2018 Azbee Awards of Excellence

Category

Print > How-To Article > Southeast

Awarded to

Jason Axelrod, Associate Editor

Entry details

The Public & Private Marriage

Issue date (if applicable): 9/8/2017
Publication name: American City & County
Publishing company: Informa
Website home page: www.americancityandcounty.com

Please describe the publication's mission and readership:

American City & County covers the issues surrounding city and county governments and features the leaders who distinguish themselves from their peers. It is designed to serve as a clearinghouse of information about issues of interest to local and state government leaders, both elected and appointed. Its focus is broad enough to encompass the concerns of the administrative officials who are charged with making policy and operational professionals who must implement that policy. Coverage areas include public safety, streets and highways, public transportation, solid waste collection and disposal, water supply, wastewater collection and treatment, urban revitalization, public finance, parks and recreation, government technology and buildings and grounds maintenance.

Please describe the enterprising work that went into this entry and its significance or impact on readers:

The P3 model has proven to be a useful procurement, financing and project delivery paradigm for public projects. Yet despite many examples of its implementation, it remains vastly misunderstood among city and county governments.
The author rectifies such misunderstanding by interspersing the insights of seven interviewed P3 experts across the public, private and nonprofit sectors throughout the article. The representation of many disciplines among sources gives readers a sweeping understanding of the subject.
The author begins the article by briefly describing one city’s ongoing P3 to illustrate the model in action. He then clearly defines the P3 model, using a marriage metaphor to explain how P3s contrast with standard contractual work. The author follows by laying out the P3’s advantages and dispelling common misconceptions of P3s with experts’ explanations.
With a firm understanding of P3s in place, the author uses the experts’ insights to present a methodical walkthrough of how government professionals should procure and plan an ideal P3 that will yield a successful project.
This article is significant for readers because it gives local government readers a one-stop-shop for obtaining a working knowledge of the P3 model. Moreover, the presence of two experienced governments, three trade associations and three private partners among the sources give readers access to advisors and educational resources should they decide to explore using a P3.

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