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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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Updates and Events

San Jose's First BART Station: More Than a Transit Project

News /
The opening of San Jose’s first BART station marks an important moment for the city. After decades of planning, San Jose will finally connect to the regional rail system. But the potential benefits extend far beyond the station. The city has a unique chance to create a dynamic urban village at Berryessa, its first station, and set a strong precedent for future station area development.

Designing a More Resilient Bay Area

Urbanist Article
The year-long Resilient by Design Bay Area Challenge brought together local residents, public officials, designers and engineers to develop innovative proposals that can strengthen the Bay Area’s resilience to sea level rise, severe storms, earthquakes and flooding. The nine final design concepts are meant to inspire, catalyze action and push us all along the path to a more resilient future.

At Last, the Tide Turns on Downtown Oakland’s Office Market

News /
Downtown Oakland now has the tightest commercial market in the country, with a vacancy rate of 5.3 percent. As a result, commercial rents in downtown Oakland have shot up. After many years of construction costs stubbornly remaining higher than commercial rents, it has finally become financially feasible to build new office buildings downtown.

SPUR Supports the Diridon Integrated Station Concept (DISC) Plan

Advocacy Letter
SPUR strongly supports VTA, the City of Jose, Caltrain and the California High Speed Rail (CAHSR) Authority entering into a cooperative agreement as a first step toward joint planning and governance of San Jose’s central station, Diridon.

Where Exactly Is “the Bay Area”?

News /
The San Francisco Bay Area has long been understood as the nine counties that touch the Bay — but this border doesn’t always hold. Addressing many of our current regional challenges — such as job access, housing affordability and congestion — will require working at many scales. Given this, is the traditional nine-county definition the correct scale for SPUR's Regional Strategy project?
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