SPUR's 32nd annual Good Government Awards, held March 19, honored City of San Francisco employees who have performed exceptionally, becoming models for other agencies and cities around the country.

The Municipal Tax Automation Team — Darrell Ascano, Tajel Shah and Rebecca Villareal-Mayer — was honored for its outstanding teamwork and achievement in upgrading the technology used to collect and process the majority of the city’s General Fund revenue. By choosing an aggressive, non-incremental approach — upgrading the entire system over eight months — the team executed a complex project that has changed the way tax information is collected and funds are received. This has resulted in increased taxpayer compliance and expense savings.

Watch our video on the tax team’s work:

SPUR's 32nd annual Good Government Awards, held March 19, honored City of San Francisco employees who have performed exceptionally, becoming models for other agencies and cities around the country.

Steven Castile was honored for his commitment to preserving public access to parks while ensuring environmental sustainability of parkland, managing the city’s agronomical practices for five golf courses, three stadiums (including Candlestick and Kezar Stadiums) and 220 parks. His particular accomplishments in bringing Harding Park up to the standards of the PGA Tour exemplify his ingenuity and creativity in staff management and resource allocation to create a world-class golf venue that generates visibility and income for the city. 

Watch our video on Steven’s work:

As the rest of the country eagerly watches the Republican presidential primary drama unfold, San Francisco prepares for a comparatively uneventful June election. Five proposed initiatives have dropped off the ballot, leaving the city to consider just two measures this election. Prop. A would change the competitive procurement and franchising for solid waste disposal in the city. Passage would end Recology’s regulated monopoly, and could put the city’s goal of zero waste by 2020 in jeopardy. And Prop. B, a non-binding declaration of policy, aims to protect and maintain Coit Tower and beautify surrounding Pioneer Park by strictly limiting commercial activities and private events.

Just two measures ... in San Francisco? Is it ballot fatigue? Has the recession depressed ballot activity? Did SPUR’s work on ballot reform strike the balance we hoped for? Regardless of the reason, San Francisco’s initiative process is clearly changing. In recent years, ballots have gotten shorter and the issues increasingly serious, including multiple substantive measures on pension reform in the November 2011 election. What’s more, how they get to the ballot is also changing:

1.    Both measures on the June ballot were placed there by voter signature. This is by no means new to San Francisco elections, but seldom do we hold elections comprised solely of measures sent to the ballot by voter petition. In fact, only once in the last 50 years has there been an election with only initiatives placed on the ballot by voters.

2.    There are no measures on the June ballot placed there by signatures of either the mayor or board of supervisors. While the trend of voter initiatives is interesting, the fact that neither the mayor nor board of supervisors submitted a measure for consideration this spring is especially notable. Is this a reflection of recent requirements for advance submission and public hearings? As the sponsors of the 2007 measure to require these ballot reforms, we would certainly like to think so.

3.    A number of measures working their way through the board of supervisors were removed. It is certainly not the last we will see of measures addressing runoff elections or public financing, but for now these measures will not be considered in June. It is increasingly likely that we will see measures in November that reform the city’s current instant runoff votin structure structure and consolidate elections for all citywide offices.

Keep in mind, however, that while June may be extremely lean, the November ballot will be heavy with tax-related measures. Under state law, local general tax increases require only 50 percent voter approval in years that legislative officers are elected, and 2012 is one of those years. Combined with the recession driving the state’s need for new revenues, this means there will be multiple statewide tax measures on the ballot. (There are currently two, following the governor’s most recent announcement of a consolidation.) Add local efforts to reform San Francisco’s payroll tax, and this translates into a number of local and state tax proposals getting stacked into a single election.

San Franciscans, enjoy the peace and quiet of an uneventful June. November will be the true test of success with local ballot reform.

On Thursday, March 8, the San Pedro Square Market filled with supporters of the new SPUR San Jose office, which opened in January. The 500 urbanists who joined us received a thundering welcome from San Jose Taiko, an award-winning traditional drumming group based in San Jose’s Japantown.

The energy in the room continued to build as Leah Toeniskoetter, director of SPUR San Jose, asked the crowd what they love about their city. “Cities are the incubators of creativity in art, technology and thought leadership,” she said. “Cities encourage us to experience the unexpected by simply walking down the street. SPUR’s mission is to foster this type of dynamic city, advocate for this type of city and research what makes this type of city tick.”

City Councilmember Sam Liccardo followed, reminding us of the great inventions that launched in San Jose, including the first commercial wine business in California (Paul Masson), the world’s first commercial radio station, and the Dorsa brother’s creation of the illustrious Eggo waffle. In a city of great dreamers, Liccardo said, “We’re taking this downtown and this city to the next level, and SPUR will help lead us there.”

Our strategic partner Connie Martinez, president and CEO of 1stACT, talked about the catalytic potential of great cities and San Jose’s forward-thinking leadership in fostering a strong urban culture. And SPUR Executive Director Gabriel Metcalf toasted San Jose’s embrace of change and thanked the city for inviting SPUR to be a part of its vision for the future. “I love the spirit of optimism and practicality here,” he said, “because what it means is that any problem we can come up with is going to be solved.”

Gabriel Metcalf, Sam Liccardo, Leah Toeniskoetter and Connie Martinez

The event drew a who’s who of city lovers, planners, architects, elected officials, and city and county staff — and they stayed with us for hours after the official program had ended. It was this dynamic energy that SPUR San Jose looks forward to continuing and building upon as we grow.

Thank you for being a part of our beginning — we look forward to seeing you in our future.

For more pictures, see our Flickr set San Jose Launch Party >>