FEBRUARY 2014
OSPUR SPUR BOARD OF DIRECTORS Chair Anne Halsted Executive Vice Chair David Friedman Vice Chairs Alexa Arena Andy Barnes Emilio Cruz Bill Rosetti Carl Shannon Lydia Tan v. Fei Tsen Secretary Mary Mccue Treasurer Bob Gamble Immediate Past Co-Chair Linda Jo Fitz Advisory Council Co-Chairs Michael Alexander Paul Sedway
Board Members Carl Anthony Veronica Bell Chris Block Larry Burnett Michaela Cassidy Madeline Chun Michael Cohen Charmaine Curlis Oz Erickson Manny Flores Geoff Gibbs Gillian Gillett Chris Gruwell Ed Harrington Dave Hartley Aidan Hughes Chris Iglesias Laurie Johnson Vijay Kumar Susan Leal Dick Lonergan John Madden Jacinta Mccann Hyrdra Mendoza Ezra Mersey Terry Micheau Mary Murphy Jeanne Myerson
Adh1 Nagra1 Brad Paul Rich Peterson Chris Poland Joan Price Teresa Rea Byron Rhett Rebecca Rhine Wade Rose Paul Sedway Victor Seeto Elizabeth Seifel Chi-Hsin Shao Doug Shoemaker Ontario Smith Bill Stoller Stuart Sunshine Gary Teague Michael Teitz Mike Theriault Will Travis Jeff Tumlin Molly Turner Steve Vettel Francesca Vietor Fran Weld Allison Williams Cindy Wu
News at SPUR Mayor Lee Takes Important Steps to Address San Francisco's Housing Crisis In response to the housing crisis in San Francisco, Mayor Edwin Lee has convened a task force to look at ways to increase housing affordability in the city. This task force will focus on finding ways to to create and rehabilitate 30,000 units of housing by 2020, with one third of these units affordable to low and moderate income households. The task force will aim to develop policy solutions to meet this ambitious goal and to see those solutions through to implementation. We look forward to working with the Mayor on this critical effort.
CHAIRS I COMMITTEES
'""""'
Co111111mees Ballot Analysis Bob Gamble Disaster Planning Laurie Johnson Chris Poland Housing Lydia Tan Project Review Charmaine Curtis Mary Beth Sanders Reuben Schwartz Transportation Anthony Bruzzone Water Policy Bry Sarte
Regional Planning Larry Burnell Libby Seifel
Olltrltlng
Commntees Audit John Madden Building Management Terry Micheau Business Membership Rich Peterson Terry Micheau Executive David Friedman Anne Halsted
Finance Bob Gamble Human Resources Mary Mccue Individual Membership Bill Stoller Investment Ann Lazarus Major Donors Linda Jo Fitz Anne Halsted Planned Giving Michaela Cassidy Silver SPUR Dave Hartley Teresa Rea
SAN JOSE CITY BOARD Chair Robert Steinberg Vice Chair Connie Martinez
2
MARCH 2014
Board Members Chris Block J. Richard Braugh Garrett Herbert Karla Rodriguez Lomax
Connie Martinez Suzanne Rice Lydia Tan Jessica Zenk
Draft Urban Forest Master Plan Released Trees are one of the few types of urban infrastructure that grow in value as they age, yet years of underfunding has left San Francisco's tree canopy in decline. To address this problem, the SF Planning Department along with the Urban Forest Council and Friends of the Urban Forest recently released a draft master plan to help protect, grow and manage this nearly $2 billion asset. SPUR participated in the development of the plan and provided comments on the draft. To learn more, visit www.sf-planning. org/index.aspx?page=3166
Planning the Land Uses for San Jose's BART and Caltrain station In 2010, San Jose embarked on a planning process for the future development of Diridon, the central transit
hub of the South Bay, and the 250 acres of land that surround it. The resulting Diridon Station Area Plan (DSAP) proposes 5 million square feet of commercial space, 425,000 square feet of retail, 2,588 residential and hotel units and a new MLB ballpark. The environmental impacts of the plan were released in a Draft EIR in December 2013. SPUR submitted a letter supporting the overall land plan of the DSAP, noting concerns about specific aspects of the plan.
Can SF Take Down 1-280? San Francisco has released an RFP for a Railyards Alternatives and 1-280 Boulevard Feasibility Study, which will analyze the opportunities created by boulevarding 1-280, improving the 4th and King Railyards while also planning for the Downtown Rail Extension (DTX) and high-speed rail. The goals of the project are: to improve circulation for transit,
The Urbanist is edited by Allison Arieff and designed by Shawn Hazen, hazencreative.com.
LETTER FROM THE EDITOR
cars, pedestrians and cyclists; grow transit-oriented jobs and housing in a prime location; unlock economic value by improving the neighborhoods; and increase connectivity between SoMa, Potrero Hill, Showplace Square and Mission Bay. The study will apply rigorous analysis to the bold ideas presented in SPUR 's 2013 report Taking Down a Freeway to Reconnect a Neighborhood and also builds on the SF Planning Department's 2012 report Fourth and King Street Railyards: Opportunities and Constraints.
