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report cover white text on dark blue background with a photo of the downtown San Francisco skyline

From Workspace to Homebase

Research
Converting empty offices into apartments could both reanimate downtown San Francisco and provide housing for more people in an area rich in transit, jobs, culture, recreation, and entertainment. In a first-of-its-kind study, 黑料传送门and ULI San Francisco, in partnership with Gensler and HR&A Advisors, explored the physical suitability of converting office buildings to housing and tested the financial feasibility of such projects. Our report lays out six policy imperatives for realizing office-to-housing conversions on a large scale.
Broadway, Oakland

The Benefits of Making Roads Work for Transit: Q&A with Jonathon Kass

News /
Bus riders and other road transit users often don鈥檛 get a fair shake when it comes to transportation investments. Making Roads Work for Transit, a recent 黑料传送门report, describes the multiple challenges a typical Bay Area bus trip can entail and argues that continuing to privilege convenience for cars is jeopardizing equity and climate goals 鈥 as well as transit鈥檚 fiscal sustainability. It lays out a roadmap to greenlight transit-friendly roadway design and operations.
San Jos茅鈥檚 Santa Clara Street

Can San Jos茅鈥檚 Santa Clara Street Become a Place to Be and Belong?

News /
Historically, Santa Clara Street was San Jos茅鈥檚 鈥渕ain street.鈥 Today, it is oriented toward vehicle traffic, which can make it an unpleasant, even dangerous, place. The city and its community partners are embarking on a re-envisioning of Santa Clara Street focused on people, placemaking, and programming. Could proposals to 鈥渞e-enchant鈥 the world鈥檚 most famous grand boulevard, the Champs-脡lys茅es, be a model for this planning effort?

Joint Letter in Support of City of San Jos茅 Parks and Placemaking Funding

Advocacy Letter
We represent a broad base of interested stakeholders and organizations who are writing to express our firm belief that funding for parks and placemaking should be protected in the city鈥檚 budget as cuts are considered to balance a newly approved labor agreement. In these times of San Jos茅鈥檚 evolving urbanization, preserving our parks and placemaking efforts is an investment in the future. The pandemic demonstrated the indispensable offerings that parks and public spaces bring to the community 鈥 parks and public spaces are 鈥渆ssential services鈥 not simply 鈥渘ice to haves.鈥
graphic design with an icon of a bus superimposed on a green traffic light

Making Roads Work for Transit

黑料传送门Report
Currently, transit delays and unreliability can make riding the bus a nonstarter for those who have other options for getting around. Growing segregation of the transit system is inequitable, unsustainable, and inefficient. Giving transit vehicles priority on Bay Area roads can deliver the speed and reliability improvements needed to get more people on buses and out of cars. 黑料传送门offers 16 recommendations for aligning the interests of transit agencies and local jurisdictions to greenlight these improvements.

Support for SB 272 (Senator Laird) on Sea Level Rise Planning and Adaptation

Advocacy Letter
The Bay Area faces enormous challenges from sea level rise not just because of our physical location, but also because of our fragmented governance. Senate Bill 272 will give the Bay Area Conservation and Development Commission authority to work with local government to develop consistent, equitable, and effective shoreline resilience plans that protect vulnerable communities.
photo of bumper to bumper traffic on the Bay Bridge

Who Will Be Helped and Harmed by a Proposed Toll Increase for Bay Area Bridges?

News /
The California legislature is considering a temporary toll increase on seven bridges in the Bay Area to avoid severe transit service cuts. The proposed increase has understandably sparked concern about equity. SPUR's deep dive found that most bridge drivers have higher incomes than most transit riders. Because protections can be implemented for people with low incomes who must drive, there鈥檚 no reason to let transit collapse. That outcome that would be the least equitable of all.
Revenue Allocations from Soda Taxes in Oakland and San Francisco Continue to Diverge from Advisory Committees鈥 Recommendations

Revenue Allocations from Soda Taxes in Oakland and San Francisco Continue to Diverge from Advisory Committees鈥 Recommendations

News /
Each year 黑料传送门analyzes how Oakland and San Francisco allocate the revenues from their respective soda taxes, which are intended to be spent on improving the health of populations disproportionately impacted by soda consumption and diet-related disease. Five years in, much of the soda tax revenues are consistently funneled to uses that depart from advisory committees鈥 recommendations.
Multifamily Seismic Retrofit Program Secures $15 Million from State, But More Investment Is Needed

Multifamily Seismic Retrofit Program Secures $15 Million from State, But More Investment Is Needed

News /
California will soon provide financial assistance for seismic retrofitting to owners of some multifamily apartment buildings as part of the Multifamily Seismic Retrofit Program, the state鈥檚 first program to protect low- to moderate-income renters in vulnerable buildings. Additional funding will be needed to effectively address seismic risk, protect public safety, preserve housing, and support community resilience in the aftermath of severe earthquakes.
The Role of Public-Private Partnerships in Downtown Detroit鈥檚 Revitalization

