. The subject of security was also touched upon during a cycle of conferences organized by the City of Częstochowa in cooperation with the academic community and other institutions under the name “Smart City”. In the course of such conferences, other topics were brought up related not only to security, but also to public real estate resource management, including, e.g., financial instruments needed to conduct operations involving real estate, such as repairs and modernizations. Actions aimed at the improvement of security and safety also helped to support the health and life of the residents, such the case of the installation of carbon monoxide and natural gas sensors in the apartments located in multi-family buildings.
The commune introduced innovations in the area of the spatial development of the areas managed by the commune itself, and it took numerous actions aimed at the increase in the green areas surrounding the residential buildings by creating greenery piazzas equipped with various devices and garden furniture that residents could use for recreation.
There were also other innovative activities taken in relation to the technical state of the managed buildings, especially to maintain them, which translated to increased safety for the resource’s residents. In relation to this scope, it is necessary to mention that the company used various innovative construction materials and technologies. In this context, we also need to mention that the company made attempts to provide its employees with professional knowledge concerning the innovative solutions in the field of construction. To achieve this, the manager, with cooperation from the Częstochowa University of Technology, commissioned the latter to organize the postgraduate studies “Exploitation and modernization of the residential buildings with Building Information Modeling elements” (BMI—companies involved in the design, construction, and management of a building work on a single project model. They had continuous access to information about the project, its costs, and schedules. BMI allowed various variants and schemes to be tested in the virtual world in order to select the optimal one. This made it possible to increase efficiency and reduce errors that arose throughout the building process. Digital design data, combined with innovative parametric information modeling technology, offers significant advantages over traditional design and construction methods.) The knowledge obtained by the employees in the course of studies included, e.g., the parameters of the energy efficiency of the buildings, the implementation of sustainable construction principles, the deep thermal refurbishment of the buildings, the systemic management of the energy in the real estate, and the implementation of anti-smog programs.
In discussing the innovations implemented by the City of Częstochowa, we would also need to highlight actions aimed at the reinforcement of the social ties and the promotion of the social integration, including the integration of the elderly with other residents of a given real estate or neighboring buildings. These actions consisted chiefly of the organization of events such as the ‘Neighbour Day’ addressed at the residents of the commune. It is also important that the participants of these actions are not only the residents of the public housing, but also the members of the housing cooperatives. Thus, the owners of the private apartments (separate) located in the buildings where the Częstochowa City Commune owns public apartments in also participated. Thus, the events organized were aimed at the integration of the tenants of the public apartments with the people owning the apartments in the same buildings. Other special or vacation events were also organized and addressed to the children inhabiting the resource belonging to the commune, e.g., visits of Santa Claus who delivered holiday gifts. In discussing the innovative solutions implemented by the Częstochowa City Commune, it is necessary to stress the activities that strived to facilitate the participation of the residents in the process of public resource management. Częstochowa implements various forms allowing residents to exert their influence on the process of management of the real estates they inhabit, including the decision-making process. An example of such forms are social consultancy and discussions with the residents concerning the issues related to resource management.
3.2. Assessment of the Influence of the Innovations Implemented by the Management of the Housing Resource of the City of Częstochowa on the Improvements in the Quality of Life of the Residents
The respondents were first asked whether the digital apartment exchange browser positively influenced the living conditions of the city of Częstochowa. The analysis indicated that the residents largely agreed that the launch of the digital apartment exchange browser positively influenced their living conditions or responded that they did not have any opinion related to that topic. The percentage distributions of the response are presented in
Figure 3.
Residents of Częstochowa indicated that the introduction of the apartment exchange digital browser was a significant event. A total of 46.4% (204 individuals) approved the positive influence of the browser on the improvement of the quality of life. Then, to explore the issues related to the apartment exchange digital browser, respondents were asked which of the aforementioned aspects of the launch of the apartment exchange digital browser were evaluated best. Analysis indicated that the most commonly indicated aspects were the adjustment of the apartment living area to the requirements of the tenant, the adjustment of the rent payments to the tenants’ abilities, the facilitation of the repayments of rent debt, and the lack of opinion on the scope of the subject, with the least common being the counteraction to social exclusion and other aspects. Percentage distributions of the responses are shown in
Figure 4.
The next question was related to the issue of whether the implementation of the “Work for rent” program positively influenced the life conditions of the residents of Częstochowa. Analysis of the results showed that, for the majority of respondents, the implementation of the “Work for rent” program positively influenced their living conditions. Percentage distributions of the responses are shown in
Figure 5.
Verification of the research results indicated that the residents of the resource considered the “Work for rent” program as the most important innovative solution. It was named so by 261 respondents, i.e., 58.8% of all 444 respondents. This result was analyzed in depth by asking the residents which aspects of the “Work for rent” program were, according to them, the most important. The responses indicated by the respondents suggested that the most important aspects of the said program were the facilitation of the repayment of rent debt through the in-kind benefits (work) and the ability to get out of the debt spiral. The least frequent responses pointed to the professional activation of the residents and other aspects. Percentage distributions of the responses are shown in
Figure 6.