Increased City Revenue Offers New Opportunities On February 14, SPUR's Municipal Fiscal Advisory Committee (MFAC) brought together city staff and experts on the local economy to discuss trends that will affect San Francisco's budget. The focus of this year's Annual Economic Briefing, was the sustained and exceptional growth of the city 's economy across all major industries. led by the tech sector. While still only 8 percent of the local economy, tech has accounted for 30 percent of San Francisco's job growth since 2010, and its multiplier effects are responsible for virtually all of the city 's employment growth in that period. The booming economy will translate into increased revenue for the city, which now has a nearly $8 billion annual budget (an increase of 1.5 billion since 2010) and provides an opportunity for investing in improved services and enhanced infrastructure. SPUR is working to ensure that our prosperity delivers benefits for all the city's residents. THE URBANIST
r
Creating a New Future for Downtown San Jose Downtown San Jose is the most walkable, transit-oriented and dynamic
place in the South Bay, and it is poised to increasingly benefit from the growing trend toward working and living in urban centers. But downtown San Jose needs more people. After decades of investment in buildings and public spaces. it has the room and the amenities to welcome many more workers, students, residents and visitors. And people attract more people: As the number of those enjoying downtown city life begins to grow, the vitality and dynamism Egon Terplan is of the place will grow. Today, downtown San Jose is full of people on an SPUR'SRegional episodic basis, particularly when there are major events. But we want to Planning Director see this level of activity become part of daily life. San Jose's downtown is home to the city's oldest and most iconic structures, like the 18th-century Peralta Adobe and the Bank of America tower. It also boasts the city's key civic spaces, like St. James Park and Cesar Chavez Plaza, where people still gather to share public celebrations or solace after tragedy. It houses anchor institutions like San Jose State University, numerous museums and theaters. the San Jose Sharks and other destinations that bring people together for an urban experience. Downtown San Jose is also the only downtown in the South Bay that is ready to grow in a serious way. In the context of other communities that often reject growth , the city's willingness to expand and make use of downtown's infrastructure is an economic development asset that will only become more important over time. Many downtowns in the United States are experiencing revivals, with new residents , jobs, investment and overall attention. Downtowns in Denver, Portland and San Diego have reshaped themselves in the past couple of decades and now exert a strong pull on talent and investment. Recognizing this, San Jose is ready to turn downtown into a dynamic place that befits an increasingly urban city. Some might argue that San Jose has been here before, with its downtown poised for success . We think that present conditions are different, and a decade from now downtown will be a much livelier place. But we don't believe there's one silver-bullet solution. Instead, we recommend pursuing a number of different approaches simultaneously. Downtown is already developing its own sense of spirit and place - on the Paseo de San Antonio, around San Pedro Square, at San Jose State, among the local businesses. in the nightlife. That bubbling urban energy should be enhanced and encouraged . This is a time to embrace those with energy and ideas - and to reduce the barriers that currently prevent more vitality from taking place. In this issue of The Urbanist (and our report "The Future of Downtown San Jose"), SPUR presents the steps that we believe San Jose needs to take to get there. •
MARCH 2014
3
DOWNTOWN SAN JOSE
TransformiJg Downtown San Jose
Summary: Downtown San Jose is the only downtown in the South Bay that is ready to grow in a serious way. Here are si x big ideas to help make that happen .
Six ideas for strengthening the
By Egon Terplan
urban center of the South Bay.
Downtown San Jose is the largest single urban center in the South Bay - a dense, walkable core surrounded by historic neighborhoods and anchored by San Jose State University, which enrolls nearly 30,000 students. It is the location of some of the Bay Area 's most significant future regional transportation infrastructure investments, from BART to Caltrain to high-speed rail. It is an important, yet nonetheless single, node of activity within the open , decentralized and competitive landscape of the South Bay. But downtown San Jose is south of some of the major economic centers in the South Bay, and as such is not connected to the travel patterns of many South Bay workers and residents. Less than 4 percent of the county's jobs are located downtown. It takes a special trip for many people to go downtown. And many don 't go at all. When they do, they are not always sure what part of downtown to head to, where there's certain to be lots of activity. At the same time, the public transit speeds remain uncompetitive with the automobile, so most who do come downtown arrive via car.
Thank you to the SPUR San Jose Advisory Board, the Urban Catalyst Team , SOM, Fehr and Peers, City of San Jose staff, VTA staff, San Jose Downtown Association , and the many participants in SPUR's project on the future of downtown San Jose. Thank you to Shane Zhao, SOM for assistance with maps.
So how might we change that? -7 FIGURE 1
The Geography of Downtown San Jose
4
MARCH 2014
THE URBANIST
Downtown San Jose SPUR defines downtown San Jose as the
Street to 1-280. It is larger than downtown
Light Rail
800-plus-acre area that stretches east from
Oakland 's 750 acres and larger than San
Caltrain and Amtrak
Diridon Station to City Hall and San Jose
Francisco's 620-acre downtown commercial
Altamont Corridor Express
State University, and south from Coleman
district.
