Despite participatory development process is given prominence in National Urban and Development Policy, people-centric development culture has not yet been institutionalized in most areas within the country. The present study was an endeavor to have a fresh look at the local governance status through assessing the level of people s participation in development process. A case study design was adopted for this study with a target population comprising of 167 community based projects in the 16 divisions of Nakuru district .The study considered 50% of the 16 divisions to get 8 divisions. From each project, ten beneficiaries from the community were selected as study respondents; to get a total of 80 members. The main research instrument used questionnaires and interview schedules. The study found out that there are social economic and political influences affecting beneficiary s participation in community based projects .It is recommended that the regulations should be enacted to safeguard and encourage Beneficiaries interest in community based projects hence encourage their participation.