grid of blue and red squares

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

multifamily housing in downtown Oakland

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

The Last Time We Tried to Fix Muni

Urbanist Article /
Brad Paul interprets an interview of John Kirkwood, author of a 1973 SPUR report, "Building a New Muni," just prior to the eventual approval of a charter amendment to reform Muni by creating the SFMTA.

Interview: John Jacobs

Urbanist Article /
SPUR's deep involvement with city planning issues, while guiding SPUR's expansion into new policy areas of city management, finance, and the democratic decision-making process. He has an intimate knowledge of the dynamics of change in San Francisco during the 1970s, from the founding of the GGNRA, to the effects of Proposition 13, to the continuing transformation of San Francisco's economic base. In February of this…

Interview: John Hirten

Urbanist Article /
In January of 1999 SPUR's deputy director, Gabriel Metcalf, interviewed John Hirten to talk about the first decade of SPUR's existence and, more specifically, about urban renewal. As SPUR's first executive director, John Hirten was a national spokesman for enhancing our cities, through the federal urban renewal movement, and was one of the key actors behind San Francisco's programs. This candid interview between two generations…

An Interview With Dorothy Erskine

Urbanist Article /
While the world has changed a great deal in the last 40 years, and SPUR along with it, certain remarkable individuals had a prescience about the core values that make a difference. One such person was Dorothy Erskine (1896-1982), a founder of both SPUR and Greenbelt Alliance, and a key participant in a wide variety of civic planning activities. Were she here today, we would…