Municipalities can also develop more productive relationships through the use of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) to address conflicts regarding such issues as boundary developments, traffic impacts, water supply, and others.  ADR strategies include consensus building, facilitation, mediation, and neutral fact-finding.  There are few things more vexing in municipal government than costly and acrimonious disputes with neighboring cities or towns.  A well-designed ADR system can, first and foremost, encourage communities to consult with each other on actions that will obviously affect their neighbors, preventing disputes before they occur.  If a dispute cannot be avoided, use of ADR mechanism will help to resolve disputes without the need for legal action.

Most ADR strategies involve the assistance of a third party neutral, who can assists with dispute resolution in various ways: facilitating the exchange of information, soliciting opinions and concerns, promoting a productive dialogue, encouraging flexibility, and urging the parties to create workable settlements.  ADR provides a platform for municipal parties to reach mutually satisfactory solutions that will meet their fundamental interests.  It generates more stable and sustainable outcomes since parties have tailored the solution to their needs.  Most importantly, cooperative resolution of disputes helps to preserve productive relationships between cities and towns.

MAPC strives to maintain an image as an honest broker, so the agency  may be  in a good position to convene inter-municipal dispute resolution efforts and to provide assessment or assistance with technical issues.  The Massachusetts Office of Dispute Resolution is a state-level office with a focus on inter-organizational conflicts, primarily inter-governmental and inter-sectoral conflicts.  MODR has strong in-house capacity in ADR and affiliations with many practitioners in the private sector.

12.a    MAPC will work with the Massachusetts Office of Dispute Resolution and other interested parties to establish a system that helps cities and towns to avoid and resolve inter-municipal disputes

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