Community Development as a Public Sector Agenda

Felice D. Perlmutter, University of Pennsylvania
Ram A. Cnaan, University of Pennsylvania

Article comments

Copyright Haworth Press. Reprinted from Journal of Community Practice, Volume 6, Issue 4, 1999, pages 57-77.
The authors assert their right to include this material in the ScholarlyCommons@Penn.

Abstract

This paper documents how one Department of Recreation in a large city underwent a planned change effort which transformed some 200 site managers into active community organizers. Based on the philosophy of a very dynamic new commissioner (a former community organizer), city employees enhanced local civic participation and forged a partnership between the public and private sectors as well as with local residents. The paper presents the guiding philosophy, implementation steps, an assessment of the impact of the change, and a discussion of the potential of such a process which can be adopted nationwide.