The next question concerned the implementation of the actions aimed at the increased safety of the elderly and whether these positively influenced the life conditions of the residents. The results showed that the majority of the respondents (51.6%) agreed that introduction of such actions positively influenced their life conditions. Percentage distributions of the responses are shown in
Figure 7.
The subsequent question concerned whether the implementation of the actions aimed at the increased safety of children and adolescents positively influenced the life conditions of the residents. The results showed that the majority of the respondents (52.5%) agreed that introduction of such actions positively influenced their life conditions. Percentage distributions of the responses are shown in
Figure 8.
In the next question, the research participants were asked whether the installation of carbon monoxide detectors and natural gas detectors in the public housing positively influenced the life conditions of the residents. The analysis of the responses indicated that the majority of the respondents (69.8%) agreed that introduction of such actions positively influenced their life conditions. Percentage distributions of the responses are shown in
Figure 9.
The subsequent question asked whether the implementation of the actions aimed at the establishment of the green spaces in the area surrounding the public residential buildings positively influenced the life conditions of the residents. The responses showed that the majority of the respondents reported that the establishment of green spaces surrounding their public residential buildings positively influenced their life conditions. Percentage distributions of the responses are shown in
Figure 10.
The next question that was analyzed was whether the implementation of actions aimed at the organization of holidays and festivities for children living in the housing resource positively influenced the life conditions of the residents. The responses showed that the majority of the respondents (56.1%) said that such actions positively influenced their life conditions, 9.2% stated that such actions did not influence their conditions, and 34.7% did not have an opinion concerning that matter. Percentage distributions of the responses are shown in
Figure 11.
The following question asked the participants whether organization of the so-called “Neighbour Days” positively influenced the life conditions of the residents. As it turned out, half of the respondents said that this action positively influenced their life conditions. Percentage distributions of the responses are shown in
Figure 12.
The next question to analyze was the one about whether, according to the respondents, the implementation of the Tenants’ Social Participation program positively influenced the life conditions of the residents. Returned responses allowed us to determine that similarly large groups of respondents said that this action positively influenced their life conditions or that they had no opinion on that matter. Percentage distributions of the responses are shown in
Figure 13.
The next question that was analyzed was which of the innovative solutions introduced by Czestochowa influenced the improvement of the residents’ living conditions to the largest degree. Analysis of the responses showed that the most commonly indicated solutions were the “Work for rent” program, the installation of carbon monoxide and natural gas detectors in the public housing apartments, and the apartment exchange digital browser. The program of Tenant’s Social Participation in the management of the commune’s housing resource and organization of the holidays or festivities for children were selected least often (
Figure 14).
Then, it was checked in which area of housing resource management, according to the residents, should the Częstochowa City Commune develop solutions that have already been implemented and introduce new innovations. Analysis of the responses showed that the areas of safety and security and the calculation and collection of liabilities were most commonly indicated, while participation and integration of the residents were the areas that wer selected least often. Percentage distributions of the responses are shown in
Figure 15.
One of the last questions asked was whether, in the area surrounding the respondents’ place of residence, there were green areas with garden equipment that allowed residents to spend leisure time there. Analysis of the responses indicated that a small majority of the residents had such areas in the vicinity of their place of residence. Percentage distributions of the responses are shown in
Figure 16.
An additional analysis related to the three innovations considered to be the most important by the residents, i.e., being recognized as such by the highest number of survey participants—namely, the “Work for rent” program, the installation of the carbon monoxide and natural gas detectors in multi-family residential buildings, and the apartment exchange digital browser— showed that the “Work for rent” program was considered important by a similar percentage of respondents in each age group.
As for the age groups of the respondents who considered the installation of the carbon monoxide and natural gas detectors in multi-family residential buildings as important, this was recognized by the respondents in the following age groups: 18–24 years, 25–39 years, and 40–59 years (between 31% and 36% of the respondents in the respective groups). Additionally, this particular action was recognized as important by a much larger portion of the age group of people over 60, where it was indicated by 47% of respondents.
When it comes to the apartment exchange digital browser, it needs to be pointed out that this innovation was recognized as important. In the age group of 18–24 years, more than 50% of respondents stated that this innovation was important and significantly improved living conditions of the public housing resources. In turn, survey participants aged 60 and more stated that the browser was not that important, as approx. 25% of respondents aged 60 and more did not see the need to use the apartment exchange digital browser. The smallest percentage of the people considering the latter innovation can be seen in the age groups of 60 and older. Among 115 respondents belonging to this group, only 24.35% considered said the innovation was necessary and able to improve their lives. In addition, in this particular age group, a large percentage of respondents considered their skills related to computer and mobile devices as low or very low.
