photo of San Francisco City Hall

The Next 100 Days

An urbanist decision-making framework for San Francisco’s new mayor

illustration of people helping each other climb a staircase made of red tape

Purchasing Power

Improving San Francisco’s procurement process to deliver more equitable services

bicycle rider in a green bike lane on an urban street

Success on the Street

How California’s CEQA exemption can help cities build modern mobility faster

Mural painted on the headquarters of the Calle 24 Latino Cultural District

Culture as Catalyst

How arts and culture districts can revitalize downtowns

Illustration of houses plugging into electricity

Closing the Electrification Affordability Gap

Planning an equitable transition away from fossil fuel heat in Bay Area buildings

Funding Regional Transit — and Managing Risk in Uncertain Times

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SPUR is serving on an MTC-appointed select committee to explore legislation that would put a regional transit revenue measure on the ballot in a future election. Two other regional funding measure efforts — SB 1031 for transit, and the BAHFA bond for housing — were both paused earlier this year, casting a cautionary light on regional funding measures. Our recent comments to the committee focus on how to set up the current transit proposal for success.

Prop 4: Investing Now to Cut Future Climate Costs

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California is already paying the cost of climate change impacts from devastating wildfires, droughts, floods, and other extreme weather events. By investing in climate action now, voters can reduce future costs both economic and social. California Prop. 4 would put $10 billion toward safe drinking water, drought resilience, ecosystem restoration, resilience to natural hazards, and more.

Smoothing the Transition to Heat Pumps, Part 1: Code Changes

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As the Bay Area phases out sales of gas furnaces and water heaters, more and more property owners will need to install zero-pollution, high-efficiency electric heat pumps in homes. City planners must quickly make these installations easier and more affordable by amending municipal zoning ordinances and permitting processes. In the first article of a series on accelerating heat pump adoption, SPUR recommends four zoning code strategies.

It’s California’s Duty to Make Streets Safe for All Users

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In 2023, an estimated 4,000 people died on California’s roadways. More than 30% of these traffic deaths happened on state-owned roads. It doesn’t have to be this way. SPUR — together with CalBike, WalkSF, StreetsforAll, KidSafeSF, and AARP California — is sponsoring Senate Bill 960 to make state roads that function as local streets safer by design. In this article, we share testimony from a California mom who lost her husband to a collision that safer street design could have prevented.