The case of Woodland township incorporation is the focus of the article by Buckley. The residents of Woodlands are fighting to shift the location’s status from a township to a city, which might result in increased freedom of infrastructure management (Buckley, 2021). According to Lasswell’s definition of politics, successful city incorporation will grant the residents of Woodlands the capability to participate in decision-making processes regarding the town’s features, such as the construction of buildings and roads. As the authority would be delegated to the city, corporations that currently have contractual agreements with the township would hold less power over the possible choices. Thus, residents would be able to directly address the complications that are vital for the community.
In my opinion, the township status might be a crucial factor that hinders the development of Woodlands. It appears that small communities and towns are less likely to receive the necessary funds to mitigate the arising issues, as the majority of services are provided by enterprises and private companies. For instance, the township board members were unable to resolve the flood difficulties due to their township status (Buckley, 2021). From this perspective, although city incorporation might bear negative consequences, namely increased taxation and service quality, a different status may contribute to better issue resolution. In the long term, power over the community’s infrastructure management and local policy control could be beneficial for the residents.
References
Buckley, K. (2021). Woodlands voters will choose whether to become a city. Houston Public Media. Web.