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SPUR Publications

SPUR articles, research, policy recommendations, and our magazine, The Urbanist

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Research Fellows and Interns Make Major Contributions to SPUR’s Work

News /
During the last two academic years, SPUR has been fortunate to host a talented group of policy researchers through partnerships with graduate school fellowship and practicum programs. Their research has contributed to SPUR’s work, including policy changes and proposed legislation at the regional and state levels. Learn more about the work they’ve done with SPUR and what they’ve gone on to do after collaborating with us.

Key SPUR Food and Ag Policies Get National Limelight

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After a 50-year hiatus, the White House is hosting its second-ever Conference on Hunger, Nutrition and Health. In an effort to frame the agenda for the conference, a coalition of organizations has released a report proposing 30 federal policy recommendations. Three of SPUR’s top priorities at the state and local level are among those recommendations, and they are now firmly in the national spotlight as the conference approaches.

Gas Appliances and Smog: California's Hidden Air Pollution Problem

Policy Brief
Gas appliances in California homes and buildings generate four times as much lung-damaging nitrogen oxide (NOx) pollution as the state's gas power plants, and roughly two thirds as much NOx as all of the state’s passenger cars. To meet federal air quality standards that protect health, air quality regulators in California must phase out the sale of gas appliances and implement equity-centered implementation plans for transitioning homes to electric alternatives like heat pumps – which produce no onsite air pollution.

The IRA Is Historic, but We Still Need Prop. 30 to Fight Climate Change

News /
The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), signed by President Biden last month, is the largest ever federal investment in fighting climate change . While we as Americans should be taking a victory lap for this momentous achievement, we should not for one moment think that the investments in the IRA are alone sufficient to tackle climate change. To win this generation’s greatest fight, we will need major continued investments at the federal, state and local levels. That’s why SPUR is supporting Prop. 30, a measure which would make historic investments in fighting climate change — investments that pay off in the form of fuel cost savings and avoided premature deaths, asthma attacks and cleaner air.

Housing for Everyone, the Danish Way

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Over the last 100 years, Denmark has taken structural and local policy implementation approaches to housing that have much to teach the Bay Area. We got to meet leaders in government, architecture, housing and sustainability who shared their insights and fielded our group’s many questions about how the city renewed its urban core without demolition and how it builds two types of housing that we don’t have: social housing and housing co-ops.

How Copenhagen Can Inspire Bay Area Cities to Go Big on Bikes

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Bicycles and bicyclists are among the first things you notice when you arrive in Copenhagen — there’s an endless sea of bikes parked at every major train station plaza and lined up along every building. Though our region has a long way to go, Bay Area cities can take relevant lessons — and inspiration — from Copenhagen’s bicycle planning history, its pragmatic approach and its regional aspirations.

Finding a Way to Build: Can the Bay Area Learn from Copenhagen’s 1990s Reinvention?

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Comparing 2022 Copenhagen to the Bay Area of 2022 is like comparing apples to oranges. Aside from a few one-offs, most projects in Copenhagen would not be easily transferable to the Bay Area at scale due to foundational differences in the way our governments operate, from the national level on down. What would be more transferable would be to apply the lessons learned in the 1990s-era Copenhagen to the Bay Area in 2022.

The Sustainable City: Learning from Copenhagen’s Plan for Zero Carbon

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Copenhagen has set a goal to become the world’s first carbon-neutral city by 2025. On our study trip this summer, we learned that the city’s commitment to sustainability is embedded in its long-range land use plans and goes back to the middle of the 20th century. Copenhagen’s success in realizing these plans comes from a strategic combination of investments and partnerships that have made it possible to create urban neighborhoods with mixed-income housing, transit access, bicycle lanes and green infrastructure. Together, all of these efforts contribute to the goal of a zero-carbon city.

SPUR’s Plan to Decarbonize the Urban Center

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Sometimes, decarbonizing a building isn’t all that hard, the owners are equipped to shoulder the costs, and obtaining permits is fast and straightforward. Those cases are worth examining, because the state needs early movers to build a robust market for zero-emission technology to bring costs down for others. Enter the SPUR Urban Center. Built in 2009 to LEED Silver standards, SPUR’s downtown San Francisco headquarters was designed to be a community gathering space and a symbol of the region’s sustainability values.

