This article examines the effects of the structure of intermunicipal cooperatives (IMCs) on the perceived transaction costs and benefits of IMCs. Hypotheses based on a polycentric theory of regional governance are tested using data from Dutch municipalities. The findings are mixed. In line with polycentric theory, networks characterized by a multiplicity of territorial scales reduce IMC transaction costs. Contrary to polycentric theory, however, if IMCs are organized under a uniform legal regime, lower costs and higher benefits are reported. Structural factors that dominate the debate between polycentrism and monocentrism prove to be of limited importance. On the other hand, the results indicate support for the hypotheses that intermunicipal trust (as a cultural variable) contributes to perceptions of effective and efficient cooperation.Marcel Boogers holds a chair in Innovation and Regional Governance in the School of Behavioural, Management and Social Sciences of the University of Twente, the Netherlands. His research focuses on the structure of and dynamics within networks of local and regional governments, production and service industries, higher education institutes, and other third-sector organizations.

If you would like to write for this, or any other Emerald publication, then please use our Emerald for Authors service information about how to choose which publication to write for and submission guidelines are available for all. Please visit www.emeraldinsight.com/authors for more information. About Emerald www.emeraldinsight.comEmerald is a global publisher linking research and practice to the benefit of society. The company manages a portfolio of more than 290 journals and over 2,350 books and book series volumes, as well as providing an extensive range of online products and additional customer resources and services.Emerald is both COUNTER 4 and TRANSFER compliant. The organization is a partner of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and also works with Portico and the LOCKSS initiative for digital archive preservation.Scientific theories on the effects of various policy instruments are often formulated without accounting for the circumstances under which these instruments are applied. Also the implementation process is often neglected. Economic theory formulation often concentrates solely on the influence of the instrument-as-intended on the cost-benefit relationship of various behavioural alternatives. Theories based on the joint influence of possible combinations of circumstances rather than the isolated influences of individual circumstances tend to become tremendously complex. Consequently, attempts to formulate such theories are few. Nevertheless, precisely that combined perspective offers invaluable insights when it comes to making choices concerning practical policy issues. This holds true regardless of whether the choice is part of a,more or less rational and conscious decision-making process or, alternatively, involves a more personal and intuitive decision which is later to be tabled as the subject of political or administrative debate. This article deals with some fundamentals which provided the groundwork for formulating a scientific theory on the effects of policy instruments by the authors. The complexity of the matter will be reduced without affecting either the number or the diversity of circumstances that can be discussed simultaneously. In addition, attention will be focused on the role and influence of the implementation process which acts as an intermediary between the "paper" policy instruments and the actual policy measures.

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In 2000, a deprived inner-city district of Enschede (the Netherlands) known as Roombeek was largely devastated by an explosion of a fireworks storage depot. This article evaluates the efforts made by the municipality of Enschede to actively involve the former residents in the reconstruction planning. The results indicate that through a well-ordered process and a considered mobi lization campaign, the initiators of the participatory planning process have been successful in stimulating broad and representative public participation.Keywords citizen governance, representative bias of political participation, urban reconstruction, institutional embedding of public participation On May 13, 2000, a major explosion in a fireworks storage depot destroyed the entire urban district of Roombeek in the city of Enschede, the Netherlands. 1 A total of 22 residents were killed, more than 900 people were injured, well over 1,500 citizens were displaced because their homes were destroyed, and more than 200 companies were forced to relocate. Within weeks after the disaster, a clear consensus emerged in Enschede on the principle that in the redevelopment of the disaster area, the victims should be allowed "maximum Downloaded from 584 Urban Affairs Review 45 (5) feasible participation" in the planning process and that the residents' views on the future of their neighborhood, as expressed during this process, should guide the planning decisions. To enable all those residents who would want to participate to engage in the redevelopment process, a wide range of accessible opportunities were created for (former) residents to voice their opinions on the future of the district.Before the fireworks disaster, Roombeek had about 1,500 residents living in 650 homes. More than half of these homes were built between 1910 and 1920, and 54% qualified as social housing, the remainder being privately owned (mostly owner occupied). In general terms, Roombeek might be characterized as a deprived inner-city district, with high unemployment rates and many lowincome households. Some of the neighborhoods in the district, however, were relatively prosperous. About 69% of the district's residents were of Dutch origin, about 8% were of Turkish origin, 5% came from the former Dutch colonies (Surinam, the Netherlands Antilles, and Indonesia), and 2% had a Moroccan background. The remaining 17% had origins in a wide range of other countries all over the world (Wigboldus 2005, 11). 2 In this article, we analyze the efforts of the municipality of Enschede to involve this mixed and partly deprived population in decisions concerning the redevelopment of this area. The article focuses on three questions: (1) How was citizen participation organized in the Roombeek case? (2) How many people were involved in this process, and what factors explain citizens' decisions to participate? and (3) Did the participation of some and the nonparticipation of others affect the representativeness of the results of the participation process?

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