Future BART Extension • • • Future Bus Rapid Transit
THE URBANIST
MARCH 2014
5
DOWNTOWN SAN JOSE
BIG IDEA
D
Welcome all ki ds of uses into downtown but hold out fo jobs near regional transit.
A great downtown is both a job center and a central
The challenge for San Jose is to create a
social district. Today, downtown San Jose isl a small job center (with approximately 36,00<D jobs,
major downtown center, with high volumes
comparable to cities like Jacksonville, El Pa~o and Bakersfield). Bringing more jobs into downtbwn has long been a key city strategy, given the
co-~enefits
of pedestrian activity, within a region that is overwhelmingly low-density and cardependent. Yet despite the many surface parking lots, downtown's total build out
of downtown employment, such as tax reve pues,
potential is limited by the airport flight
higher transit ridership and a daytime popu\ation
path (height restrictions) and high parking
base that supports retail and street life. With plans to
demand that results in buildings where
extend BART to downtown San Jose, it is irrj portant to make the most of that investment and ensure that
more space might be devoted to storing cars than housing workers.
downtown has a large capacity for jobs. In San Jose's Envision 2040 General Plan, downtown (including Diridon) is expected
tbhave
ro.ooo
the capacity to add nearly 50,000 jobs and housing units. But SPUR's analysis shows that it will be difficult to achieve those goals given tw9 major limits on growth - height restrictions from the airport, and parking (which is both a requir5ment and a market expectation). Quite simply, many IJ uildings 1
can be no taller than 20 stories, leaving a limited building envelope to balance between cars
~ nd
people. I While we understand the significant benefits of bringing jobs into downtown, we balance jthis against the reality of decades of weak job growth in downtown San Jose and continued employment growth in scattered office parks and
campu~es
throughout the South Bay. SPUR believes thf~ San Jose needs, in general, to follow the market lvvith regards to use, while having very firm requi~lements about density and urban design - with one key exception. We believe it is critical to make 1aximum use of the development opportunity within the halfmile of regional transit (BART and Caltrain) btations I
and to preserve key parcels for jobs within the immediate vicinity of those stations (i.e., a +artermile). We also think downtown has to eliminate its minimum parking requirements and try to er courage developments to be more creative about parking, such as providing some parking options offs,ite.
6
MARCH 2014
THE URBANIST
THE URBANIST
MARCH 2014
7
DOWNTOWN SAN JOSE
BIG IDEA
Make sure that what gets built adheres to core urban design p ~inciples.
Many good plans and principles have guided development in downtown San Jose. from the Downtown Strategy to the Streetscape Masl er Plan . But not all new development adheres to or supports these already-adopted ideas. The current development culture of the city treats each project as a negotiation, and sometimes good principles of urban design are sacrificed in the process. j Every time a new building presents blank walls or highly visible parking to the street, or has low ceilings on the ground floor. it degrades the experie~ce of the place and sets back the cause of downt9wn . San Jose deserves better, and the great buildings that downtown already has deserve better neighbors . While we argued in our first big idea that do~ntown should be flexible about use. we believe the city must hold the line on requ iring good design . Our recommendation is simple: Make sure all nef buildings have ground-floor ceiling heights of 15 to 18 feet and that the ground floor is wrapped with active uses. While there are many other components to good urban design, we want to highlight the most crucial issues for new development to ensure that downtown becomes increasingly walkable.
Downtown San Jose is working to create a central place for people within a region that is very reliant on cars. Essential to that goal is making sure that what gets built follows core design principles. As an example, when a building presents blank walls or highly visible parking to the street (as seen above), pedestrians don't feel welcome. A better alternative is seen (below left) on downtown's Paseo de San Antonio.
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MA RCH 2014
E
_g
Q_
0 BIG IDEA
IJ
2S minute Transit Shed
Promote Central San Jose.
Like many downtowns across the United States, downtown San Jose is ringed with walkable historic neighborhoods - like Willow Glen, Japantown and Naglee Park - each with its own distinct character. Although not all residents in these communities always make use of downtown, they are a huge potential source of customers and visitors for downtown businesses and amenities. But unlike some other cities, downtown San Jose is surrounded by many competing centers for work, shopping and other activities (such as Santana Row and North 1st Street). Within a 30-minute transit trip, downtown residents have access to 300,000 jobs, one-third of all jobs in Santa Clara County. Additionally, there are 200,000 residents who live within a 30-minute ride of downtown on local transit. The city should plan and proTHE URBANIST
Downtown San Jose
- - Light Rall - - Caltraln -
Altamont Corridor Express
-
VTA Express and Limited Bus Routes, and DASH Shuttle
mote downtown as nested within a larger area called "Centra l San Jose" that has numerous great places. And it should focus on how to connect downtdwn to these other nodes within the central area). The essence of this third idea is to reframe tre discussion about downtown to view the surroJnding jobs and areas as an asset, not a threat. In particular, SPUR suggests considering the benefits of be+er connecting downtown San Jose to the areas tliat are within a reasonable distance by transit or on a bicycle. Downtown is stronger when it is part of something larger. SPUR recommends redrawi1g downtown and city maps to acknowledge Central San Jose. We also suggest prioritizing bicycle ~nd
to downtown. The map above shows areas
transit investments and coordinating urban vil lage planning within this area.
transit from the center of downtown.
lmi
Map scale
I
Within a short transit trip or bike ride are many neighborhoods and activity centers which are an asset, not a competitive threat, reachable in less than 30 minutes on local
~
MARCH 2014
9
Prioritizing cycling and transit (like light rail, shown here) can help better connect the many walkable neighborhoods of San Jose.
