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August 19, 2010Datablog: Creating Framework Without a Frame - the Burning Man Infographic BY JORDAN SALINGER Flint Hahn's Burning Man infographic. (Click to view larger.)For some it is a yearly spiritual revival providing an emotionally charged respite from reality; for others it simply means they are able to eat brunch without standing in line. The mark left by Burning Man on San Franciscans and this city is undoubtedly immense, but is hard to truly measure. The same can be said about the impact on Black Rock City, Burning Man's yearly home, but this stunning infographic provides an all-...
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August 18, 2010Arcade Fire's new album tackles suburban sprawl, providing compelling city planning commentary - posted by Colleen McHugh Sprawl, conformity, car culture, ennui, decay. These are a few of the themes Arcade Fire tackles in its third album, The Suburbs, released last week. At times nostalgic and at times cautionary, The Suburbs may be most notable (certainly in the realm of SPUR's blog) as an example of city planning commentary in pop culture. As an NPR review put it, "the members of Arcade Fire have always been fascinated by the subtle ways geography informs our lives." Their newest album weaves a sense of...
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August 17, 2010Wind Power Possibilities for San Francisco BY TIMOTHEA TWAY [Photo Credit: flickr user notaboutwill]The US Department of Energy released their 2009 Wind Technologies Market Report outlining the current state of wind technology in the United States. The report is an exhaustive study of what is generally seen as solar power's less glamorous and less popular cousin.Some interesting facts from the report include:Wind power made up 39% of all new generating capacity in the United States last year In 2009 $21 billion were invested and cumulative wind...
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August 16, 2010DIY Urbanism: Market Creates Sense of Community While Bringing Healthy Food Choices to the Mission BY ELIZABETH HOLDEN [Photo Credit: Colleen McHugh]Through an interactive market system of live music, produce booths and youth art projects, the Mission Community Market (MCM) activates an underutilized block at the intersection of 22nd and Bartlett Streets. It also brings diverse walks of life together on one block every Thursday from 4 to 7p.m. Chance encounters with fellow pedestrians carrying sunflowers or succulent produce are the only signs of the Market on Thursdays, making it a delicious find. San...
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August 13, 2010Weekly Snapshot BY ANIKA JESI Opening party for SPUR's student show, Here+Now, now on view at the Urban Center [Photo Credit: Colleen McHugh]Ruling Paves Way for San Francisco Bike Lanes: Bicyclists rejoice as San Francisco's four-year-old bike plan injunction is lifted, allowing the much anticipated implementation of 45 new bike lane projects city-wide.Time to Return to L.A.'s Core: One symptom of the economic downturn is that it has slowed gentrification, putting some neighborhoods in developmental limbo. This...
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August 12, 2010Planning Communities for Aging BY JON ROGERS [Photo Credit: flickr user Troy Holden]In 2011, America's estimated 78.2 million baby boomers will begin to reach retirement age, officially ushering in the "silver tsunami" - a term used to describe the impending onslaught of retirees into a society that is currently ill-prepared to handle the needs of an aging population. Most boomers currently live in suburbs, having ridden the wave of suburban flight in the 1950's and 60s. As boomers begin to retire, many people will...
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August 11, 2010Challenges (and High Hopes) for Electric Vehicles in San Francisco BY TIMOTHEA TWAY Plug-in cars in San Francisco [Photo Credit: flickr user felixkramer]PG&E's clean energy blog, Next 100, recently explored the idea of the rise of electric vehicles in the Bay Area. At the recent Plug-In 2010 conference, PG&E President Chris Johns predicted that the Bay Area will see around 500,000 electric vehicles (EVs) "plugging in" over the next decade. From a sustainability perspective, electric vehicles are a big improvement over their traditional alternatives, to be...
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August 10, 2010Public Art Installations to Guide Passengers of Central Subway BY ELIZABETH HOLDEN Reflected Loop [Image via San Francisco Arts Commission]We are visual creatures. As such, we derive our orientation of our relative location according to the landmarks and visual reminders around us. This is especially evident in how we navigate urban areas, by remembering a block near a notable statue or fountain in an otherwise crowded arrangement of buildings. It's a common situation - getting disoriented in an underground or enclosed public transit station (even for those who are...
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August 6, 2010Getting High Speed Rail Right-Enough BY GABRIEL METCALF The California High Speed Rail Authority met yesterday in San Francisco. The agenda was packed with many interesting things including a new station area development policy. But the real controversy was about the section between San Jose and San Francisco. I joined hundreds of people during public comment to weigh in on this one small segment. Over the past few years, a group of high speed rail opponents has been gathering strength in some of the Peninsula communities such as Atherton and Menlo...
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August 6, 2010Weekly Snapshot BY ANIKA JESI PlantSF [Photo Credit: Colleen McHugh]Paris's popular bike rentals spark electric car plans: Influenced by the success of its bike-sharing program, Paris plans to add the electric car to its repertoire of shared transit.Ground Zero mosque plans move forward after key vote: Despite proposals for symbolic land-use restrictions, NYC's controversial plans to build an Islamic mosque near ground zero are moving forward after a vote to demolish a building in the mosque's proposed site.Food...
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