The November 2026 SPUR Voter Guide

This year’s ballot is a beast. We did the research for you.

photo of traffic congestion on the Bay Bridge

Bumper to Bumper

How potential transit service cuts could affect Bay Area traffic, affordability, and carbon emissions

SPUR's Guide to California Housing Laws

A comprehensive analysis for planners, housing advocates, project sponsors, and community stakeholders

People walking in San Jose's San Pedro Square

The SPUR Annual Report

Learn about our impact

new multifamily housing under construction

Permitting Progress

How charter reform can help San Francisco speed delivery of housing, transit, new businesses, and more

Illustration of a crane stacking cargo containers that say "sound fiscal policy," "structural change" and "economic growth"

Balancing Oakland's Budget

Closing the city’s structural deficit to move toward fiscal solvency and economic growth

Design Competition Considers Life After Highway 280

News / September 17, 2013

In the June issue of The Urbanist, we explored the idea of removing Highway 280 north of 16th Street in San Francisco in order to reconnect the Mission Bay and Potrero Hill neighborhoods. This summer, the Center for Architecture presented a design competition to consider what might happen next. Here’s a look at the winning entries and the ideas they propose for transforming this urban barrier into a healthy neighborhood connection.

A New App for Discovering the City That Might Have Been

News / September 17, 2013

In connection with our current exhibition, SPUR is thrilled to announce The Museum of the Phantom City: Unbuilt San Francisco, a free phone app that brings lost treasures of architecture and planning into contemporary life. Created by Irene Cheng and Brett Snyder, the Phantom City iPhone app evokes an alternate city on a mobile phone platform by mapping architectural designs and master plans that…

The View From Futures Past

Urbanist Article / August 28, 2013

This month, we are pleased to devote The Urbanist to Unbuilt San Francisco, an ambitious five-venue exhibition that provides an opportunity to confront visions for the region that never came to pass. Attempts to reconfigure San Francisco according to evolving notions of progress, beauty and justice have often proved controversial — and even traumatic.

Connecting San Francisco's Northeast Neighborhoods

Research / August 14, 2013

The northeast neighborhoods of San Francisco — North Beach, Telegraph Hill, Russian Hill, Fisherman’s Wharf and the edges of Chinatown — have some of the city’s highest densities of residents, workers and tourist activities. Yet there are currently no major plans to increase transit capacity serving the area. SPUR convened a community workshop to assess transit needs in these neighborhoods.

Time to Make Room

Urbanist Article / August 13, 2013

Innovative design solutions can better accommodate the changing — and sometimes surprising — demographics in cities, including a rising number of single people. In New York, a third of all households are single people living alone. In San Francisco, it’s 38 percent. Why aren’t we designing housing for that demographic?