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A Brief History of Community Boards and Community Districts |
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When New York City’s voters approved a new City Charter in 1975, they gave Community Boards a formal role in the land use review process (ULURP), the preparation of the capital and expense budgets, and monitoring the delivery of city services. This marked a significant step in a then twenty-five year experiment with neighborhood governance.
The experiment began in 1951, when Manhattan Borough President Robert F. Wagner established twelve "Community Planning Councils" to advice him on planning and budgetary matters, appointing 15 to 20 members to each.
The 1963 City Charter, adopted during Robert Wagner's third term as Mayor, extended the neighborhood governance concept citywide by establishing "Community Planning Boards."
While the Boards' role as local planners had its genesis in Wagner's 1951 initiative, their role in monitoring the delivery of city services can be traced to the "Little City Halls" established by Mayor John Lindsay in the mid-1970s. Created on an experimental basis in a few community districts, these outposts were headed by a District Manager, or DM, appointed by the Mayor to oversee the delivery of City services in the district. Among the DM's duties was chairing a "Service Cabinet" comprised of officers of varying rank from key city agencies. Today the DM has much the same role, but is selected and accountable to the Community Board rather than the Mayor.
After a fifty year evolution, today's Community Boards are a blend of Mayor Wagner’s Community Planning Councils with Mayor Lindsay's Little City Halls. With a role in both planning and monitoring service delivery, the Boards came to be known simply as "Community Boards."
The issues the Boards deal with are as varied as the communities they represent. At one end of the spectrum, a Board may conduct a study and issue a report on the likely impact of a complex billion dollar development proposal like the 2012 Olympics; at the other, its district office may be asked to get a "No Parking" sign replaced.
Over the years, there has been a steady growth in acceptance of Community Boards by their communities and by agencies of the City. The evolution continues in the direction of decentralization and citizen engagement.
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