Date of Award
5-1-1994
Document Type
Research Paper
Department
Whittier Scholars Program
Abstract
How local government meets the challenges of the nineties will dictate what type of government local residents can expect to inherit in the twenty-first century, and the level of services that the taxpayer can expect to receive. This paper will examine two Southern California cities: Chino Hills and Santa Fe Springs. The city of Chino Hills, a newly incorporated municipality, is faced with “setting up shop” in the economically tumultuous and cynical nineties; while the City of Santa Fe Springs, a mature city in Los Angeles county, is faced with continuing to attract business and provide services at the same level to which the residents have become accustomed. This paper will examine both cities and how their current issues and experiences are indicative of trends in local government. Whenever possible, the sources used are professional journals and first-hand experiences. The two cities, although separated by only 23 miles and a county line, are in most respects very different. Differing ages, demographics, and goals for the future define the environment of both cities. In both municipalities, professional staff are nonetheless operating under the same external forces: tight fiscal times, voter disillusionment, and responsibility to the residents they serve. Each city is unique; what is revealing is perhaps the fact that their differing experiences point to the same external forces.
Recommended Citation
Reinhart, L. J. (1994). Reinventing Local Government: How Two Local Cities are Meeting the Challenge. Retrieved from https://poetcommons.whittier.edu/scholars/173
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