In 1977, Cynthia Cockburn’s “The Local State” was published criticizing the relationship between community development and local government business management. This work foreshadows how depoliticized forms of community development can contribute to the implementation of the neoliberal agenda, especially by concentrating the responsibility for social supply rather than the state, which has attracted broader and sustained attention. However, the role played by the local government is relatively ignored, which is improper because many community development practices are sponsored and shaped by it, and broader social reforms could be carried out by it.

A case study from Victoria, Australia, where the local government serves as the primary tool to promote participative “community planning” can help to explore the outcomes of underrating the neoliberal localized control agendas for community development.

When launching the government’s Community Capacity Building Initiative (CCBI), the prime minister at the time was credulous to permit communities to address their needs and develop solutions to reverse their own destiny and small rural communities to control their future. CCBI was not a political goal but designed unable to support or promote anything sensitive to elections. Obviously, CCBI did not target at activities that challenge the government or corporate interests, wealth or power distribution. This strictly controlled, short-term, low-budget state intervention was subsequently declared a great success and produced a wave of community visions, bringing innovative projects, new connections within the community and local pride in the settlements.

The Department of Planning and Community Development, incorporating Local Government Victoria, and the state’s Office of Planning and Urban Design soon established, aiming at putting people at the heart of Victorian Government efforts to plan for liveability and growth by focusing on the liveability of neighbourhoods, and the strength of communities. To strengthen the communities is to increase community participation and provide more opportunities for Victorians to report issues that matter. To achieve government’s such continuing community building mission, one way is by encouraging local governments to implement Community Plans with community-strengthening as a goal and participation as a central feature of the planning process.

It is commented that the Department of Planning and Community Development promoted community planning through a series of initiatives as well as local government peak bodies. The department created a “Local Government and Community Planning project” to collect the lessons learned so far and the emerging community planning practices within local governments supported by these initiatives.

This project support selected councils to participate by stretching their case studies of community planning, guided by a particular ‘common template’ or ‘planning self-assessment tool’. It was reported by the consultants who participated in the project through drawing on the case studies of the eleven Victorian local governments’ community planning experiences to increase the knowledge and understanding of community planning.

Ideally, community development practitioners are capable of engaging local government to establish a better-structured institution to maintain social justice and environmental sustainability. To realize such an ideal, community development intellectuals need to raise questions and engage debate around the overall nature of local government. Its scope, or legal and geographic jurisdiction, constitutional status and powers, should be regarded as aspects directly related to community development. The same is true for decision-making structure, election arrangements, accountability, reporting systems and revenue generation. To publicize and pursue benefits, community development also needs to be prepared to use municipal offices and resources, including those related to distribution, outside the direct scope of the local government.

Hence, the role of the government in community planning should not be ignored, the function of local government is irreplaceable in many aspects including substantially sponsoring and shaping community development practice, pursuing more extensive social reform, etc.