Smart Cities: Public Policies and Business Models for a Sustainable Development. Stakeholder Networking and Innovative Public Procurement in Italy

The management of environmental, social and economic aspects of urban systems requires a financial commitment by local authorities often above available resources: a challenge for institutional traders therefore concerns the identification of new policies and procedures of engagement between public and private investors to ensure the economic feasibility of interventions. The implementation of concrete public policies requires a revision of the role of local governments who are called to turn from “customers” into "facilitators" in complex processes of cooperation with economic operators. This implies a cultural change, both by institutions and investors, based on mutual trust, in opposition with the traditional authoritarian role of the public bodies and with the historical suspicion, deeply widespread in Italy, by investors against the public procurement system. This paper investigates policies at the disposal of local public agencies to make real progress towards a smart city, on the assumption that traditional models of government and bargaining with traders are outdated and inadequate. The paper proposes some procedural models not yet widely available in Italy, which can be taken into consideration by Italian public bodies to pursue their objectives through synergies with market participants. The paper in particular analyzes public-private partnerships from two different perspectives: within a strategic planning process and within procedures of innovative public procurement. The first regards the spread of a collaborative culture of smart cities by promoting networking strategies and collaborations among stakeholders, by means of legal-administrative tools. The latter identify procedural means to introduce new ways of financing and negotiation between public and private sector within innovative procurement of services. The paper focuses on current Italian case studies, by collecting information both from direct and indirect source. The case studies of Genoa Smart City Association and of Turin Smart City Foundation as regards legal-administrative tools are examined; the case study of pre-commercial procurements in Val d’Aosta Region, with the insertion of a living lab methodology, is illustrated. The procedures are supported by Technological Platforms as operational tools to bring together institutional, scientific, industrial operators for the pursuit of specific objectives.