Since older people consider their digital competences to be substandard, they did not use the discussed application. In reference to the education of the respondents, the “Work for rent” program and the installation of the carbon monoxide and natural gas detectors were especially recognized by people with secondary and technical education (36%/37%). The apartment exchange digital browser was considered important among people with a tertiary education (39%).
The data analysis also included the distribution of the quantitative variables. Do to so, basic descriptive statistics were calculated, along with the Shapiro–Wilk test to check the normality of the distribution. The results of the analysis are presented in
Table 4.
The results of the Shapiro–Wilk test in the case of all entered variables was proven to be statistically significant, which means that their distributions significantly deviated from normal distributions. It should be noted, however, that the skewness of the distribution for these variables did not exceed the absolute value of two, which means that their distributions were asymmetric, albeit very slightly so. Thus, it is rational to conduct the analysis based on the parametric tests, as long as all their specifications are met. The next step of the analysis was checking whether there was a relation between the socio-demographic variables, i.e., gender, age and education, and the satisfaction of the respondents with the apartment and their opinions concerning the areas of activity of the Częstochowa City Commune. To achieve that, a Student’s
t-test for the independent samples was conducted. The results of the test are presented in the
Table 5.
Analysis showed a statistically significant gender difference in the area of the satisfaction with the apartment, quality of space, type of action, and type of the expected results. It was observed that women expressed significantly lower levels of satisfaction with the apartment and statistically better opinions of the type of action and type of expected results in comparison to men.
It was further examined whether there was a relationship between the age and education of the respondents and the study variables. For this purpose, a Spearman’s rho correlation analysis was performed. The results are shown in
Table 6.
The analysis showed statistically significant positive relationships between education and satisfaction with the quality of space, opinion on undertaking cooperation, type of action, and type of expected effects. This means that, as the education of the respondents increased, their satisfaction with the quality of space increased, as well as their evaluation of undertaking cooperation, type of action, and type of expected effects on the municipality’s activities. In addition, there was no significant relationship between the age of the respondents and the variables studied.
The next stage of the analysis was to see if there was a relationship between satisfaction with housing and satisfaction with the quality of the space and the undertaking of cooperation, local responsibility, type of action, type of expected outcomes. For this purpose, a Pearson’s r correlation analysis was performed. The results are shown in
Table 7.
The results obtained indicated statistically significant positive relationships between satisfaction with the quality of space and the evaluation of all areas of the municipality’s activities, as well as between satisfaction with the dwelling and the opinion on local responsibility and type of expected effects. This means that, as satisfaction with the dwelling increased, the evaluation of the municipality’s activities in the area of local responsibility and the type of expected effects increased, and the evaluation of the municipality’s activities in all its areas increased as satisfaction with the quality of space increased.
Next, it was examined whether there were relationships between the areas of municipal activity in the dimensions of undertaking cooperation, local responsibility, type of action, and type of expected effects. For this purpose, a Pearson’s r correlation analysis was performed. The results are shown in
Table 8.
Performed analysis showed statistically significant, positive relationships between all analyzed variable pairs. It became evident that, with the increasing assessment of one aspect of the action of the municipality, the assessment of other analyzed aspects of action of the municipality also increased. It is also worth noting that all observed relations were strong (r > 0.5).
The final stage of the analysis was to test whether satisfaction with housing and space quality could be predicted on the basis of knowledge of the assessment of undertaking cooperation, local responsibility, type of action, and type of expected outcomes. For this purpose, two linear regression analyses were performed, where, in the first one, the explained variable was the level of satisfaction with housing, while, in the second one, the explained variable was the level of satisfaction with space quality. The results of the analyses are presented in
Table 9.
The analysis showed that both tested models were statistically significant. It turned out that the model for satisfaction with housing predicted 4% of the variance, while the model for satisfaction with space quality explained 11% of the variance in this variable.
In the case of the model predicting satisfaction with the dwelling, a statistically significant predictor turned out to be the assessment of the type of effects expected. The value of the standardized Beta coefficient indicated that satisfaction with the dwelling increased as the rating of expected outcomes increased.
For the model predicting satisfaction with quality of space, the statistically significant predictors turned out to be ratings of local responsibility and type of activity. The standardized Beta coefficient values indicated that, as the level of the indicated predictors increased, the satisfaction with space quality increased.
In summary of the performed analyses, it could be observed that the introduction of innovations is accepted by the residents and is perceived by them as contributing to the quality of life. It has also been noted that the largest number of research participants indicated that the implementation of the actions aimed at the creation of green areas surrounding the multi-family residential buildings and the “Work for rent” program influenced their life in a positive way. Residents of the public resources owned by Częstochowa City Commune are satisfied with their apartments, quality of space, and the effect actions taken by the Commune.