BIG IDEA
Speeding up transit through double tracking
Make it easier to get to and through downtown without a car. For downtown San Jose to work, the city has to do better at getting large numbers of people into downtown. For this to happen, transit needs to be faster and much more convenient to access. It must be easier to get to and through downtown Wjithout a car. Despite perceptions otherwise, downt0wn is already quite easy to access and navigate wi f h a car. It is surrounded by major highways, has yery little street traffic relative to many parts of the Bay Area and has ample parking. Making a shift away from a car-dominated environment means rethinking the balance between cars and transit in planning decisions. It also means acknowledging the reality that there is still plenty of capacity both in the transit system and on the roads - to accommodate more cars, transit vehicles anal other 10
MARCH 2014
modes of transportation. Having sufficient capacity also means that there is room to experiment with new approaches to transportation options. The city should make downtown the showcase for how San Jose can shift toward alternatives to driving alone, particularly how to achieve the General Plan's goal to make driving alone decrease from 80 percent to 40 percent of all trips. This will happen by speeding up transit. expanding BART to downtown, building out bus rapid transit (BRT) and reconfiguring light rail, improving bike paths and securing bike parking options. The goal must be to ensure that the automobile is not the default for every trip.
1st Street (shown above) and shifting the tracks from the sidewalk to the roadbed are ideas worth studying.
For a complete list of SPUR's recommendations, read our report The Future of Downtown San Jose spur.org/downtownsanjose
THE URBANIST
BIG IDEA
Retrofit downtown to be more pedestrian-oriented. The City of San Jose has begun retrofitting many of the auto-oriented aspects of its city streets and grid. One-way streets have become two-way. Streets like San Fernando, 3rd and 4th Streets have gone through "road diets," where mixed-flow lanes have been removed, usually to accommodate a bike lane. These "road diets" make better use of limited infrastructure by maintaining sufficient space for autos, while ensuring there is room for a wider range of users. There is a "green bikeway" along San Fernando and another protected bikeway on 4th Street. This retrofitting is a significant change and has improved the quality of the public realm in downtown San Jose. But there is more to do. Buses do not have priority treatment on key streets. Traffic signals are timed for cars, not pedestrians. Left turn lanes and dedicated left turn arrows privilege auto access, not pedestrian flow. Though the city has very strong policies on the books to achieve a much lower share of drivers, the desire to achieve balance among modes sometimes results in continuing to privilege the automobile. Downtown San Jose has had several decades of targeted investment toward an improved public realm and has many aspects of good urban design that make it a walkable place. Retrofitting the parts of downtown that are not yet walkable THE URBANIST
is the focus of this idea. Downtown should become a "park once" place with a focus on walking. This means making sure intersections have automatic crossing signals; too many of downtown San Jose's intersections require pedestrians to push a button to get a walk sign. There should also be improved wayfinding with maps, real-time transit info and other signage.I There should be investment in new pedestrian infrastructure. The successful Paseo de San Antonio should be extended from Cesar Chavez Plaza to Diridon. There should also be a network of padeos throughout downtown (such as a new paseo from Gordon Biersch on San Fernando to Fountain Alley, and a paseo designed through the Mitchell Block parcel on Santa Clara between 1st and Market). -7
Retrofitting the parts of downtown San Jose that are not yet walkable is key to creaing a pedestrian-friendly city. Pedestrian walkways like Fountain Alley (shown above) offer an alternative to the traditional street and could be part of a larger network of paseos (such as with a mid-block extension south to San Fernando Street).
MARCH 2014 11
DOWNTOWN SAN JOSE
m BIG IDEA
Build on downt?wn's strengths as the cultural, entertainment jnd creative urban center of the South Bay.
Downto'(Vn San Jose is the largest social and cultural district and the center for entertainment in the South Bay. There are 38 cultural institutions and vehues in or directly around downtown and more than 300 restaurants, bars and other entertainment vJnues. When there is a major sporting or entertainment event at the San Jose Arena, downtown's streets fill with pedestrians. Its Convention Center has events scheduled a year in advance, and most event s bring in thousands of visitors. Downtown mJseums, art venues and performance spaces can attract tens of thousands for special events, exhibitJ and performances. But there is not yet enough life to fill and activate all the great existing spaces in downtown, fmm the outdoor plazas to museums and other cJltural institutions. The essence of our sixth idea is to focus on the people and activities that will fill dowptown with life on an ongoing basis. We think a keylway to do this is to further strengthen downtown as the
12 MA RCH 2014
South Bay's center of culture, art, entertainment and creativity and to make it easier for people to do all kinds of activities that enliven public space (i.e., "activation of downtown"), as well as for people to invest in new creative businesses and events throughout downtown. Further integrating San Jose State with downtown is also important and could happen through establishing a more defined student district around San Carlos and 4th Streets. Visitors and residents of downtown need to continue doing what they've been doing: supporting new and existing restaurants, bars, clubs and other businesses. Downtown property owners need to continue being flexible and supportive of various uses within their buildings, including temporary installations and pop-up stores, often within vacant building space. Visitors and policy makers need to support and accept downtown as a place that draws from and welcomes the city's entire economic and cultural diversity.