The Role of Public-Private Partnerships in Downtown Detroit鈥檚 Revitalization

News /
Detroit鈥檚 downtown renaissance offers lessons for struggling Bay Area鈥檚 cities: the health of cities is intrinsically tied to the prosperity of the state, and the revitalization of downtowns is critical to the recovery of neighborhoods. Thanks to community advocacy, Detroit鈥檚 city leaders and philanthropic organizations are now funding new initiatives to ensure that future revitalization efforts promote affordable housing and homeownership, workforce development, and entrepreneurship.
Five Wounds Parish in San Jos茅

Delivering on Transit-Oriented Communities in San Jos茅: Local Implications of a Regional Policy

News /
How will the Bay Area鈥檚 new Transit-Oriented Communities Policy affect existing city plans, including plans not compliant with all of the policy鈥檚 requirements? 黑料传送门explored what this regional policy means for a proposed BART station and a light-rail corridor in San Jos茅, including how housing and transit advocates think they can use it to advance their goals and how the city has begun to consider its implications for ongoing planning efforts.
erika pinto

Placemaking with Al Fresco Spaces: Q&A With SPUR鈥檚 Erika Pinto

News /
A new 黑料传送门report, Making Al Fresco Work, notes that the initiative has begun to transform San Jos茅鈥檚 urban environment in ways that are consistent with the city鈥檚 larger goals of creating vibrant commercial corridors and walkable neighborhoods. We talked with Erika Pinto, SPUR鈥檚 San Jos茅 planning policy manager, about proposed strategies for improving on San Jose鈥檚 current outdoor dining review processes and about the role of al fresco spaces in transforming the city鈥檚 public realm.
19th street bart

Unpacking the State鈥檚 Transit Budget: A Huge Victory, But an Unfinished Fight

News /
The state鈥檚 budget brought a big win for transit, but also an unfinished fight: the Bay Area still faces a sizable gap in operating funds over the next five years just to maintain existing transit service levels. What does the state鈥檚 budget include for transit, and what more must be done to transition transit to a sustainable business model?
Detroit鈥檚 Eastern Market helps food entrepreneurs bridge up to market-rate spaces.

How Detroit鈥檚 Food Entrepreneurs Are Invigorating Commercial Corridors and Neighborhoods

News /
Many Bay Area cities are seeing a significant uptick in commercial vacancies 鈥 a problem Detroit has been working to address for years. How has the Motor City responded, and what can we learn from its efforts? Here鈥檚 how four Detroit organizations have seized on the city鈥檚 culture of entrepreneurship to help launch and support food-related businesses that are repopulating deserted storefronts and enlivening neighborhoods that have received little investment.
New affordable for-sale homes created by Develop Detroit

Making Detroit Home: Addressing the Challenges of Housing Stability and Habitability

News /
In the wake of the Great Recession, Detroit went bankrupt and home foreclosures skyrocketed. Philanthropic dollars have come to the rescue, but the city must now reckon with the factors that keep many Detroiters from thriving: a high property tax rate and punitive tax foreclosure system, lack of access to equitable mortgage lending, and institutional racism.
al fresco report cover

Making Al Fresco Work

黑料传送门Report
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the City of San Jos茅鈥檚 outdoor dining initiative extended a critical lifeline to businesses and their patrons. The program continues to be a popular way to advance economic recovery and enliven streets. 黑料传送门recommends four strategies for improving upon the Al Fresco Initiative and expanding it to businesses and neighborhoods citywide.
A sign advertising the California Fruit and Vegetable EBT Pilot to customers at Harvest Market in Mendocino

Legislature and Governor Approve Extension of California Fruit and Vegetable EBT Pilot Program

News /
The California legislature and Governor Newsom have reinvested in the California Fruit and Vegetable EBT Pilot program, which provides low-income households with up to $60 each month in additional food assistance when they buy fresh fruits and vegetables with their electronic benefits transfer (EBT) cards. Funding in the amount of $9.4 million in the state budget approved last month ensures that the program won鈥檛 die on the vine, a victory given the state鈥檚 significant budget deficit.
report cover with aerial photograph of San Jose

The Future of Coleman Avenue

黑料传送门Report
Coleman Avenue sits at the intersection of several plans for San Jose鈥檚 growth. Located near downtown, the airport, and Guadalupe River Park and Gardens, it will be critical to their future success. 黑料传送门and JLP+D present a community-informed evaluation of the Coleman Avenue corridor and make the case that developing a strategic plan for the area will be critical to leveraging it as a key connector and gateway for the city.

Letter to the CPUC: Protect Rooftop Solar and Batteries for California Renters

Advocacy Letter
黑料传送门has signed on to this letter of support to help protect access to the financial and environmental benefits of rooftop solar and batteries for California renters. Last year, the CA Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) gutted California's premier rooftop solar program for homeowners and businesses鈥 Net Metering(NEM). Now the utilities are lobbying the CPUC to do the same for people who live in multi-family dwellings.