This post from John Geraci at DIYCity on O'Reilly Radar is worth
reading:
http://radar.oreilly.com/2009/04/the-future-of-our-cities-open.html
"if you're going to involve city residents in these issues, why stop
at asking people which services they would like to cut? Why not go a
bit further and ask them for input on how to keep these services,
while making them leaner, more efficient, and smarter? And why not
then ask for their help in making those changes happen?"