This measure appeared on the November 2003 San Francisco ballot. What it does This Charter amendment would create new and amended ethics laws governing the conduct of City officials and employees. In general, it attempts to tighten up regulations in the areas of financial interest, campaign contributions, conflicts of interest, contracting with the City, and lobbying.Why it is on the ballot The Ethics…

This measure appeared on the November 2003 San Francisco ballot. What it does The San Francisco City Charter details the retirement benefits of City employees, and any change to their retirement benefits has to be voted on by the citizenry as a Charter amendment. In the case of Prop. B, we are faced with a relatively technical change to the language that will allow…

This measure appeared on the November 2003 San Francisco ballot. What it does Prop. A authorizes the San Francisco Board of Education to issue up to $295 million in general obligation bonds to meet disability access requirements, health and safety codes, and to rehabilitate the buildings and grounds of 31 schools. There will be a $39.7 million State match, for a total rehabilitation cost…

Includes SPUR's analysis of 14 city measures on the November 4, 2003 ballot.

SPUR President Jim Chappell makes a case for the integration of landscaping and engineering in highway design, noting that highways today, like Doyle Drive, need not abandon the earlier concept of parkways.

Tom Radulovich discusses the effectiveness of city-transport balance, and recommends ways to improve San Francisco’s “balkanized” transit services into a larger, multimodal, regional agency.

The article discusses the conditions that led to the success of regional government in Portland, including homogeneity, young political institutions and urban links to natural resource industries.

The article discusses various regional planning efforts and agencies in the Bay Area's history, notes their single-purpose role, and questions what the right approach might be for the future.

This article reviews various efforts to merge ABAG and MTC and argues that the most likely outcome is informal linkages among the agencies and incentive funding to local governments. .

This article reviews and critiques changes to ABAG's growth projections since 1999 when SPUR argued for using policy-based alternatives.

San Francisco's long-term economic and environmental well-being is vulnerable to an aging electric power infrastructure. This paper presents options for electrical generation and upgrading the regional transmission system.

This article reviews the San Francisco Public Utility Commission's analysis of problems and opportunities with various potential sites for the City’s newly won power plants.

Energy policy in San Francisco must also minimize health impacts to residents, while not simply moving production out of the city to impact others.

In 2001, California experienced an energy “perfect storm." This article explains what happened, the proposed PG&E settlement, and policy lessons we can learn from the disaster.

Planners Joshua Switzky and Marshall Foster explain how new housing development can enliven the re-development of large retail sites.

A new amendment to the California Environmental Quality Act adds yet another layer of difficulty to the entitlement process, threatening San Francisco’s capacity to produce infill housing.

Jim Chappell outlines the changes in the roles of the Board of Supervisors in the planning process, which empowers both the Board and the neighbors of proposed projects in appealing building changes and restricting permits.

Everyone thinks the planning process should be democratic. To act in the name of greater democracy trumps almost all other claims in the public discourse. But it’s not at all obvious what this idea really means.

Jeannene Przyblyski asks what lessons San Franciscans can learn from Parisians' involvement as citizens planning their city.

golden gate park