The Roles of Neighborhood Organizations in Urban Service Delivery

It is important that students of urban life develop an understanding of the dynamics by which community associations influence the quality and quantity of public services available in their neighborhoods. Employing collective goods theory to analyze the activities of neighborhood organizations suggests that their efforts to influence public services may usefully be conceptualized in terms of three primary roles. Community associations act as consumers’ cooperatives seeking to secure public services from other organizations, as alternative producers of desired services, and as organizers of citizens’ coproductive efforts whereby service levels are determined through the joint efforts of neighborhood residents and public service personnel. The three roles differ significantly in the effectiveness and efficiency with which citizens can employ them to secure services, and require different resources from the community associations. The design of governmental arrangements for service delivery are closely related to the availability and effectiveness of the three strategies and must be considered as part of any effort to enhance citizens’, role in public service delivery.