Driven by the rapid development of metropolitan areas in China, there has been dramatic reconfiguration of the country’s urban-rural space coupled with dramatic redistribution of its population. Both, in turn, have led to a pressing challenge in urban governance, that is, fragmented provision of community service facilities. This case is derived from Xincheng Community of Changzhou City in Jiangsu Province, which has attempted to address the challenge by establishing a whole process governance framework.

In practice, the whole process governance framework includes three phases. The first phase pertains primarily to governance of need. In it, the government plays a leading role in setting goals for provision of community service facilities, setting standards for the facilities, and establishing a centralized mode of community service provision. It is noteworthy that the government carries out these tasks according to the needs of residents. The second phase pertains mainly to governance of process. In it, spatial configuration is optimized with a focus on fairness of spatial distribution in the whole process of planning and implementation. The third phase relates primarily to governance of operation. In it, operation is optimized by improving community service facilities’ compatibility with residents’ needs and upgrading facilities in a timely manner.

Two lessons about innovation in community service facility provision mode can be learned from this case. First, the government’s mind and behaviors need to be people oriented. This means that serving residents’ needs is the ultimate goal of community service facility provision, which necessitates establishing channels that enable residents to express their needs to the government. Second, residents need to be encouraged and motivated to participate in governing all three aspects of community service facility provision, namely need, process, and operation.