Remembering Dave Hartley

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SPUR’s long-time board member and former development director Dave Hartley, widely admired as a committed urbanist and great friend, died on July 12. Dave had a lifetime of loving cities, history and architecture, which he manifested over decades of civic engagement. We all watched in amazement each year as Dave set higher and higher fundraising goals for himself and, each year, met and exceeded them. His positive attitude and teamwork skills made him a fine colleague who welcomed the growing SPUR staff.

Envisioning a Brighter Future for BART in San José

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SPUR is a long-time supporter of BART Phase II, which will bring BART service into downtown San José. The project gets many things right, but we think it can do more to reach its goal of making transit the first and best choice for more people and more types of trips. As VTA convenes a collaborative task force to explore and evaluate how to improve passenger experience and station access, we share our goals for BART Phase II and how we hope they can be translated into the project design.

What’s the Real Difference Between San Francisco’s Two Affordable Housing Ballot Measures?

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This November, San Francisco voters will be asked to choose between two competing charter amendments to streamline the creation of new affordable and workforce housing, one co-sponsored by SPUR. On the face of it, Prop. D and Prop. E appear very similar. But the policy details included in these measures make a significant difference in the impact each would have on affordable housing production in San Francisco.

Our Bill to Make Healthy Food More Affordable Died in Committee. Here’s How Far We Got.

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Earlier this year, the California Legislature considered a proposal aimed at making healthy food more affordable for Californians with low incomes. The proposal — introduced by Assemblymember Dr. Joaquin Arambula, co-sponsored by SPUR and Nourish California , and backed by a broad coalition — would have provided a penny-for-penny rebate for people buying California-grown fresh fruits and vegetables with their CalFresh dollars at participating retailers. Though the proposal didn’t pass this year, the momentum behind it demonstrated strong legislative interest in the idea, bipartisan support and positive response from people who see the value in expanding an existing program that reduces hunger, improves health and supports California’s agricultural economy.

California Leaders Invest in Economic Security

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With the passage of a $17 billion inflation relief package, the California Legislature and Governor Newsom built on the economic stimulus efforts of the past two years by getting cash into the hands of Californians and investing in programs to help people make ends meet. By continuing to invest in helping people who have been most destabilized by the pandemic, and who suffer the most under inflation, California can take meaningful steps toward building economic security for all people.

The State of Good Food Purchasing in 2022

Policy Brief
Bay Area schools, jails and hospitals are working to align their spending with the five core values of the Good Food Purchasing Program, procuring food that is local, sustainable, fair, humane and healthy. SPUR and The Center for Good Food Purchasing identify seven strategies to support institutions in aligning supply and demand to build a more resilient, sustainable and equitable regional food system and share a regional data dashboard to track progress.

Proposed “Parking Cash-Out” Bill Aims to Level the Commute Playing Field for Non-Drivers

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A bill to give California commuters more options for sustainable transportation is getting strong support. Assembly Bill 2206 would make it easier for employers to implement a California law known as parking cash-out, which requires companies that provide free employee parking to offer the cash equivalent to those who choose not to drive to work. SPUR explored the benefits of parking cash-out at a digital discourse earlier this year.

Staff Profile: Eli Zigas, 11-Year Spurrito

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This year, SPUR is celebrating staff members — a.k.a. “Spurritos”— who have served the organization for 10 years or more. This month we profile Food and Agriculture Policy Director Eli Zigas, who launched this policy area at SPUR in 2011 and today continues to lead our work to create healthy, just and sustainable food systems and put an end to food insecurity.

The ABCs of JPAs

Policy Brief
With housing prices out of reach for many, California is facing the need to find new ways to create housing affordable to middle-income households. A promising new model — joint powers authority (JPA) owned middle-income housing — uses tax incentives to close the gap between development costs and affordable rents. This brief by SPUR and the Terner Center for Housing Innovation explains how the JPA model works, how it’s being used and how to ensure that it delivers meaningful public benefits.

Moving San Francisco’s Guaranteed Income Programs From Pilot to Policy

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During the pandemic, federal stimulus funds sent as cash transfers gave many people the money they needed to survive. Organizations across the country started cash transfer programs to help those who needed it most. These bold moves helped bring guaranteed income to the forefront of a national conversation on how best to alleviate poverty and tackle growing income inequality. SPUR recently participated in an effort to begin turning San Francisco’s guaranteed income pilot programs into permanent policies.

Op-Ed: It's Time for Smart, Affordable Transportation

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If Governor Newsom and the state legislature act now, they can help Californians spend less on gas by delivering transportation options that are better for the environment. Our op-ed with Capitol Weekly proposes that they should support $2 billion for the Active Transportation Program this June alongside increased investments in transit.