Upcoming Events

The budget and fiscal revenue of a city can often seem like a black box. We know that money comes out of the box to pay for necessary services, but where does it come from and what happens to it? Do taxpayers contribute enough to cover the city’s roughly $11 billion budget? How much of that sum comes from agencies that generate some of their own revenue? Are there additional sources? Crack open the city’s books with us and explore where San Francisco gets its money.

Four decades ago, a community of Hasidim fled the cost and crowds of Brooklyn to create Kiryas Joel (City of Joel) in upstate New York. This thriving, ultra-Orthodox village of 22,000 had lived peacefully with its neighbors in the pastoral town of Monroe until Kiryas Joel sought to double its geographic footprint to keep up with its population. Emmy-winning filmmaker Jesse Sweet was given unprecedented access to follow the clash of cultures as tensions grew between the politically-powerful Kiryas Joel residents and their secular neighbors in a beautiful documentary that raises important questions about the separation of church and state, the balance of rights and whether a once-powerless minority can become too powerful. In partnership with the San Francisco Jewish Film Festival.

Delivering Housing Faster Over the last several years, San Francisco has pushed to approve more housing in an effort to address the region’s ongoing housing shortage. Now, with a record 70,000 units in the pipeline, there is important work happening on both the public and private sides to quickly get those approved projects permitted and built. Learn what it takes to deliver this much-needed housing, which is often created as part of very large mixed-use projects that require major infrastructure investments.

Farmers’ markets and grocery stores both offer bountiful selections of fruits and vegetables, tempting us to buy some to take home or have delivered to our doorstep. But the process of getting food to each of those retail settings can vary significantly. Selling wholesale and selling direct-to-consumer are different beasts, making it difficult to scale a local food economy. Discover the challenges and opportunities that farmers and grocers face as you sample farm-fresh fruit. Co-presented by CUESA and generously sponsored by the Bi-Rite Family of Businesses .

In the last decade, the transportation sector has seen an immense rate of innovation and change, but amid both the advancements and controversies, who has been left behind? How can we break down the financial and physical barriers to both new and existing services? Join us to explore how policy and design can make transportation physically and financially accessible for all.

Building on the knowledge gained in Urban Design 101, this session focuses on the problems that urban designers are facing in contemporary practice. In part two of a two-part primer on urban design, come explore the questions that practitioners struggle with on a daily basis. What does good design look like in 2019? How can new buildings engage with the street in the best way possible? Do municipal codes handcuff creativity? And why do we struggle to make great urban places today?

The Port of San Francisco released an update to the San Francisco Waterfront Plan last year, which took aim at strengthening the city’s border with the Bay in order to address hazards and adapt to future risks. In support of this effort, the port is also leveraging seawall and resilience investments to support historic pier rehabilitation projects along the Embarcadero. Come learn more about the port’s initiatives from the managers of these projects.

Even in its earliest days, San Jose had a reputation as a hard-drinking town. From early vineyards to homemade mezcal and peach brandy to German breweries, the city has a libation-rich legacy, despite getting a head start on Prohibition with the closure of all of its saloons in 1918. Although much of San Jose’s boozing is relegated to the history books, traces of this past remain if you know where to look. Join us for a stroll through the Diridon Station area, where we’ll have our minds on the past and our glasses raised.

Workforce development and employment-based practices have been proven to help end homelessness while also complementing “housing first” efforts. Groups like San Jose’s Downtown Streets Team work to change perceptions, rebuild positive work habits and restore community for those experiencing homelessness. Join us for a conversation with these important groups that are partnering to train and provide employment opportunities for the San Jose community.

In 2018, the four public agencies mostly involved in the transformation of Diridon Station — the California High-Speed Rail Authority, the City of San Jose, Caltrain and the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority — entered into a funding and cooperation agreement designed to develop the Diridon Integrated Station Concept into reality. A year later, the partnership has been recognized across the state as a unique joint planning effort, but there is still much work to be done. Hear from each agency about the next steps, the exciting goals in the partnership’s second year and some of the lessons learned in planning for this groundbreaking transportation hub.

Join us to play a round or two of “In It Together,” a board game about sea level rise adaptation in which players represent diverse stakeholders and initiate adaptation actions, such as living levees, floating cities and community land trusts. Use your wits and your instinct to work competitively or cooperatively, exploring the impacts of both collaborative and solo actions. The game acts as a decision-making tool for a warming world, one that fosters new relationships between economies, design and the public.

With nearly 60 years under its belt, the San Jose Flea Market has become one of the largest open-air markets in all of California. Located next to the nearly completed Berryessa/North San Jose BART station, the market has now teamed up with a local placemaking firm to expand its existing site and create new opportunities and excitement for attendees. Get an up close and personal look at the new “Garden at the Flea,” including a beer garden, stage, games and, as its name suggests, a garden.