George A. Miller, SPUR board member from 2015 to 2022, member of the Finance Committee, and past member of the Ballot Analysis Committee, died on February 4, two days before his 89th birthday, as he was preparing to rejoin the SPUR Board of Directors for another term. George was one of a kind — a deep thinker, an urbanist, an environmentalist, a brilliant investment strategist, and an irreverent raconteur who was smart enough not to take himself too seriously. He will be greatly missed.

On February 3, David Friedman joined the SPUR staff as interim president and CEO. A leader in the engineering field, David is deeply committed to SPUR’s mission and the transformative power of public policy. He shares a look at SPUR’s policy agenda for 2025, including high-impact initiatives in housing, planning transportation, sustainability and resilience, and governance.

Bay Area downtowns have faced significant social and economic challenges since the COVID-19 pandemic. In a new brief, SPUR’s Erika McLitus and Sujata Srivastava explore how cultural districts can play a transformative role in breathing new life into these urban landscapes. We asked them about the potential of cultural districts to both enhance the vibrancy of downtown areas and promote equity and belonging, ultimately paving the way for a more resilient urban future.

SPUR President and CEO Alicia John-Baptiste will be leaving SPUR to take on a newly created policy chief role with the San Francisco Mayor’s Office. On February 3, she will join Mayor Daniel Lurie’s administration as Chief of Infrastructure, Climate & Mobility. The position reports directly to the mayor and is part of a restructuring intended to help break down silos and reduce complexity in city government.

Oakland is at a pivotal moment as city leaders work to address a significant budget shortfall of $129 million this year, with an additional $280 million projected over the next two years. Solutions to the city’s structural deficit may come from examining how past budget priorities and decisions led to current challenges.