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.
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.
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.
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.

Updates and Events


Replacing Doyle Drive

Urbanist Article
Michael Alexander discusses Doyle Drive, a project that finally reached consensus after heated debate, only to be delayed by state budget woes.

On the Level

Urbanist Article
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.

Case Study in Regional Planning: Portland's Metro Council

Urbanist Article
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.

Bay Area Regionalism - Can We Get There?

Urbanist Article
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.

ABAG and MTC: Closer to Coordination?

Urbanist Article
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. .

Projections 2003: A Review and Critique

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