Ideological, Structural, and Organizational Dilemmas of Neighborhood Organizations in International Perspective

Abstract

This chapter presents a comparative analysis of the espoused ideologies and goals, organizational structure, administrative processes, and organizational properties of neighborhood organizations and community councils in various cities throughout the world. These organizations emerged as a result of initiatives by neighborhood residents to voice their demands and articulate their needs to the governmental and municipal establishment. At the same time, some neighborhood organizations were founded by municipal authorities in order to create channels of communication between the municipal agencies and neighborhood residents. As such, the neighborhood organizations functioned as vehicles for providing services on the one hand, and enabled the residents to voice their demands in an organized way through formal mechanisms on the other hand. In this way, the municipal authorities could avoid negotiating separately with different interest groups. In many countries, the municipal institutions have encouraged the development of one central mediating entity that represents the demands and needs of the local residents. The existence of this entity in the neighborhood may reduce bureaucracy and red tape, thus preventing duplication of programs and activities that may generate inefficient utilization of human and material resources.