Below: One only need attend a concert or San Jose Sharks' game to see how the streets of downtown can come al ive. The challenge is to activate these areas even when an event is not taking place.
THE URBANIST
Downtown San Jose is a rich cult ral center,
By focusing on San Jose as the South Bay's
full of terrific institutions from th Tech
center of art, culture, and entertainment,
Museum to ZERO! and MACLA. P blic art
downtown could be further strengthened.
(above) is found throughout the ity.
Looking Ahead What is possible today for downtown San Jose is built on decades of mostly public investment in streets, parks, transit, museums, theater, libraries and other amenities. The next decade offers the opportunity to attract people that will give those spaces and places the life they were designed for. Embracing experimentation, allowing for mistakes and encouraging activity overall in downtown is paramount. But as we've described in this article, a permissive attitude is not enough to ensure the best future for downtown. It's essential to THE URBANIST
push for dense new development, hold out f r . . . . I Jobs near transit, and maintain good ground -floor design. Focused effort on the planning arounlcJ Diridon, extending a network of paseos and f~rther integrating San Jose State University with dow l ntown are also key. We also believe it's necessary to continue key policy moves to make downtown a 1 friendlier place for walkers, bicyclists, transit riders and others who will fill the downtown with thb dynamism it deserves. SPUR is excited to help make this future. â&#x20AC;˘
For a complete list of SPUR 's recomme ndations, read our report
The Future of Downtown San Jose spur.org/downtownsanjose
MARCH 2014 13
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Case Study #64:
ew Drawings, Old Buildings Armed with an iPad, an architect creates vibrant portraits of some of Oakland's most treasured historic buildings. Story and Art by Doug Wittnebel This quartet of buildings in Oakland hold deep memories about the city's history. When we walk its streets, buildings like these "speak" to us through their variations in height. materials, and styles. When we investigate, we find that the narratives of each building - the facts and fictions that attach to it - make a claim for our attention.
URBAN FIELD NOTES
D
At the corner of 12th Street and Broadway stands the original headquarters for the Bank of Oakland, a unique combination of lower masonry block muscle and a taller decorative tower. The main building went up in 1907, and the tower portion was added later, pushing up to the height of 225 feet (18 stories). Now the bank occupies the building with other tenants and histories. A series of Corinthian columns and pilasters support and frame the top levels of setback windows. The top-level spaces must have terrific views of the adjacent Tribune building. Perhaps the two towers wink at each other in the early morning hours.
D
Oakland 's Tribune building, an official historical landmark, was erected in 1923, including 21 floors and standing 310 feet tall. Architect Edward Foulkes designed a tower of mixed French and Italian classical elements, topped with a copper green mansard roof with punched eye windows. I wonder how one might reverse the hands of time on the tower clock, and glimpse back at some of the myriad tales printed in the news-
THE URBANIST
paper over the last 80 years. With some building upgrades and new ownership, the red glow of the "TRIBUNE" sign in the night sky and the distinctive analog hands of the clock point to the future of the city.
D
Above San Pablo and Broadway stands the premier flatiron building of the West Coast, a younger sibling of the more famous Manhattan one. Most of the stories in this building are woven into the exchange of money and finance, Wells Fargo being the most recent bank tenant. The original tenant was the First National Bank of Oakland, in this building complete with safe deposit boxes and a full basement for secure storage of valuables, furs, jewelry and paintings. Built in 1907 after the great San Francisco earthquake, the building was designed by architect Llewellyn B. Dutton, who chose white granite for the lower floors and warm terra cotta tiles for the upper story enclosure, which wraps smoothly around the acute corner next to Frank Ogawa ~ Plaza.
URBAN FIELD NOTES
Our last stop on the tour reveals Oakland 's most unique flatiron building, ong1nally known a the Federal Realty building . Its nicknames, "the wedding cake building" or "cathedral building," are familiar to most Oaklanders. The 12路story building was pleted in 1914, designed by c arch I He haile well 路known ed family of architects w rebuild San Francisco after th quake Fast forward to the 1960s and 70s, you could fill your belly with hotdogs at the ground level Doggle Diner. The building has now been transformed by the new owner, Andrew Bro, Into a unique condominium building that features units renewed and refitted to present-day standards and views of the future
CITY NEWS FROM AROUND THE GLOBE
Urban Drift
ODDS AGAINST
TOMO~~~: RICH
Set for completion in 2016, with roughly 2.6 million square feet of space over 55 floors, Tencent's new headquarters will have space for 12,000 additional employees. As more tech companies look to move to urban environments, this idea of a campus built up, rather than out, could allow companies to retain the ideal of employees mingling in a grassy quad between buildings, with a smaller footprint. Shaunacy Ferro , "The AO L Of China To Build A Suburban Tech Campus In The Sky," www. fastcodesign.com/3024209/the-aol -of-china-to-
build-a-suburban-corporate-ca mpus-in-the-sky
Are City Visas a Good Idea?
