Description: Neighbors Building Neighborhoods (NBN) is a citizen-based planning and community action process that was initiated in 1993. City staff work with teams of residents -- one for each sector of the city -- to map assets, create community vision statements, and develop priorities for community action. In addition to providing citizen engagement in the Rochester 2010 Plan, the process supports new partnership and funding sources for neighborhood priorities.

Dates active: 1993-present

Issue(s): Planning and land use

Sub-issue(s): Growth and planning; economic development; neighborhood and community development.

Level(s): City; neighborhood

Initiators: Mayor; planning department.

Particular goals: Gather input on planning and development decisions; spur economic development.

Number of participants/year: 6,300

Population of community: 219,000

Time spent by participants: 6+ hours per month for sector leaders, including individual sector meetings and monthly sector chairs meeting. Can be substantia

Staffing/funding: City employees provide technical assistance to the sector committees; action efforts are accomplished through volunteer efforts, business contributions, and government responses to sector priorities.

Budget: NBN Program Budget is $100,000, of which $5,000 is provided for each of the 10 sector groups. Sectors also receive funds from the Sector Targeted Funding Initiative Program (up to $100,000), the Weed & Seed Initiative (up to $10,000), and the Kodak Foundation (up to $10,000) to implement sector plans. Technical assistance provided by Bureau of Neighborhood Initiatives -- staff of six. Operating/staff funds are $414,000.

Sample outcomes: New zoning ordinance focusing on design and community character; new system of neighborhood-based code enforcement/police teams; an award-winning urban farming project. Over 80% of the action ideas in the original NBN neighborhood plans have been implemented.

Benefits: Moving the model of citizen input from confrontation to collaboration expanded citizen involvement at all levels of planning and decision making.

Challenges: Building partnerships outside the city to address underlying issues of economic disparities and regional sprawl. Recruiting new citizen volunteers to replace those lost to burnout or leaving for new jobs elsewhere.

Full story:

• Cresswell, Sydney, Jordan Wishy, and Terrence Maxwell, "Fostering Social Equity and Economic Opportunity Through Citizen Participation," Report to the National League of Cities, June 2003.
• Cunningham, Kiran, Phyllis Furdell, and Hannah McKinney, Tapping the Power of City Hall to Build Equitable Communities: Ten City Profiles (Washington, DC: National League of Cities, 2007).

Related resources:

• "Changing the Way We Govern," Democratic Governance Panel, National League of Cities, 2006.

This case contributed by: Matt Leighninger, 2007