SPUR Planning Policy Area

Planning

We believe: Growth can be good and should be directed to areas
that will support equitable development and sustainability.

Our Goals

• Leverage growth to create great neighborhoods and public spaces.

• Protect and expand open space.

• Concentrate new jobs and housing in downtowns and near major transit hubs.

• Grow up, not out.

Photo of a locally owned bakery storefront in downtown San Francisco

Policy Brief

Small and Mighty

San Francisco’s small businesses face complex regulations, rising costs, and slow economic recovery after the pandemic. SPUR identifies seven interventions to support the city's small business sector.
Read More
Photo of high rise buildings in downtown San Francisco

SPUR Report

From Workspace to Homebase

Converting empty offices into apartments could both reanimate downtown San Francisco and provide housing for more people near transit, jobs, and culture. SPUR explores the suitability of converting office buildings to housing and tests the financial feasibility.
Read More
illustration of a mixed-used downtown with offices, restaurants, childcare, retail, greenspace and transit

Urbanist Article

What If We Get Downtown Right?

SPUR asked community leaders: “What would it look like if cities were to get downtown right?” We invited them to picture a future in which today’s ideas and policy proposals for downtown revitalization are put into place ... and they work.
Read More
photo of a pedestrian bridge and tree cover over the Guadalupe River

Virtual Exhibition

Re-Envisioning the Guadalupe River Park

The Guadalupe River Park is downtown San José’s most important urban green space, but it faces serious challenges. SPUR's virtual exhibition celebrates the promise of the river park and brings together three years of research and conversation about its future.
Read More

Updates and Events

SPUR Supports San Jose City Council Priorities for 2016

Advocacy Letter
SPUR supports the following two items that have been nominated as part of the San Jose City Council's priority-setting process: the Downtown Active Storefronts Initiative and the San Jose Urban Agriculture Incentive Zone ordinance.

Un-doing the Grand Bargain That Created the Housing Trust Fund

News /
In 2012, the voters of San Francisco passed Proposition C, a consensus measure that created a $1.2 billion set-aside for affordable housing while also reducing the on-site inclusionary housing requirement, which obliges developers of market-rate housing to build some affordable units on the same site. Now some city leaders are revisiting whether the measure asked enough from developers.

What It Will Take to Connect BART to the South Bay

News /
The BART Silicon Valley extension is the largest transportation investment the South Bay will make for decades. Phase I of the extension is under construction and scheduled to start service in the fall of 2017. Now the Santa Clara VTA and many others must answer the question: Where will the money for Phase II come from?

Cracking the Code

Policy Brief
Great urban design is essential to creating sustainable, walkable cities. But oftentimes city codes undermine urban design principles. How might San Jose raise the bar on its urban design? SPUR proposes that the city address the ground rules of design — in the municipal code, largely under the planning and zoning code — in order to have the greatest positive impact on new development.

SPUR Comments On Downtown Strategy 2040 EIR Update Notice of Preparation

Advocacy Letter
San Jose will prepare an EIR for the Downtown Strategy 2040, which is an update to the Downtown Strategy 2000. SPUR hopes that the EIR update process will align with the urban aspirations of the Envision 2040 General Plan and make the most of the combined billions of dollars of transit investments coming to downtown.

Cracking the Code on Urban Design

Urbanist Article
SPUR examines the zoning code in San Jose and other West Coast cities with the goal of identifying opportunities for San Jose to up its urban design game.
Get Our Newsletters