1' Odds Against Tomorrow by
scenarios (ecological collapse,
When the governor of Michigan, Rick Snyder, announced his plan to seek federal help in bringing 50,000 immigrants with advanced degrees in science, business or the arts to Detroit over the next five years via a new visa program, it
sea level rise) in intricate detail. He's pretty good at it - maybe too good. Read what happens when Mitchell's predictions reach a harrowing crescendo when an actual worst-case scenario hits a
raised the question of whether issuing city-specific visas intended to lure immigrant talent is acceptable. The EB-2 program already grants federal authorities the capacity to issue up to 40,040 visas nation-
woefully unprepared Manhattan.
wide each year, but Snyder's proposed city visas would require immigrants who receive these types of visas to live and work in Detroit. Opponents of the plan highlight the difficulty of preventing immigrants with city visas from moving away from Detroit. but the governor's unusual plan will be submitted to federal authorities soon.
Nathaniel Rich
In perhaps what is the first great climate change novel, gifted mathematician Mitchell Zukor is asked to calculate worst-case
nathanielrich.com
The Future of the Corporate Campus is Vertical
The Ch inese internet company Tencent recently hired NBBJ, architect's of Amazon 's biosphere, er, new headquarters, to design a suburban corporate campus inside a set of urban skyscrapers. Could these towers become a model for other tech companies looking to create a corporate campus feel within a smaller, denser footprint? THE URBANIST
time. Placemeter asserts that privacy is protected since it does not record or store any data after it is analyzed, nor does it attempt to identify individuals. Privacy advocates may beg to differ. Jessica Leber, "One Company Is Tryi ng To Count And Track All Oaf New York Cit'ys Pedestrians,"
1' Tracking Pedestrians
www.coexist.com, 2/12/14.
in New York City
In New York City, cameras watching the streets are now also being used to track the masses of people moving around the city. A new startup, Placemeter draws on various video feeds to count and track people on the sidewalks and in public spaces. They already have access to 500 cameras. but are working to increase to 2,000 to 3,000 cameras to cover 90 percent of the city. They plan to create an app that estimates how packed a restaurant, store, or recreational area is at any given
-J, City as Canvas
East Village artist Martin Wong (who died in 1999) amassed hundreds of works of graffiti art in aerosol, ink and other mediums. Wong had a good eye: artists in his collection include Keith Haring, LADY PINK and FUTURA 2000, all seminal figures in an artistic movemennhat spawned a worldwide phenomenon. On view at the Museum of the City of New York through August. www.mcny.org
Nicole Ferraro, "City Visas: The Right Way to Lure
Talent?," UBM's Future Cities. 2/12/14
MA RCH 2014
19
WELCOME
New Members
Erin Hala sz
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Samantha Aguilar
Carrie Callahan
Conor E Donegan
Gabriel Alcantar
Philip Campbell
Sara Doran
Caro Jauregui
William Mallard
Matt Stempeck
Megan Amaral
Bruce Carlson
Matt Dorsey
Katie Johnson
Kim Mondelli
Cianna Stewart
Tom Ames
Christine Carr
Sheryl Drinkwater
Scott Johnson
Mike Moran
Marc Svenby
Chirag Amin
Jeremy Caves
Laura Dulski
Alexander Jonas
Lainie Motamedi
Julia Sweeneu
Kathryn Angotti
Ivan Chabra
Chris Duncan
Allison Jones
Chris Nelson
Elliot Talbot
Michael Anichini
Tina Chang
Shufina K English
Chris Jones
Minh Nguyen
Sharon Talbott
Alisar E Aoun
Jessica Chase
Sam Erickson
Jubran Kanaan
Christopher Noll
Blake Tartt Ill
Phil Arnold
Jennifer Chatfield
Jasmine Eskandari-
Dawn Kang
Jan Novak
Zac Taylor Ming Thompson
Omied Arvin
Natasha Chatlein
Allan B. Kapoor
Andrew Francis Nowak
Jessie Aubry
Kethia Chheng
Washington Fajardo
Qajar
Jonathon Kass
Asbjorn Nysaether
Lola Tomey
Robert Bailey
Michael Christensen
Jaime Fearer
Nicole Keeler
John William O'Brien
Lance Tucker
Stephen Baird
Jason Cinq-Mars
Jonathan Fearn
Aysem Kilinc
Ali x Ogil vie
Peter Tuozzolo
Divya Balakrishnan
John Citrigno
Casey Feeser
James Kingdon
John Oram
Eric Tuvel Ali Vahabzadeh
Andrew Bales
Alan G. Codd
Casey Fictum
Daniela Kirshenbaum
Carolyne Orazi
Anthony Barrs
Libbie Cohn
Gene Filipi
Natalie Kitchen
Suzan Ozcelik
Adriana Valencia
