Collaborative Governance: A Successful Case of Public and Private Interaction in the Port City of Naples

This study explores policies of collaborative governance between public and private actors through a specific case that sees the development of city areas previously abandoned or landlocked. It employs the case study methodology, analyzing the specific case of San Vincenzo’s Pier in the port city of Naples. The analyzed case reveals that a collaborative public–private approach might overcome typical bureaucratic-public hurdles to the development of cities, especially their abandoned areas.

Cases of public–private collaboration have strongly increased in the last decade in order to overcome classic public failure and to develop a more participated form of governance; therefore, the research question is aimed to understand which are the possible policies to put in action for an effective collaborative governance among public and private actors. It offers practical implications for public managers by demonstrating that the development of policy networks, comprising both public and private actors, is necessary for developing new ideas and for overcoming typical limits of both private and public administrations.