LOCAL AUTHORITY GOVERNANCE MODEL: THE CASE OF CITY OF PARMA "MASTERTOWN"

During the last decades, the role and the power of local authorities in their relation with the citizens has changed. The key role of decision-making started to be shared with territorial stakeholders to include competences... [ view full abstract ]

During the last decades, the role and the power of local authorities in their relation with the citizens has changed. The key role of decision-making started to be shared with territorial stakeholders to include competences and resources that local authority did not have (1,2,3).
International literature described this process as a transition from government model to a governance model (4,5,6). Local authorities included citizens and other players into different forms of shared-decisions, giving them not only a passive role into decision-making process but transferring to them part of the power to decide7. A lot of difference tools (Public Private Partnership (8,9), Project Financing,...) and purposes (urban renewal, territorial marketing,…) are developed to improve more and more this relationship. We saw many experiences all around the world with different models and goals (10,11,12,1,14,15).
We present the experience of Parma, 200.000 inhabitants Italian municipality, where a project called “MasterTown” has been started, involving territorial stakeholders (University, firms, citizens) in identification and planning of urban renewal. Aim of MasterTown is to share resources and competences among stakeholders in order to focus local government activities on strategic themes crucial to the local community.
Which are innovative features and key success factors of MasterTown?
Actors involved in MasterTown project will be interviewed to recreate the aim of the process: from Municipality needs to stakeholders’ interests to the development of the projects.
Results show that local policies should focus to:
- Sharing competences
- Involving citizens
- Finding alternative financial resources
- Assessing social outcome
This research is part of Public Governance and Public Private Partnership studies. It contributes to literature development presenting a case study of the City of Parma. Even if it is a local experience, the results could be useful to policy-makers interested in developing a renewal process aimed to satisfy the needs of their territorial stakeholders.