Mat Beagle
Alessandro Colavecchio
Julie Ann Fineman
Beaudry Kock
Hardip S. Pannu
Mark Valent ine
Marguerite Bello
Mitchell Conner
Ellie Fiore
Rebecca Kohlstrand
Lyssa Paul
Reuben K Verkamp
Linda Bergquist
Pamela Conrad
William Fleissig
Caroline Kwok
Janice Perez
Anastasia Victor-
Adam Berkowitz
Jennifer Cooper
Martin Flores
Tighe Lanning
Joel Piazza
Gershon Bialer
Florentina Craciun
Nicholas Fournier
Matt Laroche
Johannes Pieters
John H Birely
Jessica Cunningham
Ron Franck
Questor Lau
Mike Pitier
Ellen Warner
John Blatz
Michael Cutchin
Julie Fry
Bernard Lauper
Kathryn Pope
Ja cqueline Whitelam
Aruna Bodduna
Cra ig Daniel
Barbara B Fukumoto
Christine M. Law
Phyllis Potter
Jason Whitney
Mark G Bonsignore
Douglas Davis
Trudy Garber
Roland Lebrun
William Prouty
Robert J. Williamson
Earl G Bossard
Cameron Deal
Michael Gomez
Paul Ledesma
Jeffrey M. Ralph
Eric Wong
Christopher J Boswell-
Whitney Deatherage
Holly Gordon
Drew Lehman
Daniella Reichstetter
Gabriela Worrel
Jamey Dempster
Jess M Greene
Andrea Lepore
Delia Reid
Brian Siu Yang
Brian Tristan Denyer
Lynda Griffith
Steve Letterly
Hellynn Reilly
Yan Yau
Michael Dern, AIA
Tracey Bushman &
Junyi Li
Amy Ress
Susan Yogi
Keith Lichten
Douglas Rex
Brian Young
Donaldson Veronica and KC Bradshaw
Faichney Elizabeth Wampler
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Philip Brodey
Jesse Dill
Derek Brookmeyer
Jennifer Dobrowolski
Erin Hafkenschiel
Annie Liu
Peter Rice
Nolan Zail
Keith Brown
Armand Domalewski
Timothy Haines
Cheryl Longinotti
Eliza H. Rodrigs
Jacqueline Zimny
20
MARCH 2014
Christian Gusholt
THE URBANIST
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INTRODUCING ...
New Interns at
SPUR
Dakota Gross Dakota Gross is a graduating senior at San Francisco State University in the urban studies and planning program. Originally from Los Angeles, Dakota has been interested in the built environment since an early age. She is planning on continuing her academic career in urban geography and aspires to be a land use planner.
Irene Ho Irene Ho is a Hong Kong native with an interest in urban design, landscape architecture and historic preservation. She is currently earning a BA in urban studies and planning at San Francisco State University. Irene enjoys exploring cities and has gained experience in landscape architecture in Shanghai, foreign language education in Beijing, and political campaigning in San Francisco.
THE URBANIST
Briana Bixby
Jackson Jewett
Born and raised in Alaska, Briana is a recent transplant to the Bay Area by way of Vancouver, BC. Currently, she is working part-time for a real estate development company while she volunteers with SPUR and the Red Cross.
Jackson is a California native who recently completed his bachelor's degree across the bay at UC Berkeley. As a cognitive science major, he is exploring an early career shift into the world of urban planning . He is particularly interested in economic development and good government.
Julia Chang
Justin Rex
Front desk ambassador Julia Chang comes to SPUR after earning her bachelor's degree in political science and minor in urban studies and planning from UC San Diego. She is fascinated by all aspects of cities, but particularly interested in transportation and community planning .
Justin is a native Ohioan and a recent graduate of the University of Cincinnati's School of Planning. New to this neck of the woods, he is excited to be exploring the San Francisco Bay Area .
Tessa Cruz
Michae' Waters
SPUR's public programming intern Tessa Cruz is a recent graduate of Oberlin College, where she earned a BA in environmental studies . She is particularly interested in how sustainable development can act as a tool for socioeconomic equality. She hopes to build a career that helps sustain the environmental, economic and cultural prosperity of urban communities through collaborative planning and community engagement.
Mike Waters comes to SPUR as part of a transition back toward working with the built environment, after spending the previous three years working in healthcare consulting. A 2010 graduate of Middlebury College, where he majored in architectural studies. Mike has also spent time as a draftsman in an architecture firm and worked as an independent consultant on sustainability. He hopes his time at SPUR will broaden his exposure to planning and development issues in the Bay Area.
