Okay so it took me some time to get through both the articles and understand the depth of the issue.
Here is the deal. This guy 'Joel Robideaux' is dong some ground breaking work on socio-economic-blockchain issue. Not only is he trying to bring in the blockchain based economic option for his city but he is also trying to turn it into a long term viable solution rather than it just being a one time thing.

I have heard reports like these before but this has one major point that makes me believe that this could be the real deal and not just a publicity stunt. He is actually in the process of actively recruiting talented individuals for his 'Blockchain Lab'. This is the most important point in the whole article as far as I am concerned.

Why? Because this would be the first time a blockchain based economic merger between a regional government body and cryptos could finally happen. There is literally no precedent (except for a few isolated one-time things). This is where all the research and money and time spent on it is going to pay off.

I think if he was just trying to make headlines with the millennial then he would have talked about the possibility of the payment option. Taking the initiative to start a group that is research oriented and is dedicated to back what they are proposing tells us that this could be real.

Thanks for this post man. Kind of made my day :-)