New PPIC Report Argues for Jobs, Not Homes, Near Transit
News / The Public Policy Institute of California has just released a new series of reports assessing how prepared California is to implement Senate Bill 375, a state mandate to reduce driving through better land use planning. One report focuses on the connection between transit and jobs. The other focuses on the tools planners can use to reduce driving and the willingness of local officials to…
Twitter's Possible Relocation Opens Debate over How to Keep Jobs in the City
News / San Francisco might be the cultural center of the region, but in the technology sector the city has generally played second fiddle to the Silicon Valley. That began to change during the dot-com boom and then again more recently, a new generation of startups is setting up in neighborhoods like SoMa and Potrero Hill. (SPUR discussed the trend in its “ year in urbanism…
Ocean Beach: In Context
News / New Exhibit at the SPUR Urban Center Gallery! Opening: Tuesday, February 15th, 6:00 p.m. On view at the SPUR Urban Center Gallery, 654 Mission Street, San Francisco, CA 94105 (through March 8th). Tuesday, February 15, 2011, 6-8 pmSPUR Urban Center654 Mission Street, San FranciscoAdmission: Free for members, $5 non-members About the ExhibitSPUR is leading an interagency master planning process for Ocean…
The Datablog Takes to the Road
News / When I entered Stamen’s offices in the Mission district of San Francisco, I saw four people gathered around a computer screen. What were they doing? Nothing less than “mapping the world,” not as it appears in flat dimension, but how it reveals itself. And they weren’t joking. Stamen, a data visualization firm, has always kept the concept of “place” central to many of their…
Your thoughts on Ocean Beach
News / At our open house and workshop on January 15th, we presented a series of presentation boards and invited your feedback. Below you can download the original boards, and high-resolution images of the boards annotated with your comments. Image + character Download the original board (PDF) Download board with comments (JPG) Uses + activities + program Download the original board (PDF) Download board with comments (JPG)…
Let’s Not Miss the Boat on What the America’s Cup Could do for San Francisco
News / When it comes to global sporting events, almost as intense as the competition between star athletes is the competition between cities to play host. That’s because hosting a major international sporting event presents a unique opportunity for a city to redefine its development goals, stimulate investment and boost tourism. Just last month it was decided that San Francisco would host the 34 th America’s Cup…
SPUR POPOS Guide Now in Google Maps!
News / Update: our POPOS guide is now available as an iPhone app, too! A year and a half ago SPUR revealed some of San Francisco's best kept secrets: a rich network of privately owned public open spaces (POPOS) scattered throughout the city's downtown urban area. These are great spots around downtown to eat lunch, hold an informal meeting, or simply soak up some nature…
Greening Apartment Buildings
SPUR Report New green construction codes are important, but in a built-out city like San Francisco, retrofitting our existing built environment is key to creating a truly sustainable city. SPUR recommends creating a web-based tool that will educate property owners and increase awareness of the many free incentive and rebate programs currently available in San Francisco.
It Takes a Village... to Close a Power Plant
News / The December 21, 2010 announcement that San Francisco's polluting Potrero Power Plant would shut down by the end of the year was as much a cause for celebration as it was a reason to recount the twists and turns that it took to finally shutter the city's last fossil fuel-burning commercial power plant. For many years, the preferred method of closing Potrero was to build…
Re-thinking Redevelopment
News / Our new governor is proposing to eliminate redevelopment in California. Yesterday, SPUR's executive director, Gabriel Metcalf, weighed in on the debate with an opinion piece in the Chronicle, arguing that we should reform, rather than eliminate, redevelopment.
January 15th Public Open House material
News / In case you missed our January 15th workshop, or want a closer look at the content, here are the materials that were presented for public feedback. It's a large file (~25M) showing all the boards. We will be posting the individual boards shortly. The project team is working hard to transcribe all the feedback and ideas we received check back soon to review it…
SF Muni Buses Become Canvases for Mobile Public Art
News / [Photo Credit: flickr user Todd Gilens] After the interminable wait for a San Francisco Muni bus, its eventual arrival is a cause for celebration and relief. And for the next three months, it could also prove to be a rare treat if your route happens to feature one of the four city buses serving as vehicles for a public art project from local artist…
Join us for a public workshop and open house
News / Saturday, Jan 15th, 2011 9am-2pm (open house -- you may come for any portion) The Great Hall, SF Zoo Education Center, 1 Zoo Road (at Sloat Blvd) ( Map) SPUR (San Francisco Planning + Urban Research Association), along with the National Park Service, California State Coastal Conservancy, and SF Public Utilities Commission, is leading a new long-range planning effort for Ocean Beach. Please join…
Beyond the Tracks
SPUR Report For the 26 California cities designated as future high-speed rail stops, the new statewide system presents a once-in-a-century opportunity to reshape their local economies and set the course for more compact, less automobile-dependent growth. Beyond the Tracks identifies specific land-use planning strategies that will contribute to the success of high-speed rail and help cities, and ultimately California, realize the full potential of the multi-billion-dollar system.
Civic Labs
News / As part of their Technology Horizons Program the Institute for the Future just released “A Planet of Civic Laboratories: The Future of Cities, Information, and Inclusion.” This study takes some of the most significant trends in technology and forecasts the potential social applications in urban environments. It’s fascinating. Here were a few highlights: -Facing budget deficits, city governments will increasingly turn to crowdsourcing as…
California's Groundbreaking Green Building Ordinance
News / The LEED Silver San Francisco Federal Building set a standard for green construction in the city [Photo Credit: flickr user Oldvidhead] Green building regulations are nothing new. For over a decade, cities have taken the lead in the adoption of green building standards. States have been slower to follow suit, but at present 35 states have adopted green building ordinances that either outline policies…
Bay Area Visionary, Richard Goldman, Dies at 90
News / Last week the Bay Area lost one of its most generous and influential environmental leaders. Richard Goldman, co-founder of the Richard and Rhoda Goldman Fund, died at home on November 29. Through their family foundation, Richard and his wife Rhoda have given away hundreds of millions of dollars to a variety of arts and environmental initiatives. The Goldmans are perhaps best known for the…