MARCH 2014
21
MEMBER PROFILE
100% Audible Roman Mars The radio host muses on toothbrushes, reinforced concrete and a secret kept by Pittsburghians . Roman Mars describes himself as "a public radio fanatic that turned pro." He taught himself the basics of interviewing and production and applied for every internship he could find with no luck. And then. KALW, which "was so small that it had no formal internship program at the time," says Mars gave him a shot. Mars worked on every show that would allow him, working as a volunteer producer for three years until he got my first full time job at WBEZ in Chicago. Then he launched 99% Invisible, which he describes as a tiny radio show about design. The popular program (and podcast) has covered a broad array of design and architecture topics from revolving doors to DIY space suits, cul de sacs to slot machines.
allows me to widen the field a bit. When the images are secondary, the parallels between all the thought that goes into designing a flag and all the thought that goes into designing a public square are easier to fit into the big tent of design. The biggest challenge is making sure, when I do describe something visual, that I'm doing a good job and the writing creates an accurate image in the listener's mind . It's pretty easy to convince myself that the building or graphic I'm describing is clear and easy to grasp, but people don't listen that intently to the radio, so I have to step back, reinforce all the images through story elements, and create the piece in such a way that the content, tone and rhythm is pleasing, even if the listeners don't grasp everything perfectly the first time they hear it.
Why do a radio show about design rather than, say baseball or politics? What does the format bring to
We were lucky enough to have you devote a
design that others don't?
program to our 2013 exhibition "Unbuilt San
I like design because it's a process, and where there's a process, there's a story. Architecture and design have a bevy of very invested characters that have strong opinions and can provide an enthusiastic, geeky energy to a radio piece (Note: This person is sometimes me). What's the biggest challenge of discussing design on the radio?
Covering design on the radio can be a challenge for obvious reasons, but being audio-only is a constraint that generally works in my favor. Most film documentaries about design are wall-to-wall lovely, close up images of curved teapot handles and funky chairs . When you can 't rely on that, you have to stick to the objects that have the best story, but aren't necessarily the most beautiful. I also think audio 22
MARCH 2014
Francisco." What struck you in particular about the show?
Fundamentally, "Unbuilt" was fun . I loved how the subject resonated with everyone. I think people are less cynical when it comes to unbuilt structures. We enjoy the Jetsons-style possibilities and we also revel in the bullets we dodged. It also gave me a new lens for viewing things we actually built. It wasn 't until I saw the giant Marincello model that I fully understood the Headlands. From that event I know that you loathe the "what's your favorite building" question so ... what building has made the best story?
My favorite stories about buildings are the ones where you learn a little detail and then the whole, massive structure snaps into focus and you really THE URBANIST
Roman Mars is host of the 99%Invisible podcast, one of the most popular programs on iTunes. At right, one of Mars' favorite local landmarks, the Alvord Lake Bridge in Golden Gate Park. To hear 99%Invisible, visit 99percentinvisible.org
see it for the first time. I always retell the story of the Montgomery Ward building in Chicago. It's not a very memorable building, especially for Chicago, but it has really thick concrete supports on each of the four corners of the building. They really take up a lot of room on the outside of the building. I never really thought about why it was designed that way, then someone told me why the big concrete corners were there. First they open up the floor plan, but most importantly, to me, anyway, was that the Montgomery Ward company prided itself on a more egalitarian hierarchy and didn't want executives fighting over who got the corner office. So the design eliminates any possibility of a corner office at all. I'd never conceived of a building quite in that way before, as a machine to enforce the will of a company. I've never told that story on the radio, but it was a real turning point for me in how I looked at architecture. What is one of the most surprising things where you went, "Oh yeah, someone had to design that!"
One of the very first stories I did was about Lunar redesigning a toothbrush and discovering, after tons of research and endless prototypes, that a straight handle was the best shape for a toothbrush. It's not trying to do anything fancy or look "designed." Straight was just better. I think we sometimes chase an abstract notion of "innovation" instead just focusing on getting better at what we're already doing. Most of the time, we could just stand to be better. Most fascinating urban design story you've done?
The story Sam Greenspan reported on called the "Arsenal of Exclusion," which looked at Baltimore's THE URBANIST
legacy of using the built environment to separate the city into rich and poor. black and white. Even though politics may have progressed somewhat, urban design choices continue to resonate through generations. How did you get interested and cities? And which one is your favorite?
I don't think I can say anything but San Francisco, right? The thing is, I don't love San Francisco because it is perfect, I just find it fascinating because I don't think it's ever really figured out what kind of city it wants to be. Is it a car city or a mass transit city? Politically it's progressive, but so many aspects of the built environment are almost comically conservative. SF's most iconic building, the Transamerica Pyramid, really captures the character of the city in this way. Depending on where you're standing, it's either a beautiful silhouette or a big old mess. I love that. I also went to Pittsburgh recently and thought it was lovely. I think people from Pittsburgh are purposely keeping that fact quiet. Can you tell us an unknown but significant Bay Area curiosity that our readers could visit?
If you want significant, go to the Alvord Lake Bridge on the eastern edge of Golden Gate Park. It's a dumpy and neglected thing, but it also happens to be one of the oldest standing reinforced concrete structures. It's a literal bridge to the modern world. Normally, being "important" isn't a compelling reason to enjoy anything. I always say, "Important is the least interesting form of interesting." In this case, however, the juxtaposition of its willful homeliness and its role in history is striking. â&#x20AC;˘
MARCH 2014
23
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