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

Downtown San Jose Growing Up — and Out

News /
Adopted in 2011, San Jose’s ambitious Envision 2040 plan included goals of bringing more than 10,000 new homes and nearly 50,000 jobs to downtown San Jose. Every year, SPUR reports on the progress we’re making as a city to realize these goals. This year, we’re seeing three positive trends, as well as major decisions on the horizon.

San Jose Updates Its Ambitious Plans for St. James Park

News /
St. James Park has long been a center of civic pride for San Jose, but lately the park has battled a reputation for being unsafe and unpleasant. In 2016, the city hosted a national competition and selected CMG Landscape Architecture to reimagine the design and programming of the park. At a recent SPUR forum, CMG and other partners shared the progress made since then.

Should Oakland Tax Vacant Properties?

News /
According to a recent analysis of data from the Alameda County Assessor’s Office and the City of Oakland, there are approximately 4,000 vacant parcels in Oakland. In a move that could prompt owners of these properties to build on them — and in the process generate revenue for purposes including homeless services — Oakland is considering imposing a tax on vacant properties.

San Francisco's Next Mayor

Policy Brief
By any measure, the previous decade has been a period of dramatic change and growth for San Francisco. But for many, this unprecedented prosperity has failed to address — and has even contributed to — the many challenges the city still faces. SPUR offer a platform of specific policy goals and practical solutions for the next mayor and the city for the years ahead.
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