Influence of the public management model in Smart and Sustainable Cities

Case of the Municipality of Heredia

Abstract

Smart and sustainable cities are emerging as the answer to the current challenges of urban areas and, consequently, as the path towards improving the quality of life of their inhabitants. However, the development of these cities is not uniform, but is shaped according to the particularities of each territory, where public management plays a fundamental role in shaping the intelligent development of each community. In this work, we present the results of a case study applied to Heredia, Costa Rica, with the purpose of identifying the characteristics of the city's public management model and determining its impact on the intelligent development of its territory. The theoretical and methodological approach is situated in the context of New Public Management and the governance models of the digital era and intelligent public governance. Through careful analysis of the local government's long-term development plans and the application of a Smart and Sustainable Cities Index, the close interconnection between Heredia's current status as a smart city and the way in which the city is managed was identified. Among the main discoveries, the direct influence exerted by the public management of the local government of Heredia on the development of its smart city stands out, since the areas in which adequate actions are not implemented are presented as challenges for the intelligent progress of the city, which leads us to conclude that its management model has been a determining factor in its intelligent development. Likewise, two different models of public management are identified within the context of Heredia, which significantly impact the evolution of the city towards urban intelligence.