Exploring regional network governance: Greenway development in the St. Louis metropolitan area.

摘要

This study explores the greenway development in St. Louis using the emerging literature on network governance, collaborative policy-making and regionalism. In November 2000, greenway development in St. Louis changed with the passage of the Clean Water, Safe Parks and Community Trails Initiative ("Proposition C"). This legislation regionalized certain aspects of the greenway development network in a region often characterized by widespread governmental fragmentation. Collaborative networks are often depicted as self-governing, decentralized organizational forms. In the St. Louis case the greenway development network was centralized through Proposition C. Using a case study method, this work explores how the institutional design features of the greenway development network have evolved over time and how those changes have impacted development outcomes. This study shows how the greenway development network overcomes or fails to overcome longstanding disputes between business, environmental, and development interests and how centralized, vertical levels aid, rather than hinder collaborative networks. This research also explores the impact of structural changes on greenway development outcomes for the region.