In the USA the type of financing and management structure that most closely resembles my ideas is known as a “Housing Co-operative”, a rather misleading designation as it would seem to imply inexpensive social housing.  Nothing could be further from the truth, at least in New York, where one of the many high-end co-operative buildings lining Central Park is the “Dakota”, where John Lennon & Yoko Ono lived, and outside where he was shot dead in 1980.    

The Dakota Building, New York

General view of “Billionaire’s Row” on Central Park West. Many of the apartment buildings are run as “co-operatives” 

The “San Remo”, the largest “Co-operative” apartment building

How does all this relate to OA-Cities..?

OA-Cities could be run on similar lines to these exclusive US-style co-operative buildings, except that I dislike the idea of a static membership board, as this would give a small elite of entrenched individuals the power to approve or decline applicants.  As with monarchs or dictators, long-term incumbents tend to arrogance. And, though they might try to appear not to hold biases, of course they will.   (It will always remain a mystery as to how John Lennon and Yoko Ono passed muster for the Dakota building.)  A static body which appeared to reject most PoC applicants would also be vulnerable to accusations of racial bias.  After which, if ashamed enough, they might then go to the opposite extreme in order to compensate.

On the other hand, a rotating admissions panel drawn from all citizens (like jury service) would be composed of a different group of people each month (or whenever convened) thus making any accusations of bias against individuals rather trite.