Abstract
This study examines the rise of outsourcing in the governance of publicly owned heritage sites in Taiwan under the influence of New Public Management, and highlights its tensions between efficiency, fiscal pressure, commercialization, and the erosion of publicness. Drawing on qualitative case studies of URS329, Xinfu Market, and the Taiwan Literature Base, it analyzes how public, private, and civic actors interact across individual, organizational, and network levels, and how public value is negotiated within these relationships. The findings show that public value is not produced by government alone but emerges through collaborative governance networks that balance intrinsic heritage significance with instrumental outcomes. When outsourcing arrangements incorporate flexibility, shared vision, and sustained engagement with local communities, they can enable the co-creation of public value; when constrained by rigid contracts or weak institutional support, governance networks tend to fragment and public value dissipates. Based on these insights, the study proposes the “Public Value Universe of Heritage Regeneration” as an analytical framework for assessing institutional, cultural, and social dimensions of value creation. The article argues that heritage regeneration should shift from a narrow focus on physical restoration toward governing social and cultural processes, positioning heritage as a platform for civic participation, value negotiation, and sustainable cultural governance.