Regional Governance:
Beneficial or Detrimental?
The City Club of Central Oregon will welcome Michael Jordan, Chief Operating Officer for Portland Metro as guest speaker on April 17, 2008. This Forum will focus on local and regional governance systems and what we can learn from the regional approach which Metro brings to the Portland Metropolitan area.
The Metro charter outlines responsibilities for far reaching aspects of a growing region that sustain quality of life, and attend to issues that are difficult to address at the local level because they cross local boundaries.
The City Club will investigate the positive outcomes of a regional approach and discuss whether local systems are best for sustaining the quality of life we enjoy in our region. Questions about effectiveness and efficiency will be explored and whether multiple local committees, councils, and city systems are really working for the people of Central Oregon.
The April 17th presentation will begin promptly at 11:30 a.m. and conclude at 1:00 p.m. Check-in begins at 11:15 a.m. at the Center for Health and Learning in St. Charles Medical Center. St. Charles is located at 2500 Neff Road, in Bend.
Register Online
The following web sites are highlighted by the Research Committee as additional examples of communities that focus on a regional approach to governance, public service and building systems that support quality of life issues. As we evaluate the efficiency and effectiveness of local governance, we can broaden our perspectives with increased understanding of the opportunities and challenges of those regions that have addressed similar questions before us and the resolutions that are working for them.
Portland Metro
Central Oregon Intergovernmental Council
Association of Bay Area Governments
National Association of Regional Councils
Minnesota - Metropolitan Council
Municipal Research and Services Center of Washington
And on a Global Level:
Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development
Global Urban Development
City Club Member Recommended Books on this topic:
Regional Excellence by William R. Dodge
Banishing Bureaucracy by David Osborne and Peter Plastrik