SAN JOSE CALIF. – Nov. 10, 2014  – SPUR San Jose, a nonprofit that engages the community in promoting good urban planning and good government in the Bay Area, today announced that it will begin a multi-year plan to expand its work in San Jose. The plan, which is funded by $1.7 million from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, will establish SPUR as a leading partner in the city’s suburban-to-urban transformation. 

Already Northern California’s largest city, in the coming decades San Jose will add more new residents than San Francisco and Oakland combined. To leverage this growth San Jose has to meet the demands of a new generation of urban residents seeking better transit options, access to economic opportunity, an active downtown core and more vibrant public assets, such as libraries, parks and schools. SPUR focuses on neighborhood planning, public space revitalization and public engagement to support the future of San Jose.

“San Jose’s ability to capture and build on success in the region depends on getting residents to act,” said Leah Toeniskoetter, SPUR San Jose director. “We are honored to play an important role in helping to spark this engagement, while encouraging people to invest in the urban future of our city.”

“While San Jose has a long history of incubating big ideas and supporting big business, it faces a set of challenges around how to address increased growth, and the attraction and retention of the talent it needs to develop as a more vibrant city,” said Daniel Harris, Knight Foundation program director in San Jose. “With SPUR as a partner, we hope to seize the opportunity presented by this growth and support San Jose’s emergence as a leading urban center in the South Bay.”

With the Knight funding, SPUR will execute a broad work plan covering policy development, technical assistance and public engagement activities over a five-year period. The main areas of focus will be:

1. The design and development of urban villages with accessible transit and mixed-use buildings;
2. The building of a more vibrant downtown core;
3. Transformation of the city, county and regional transportation network;
4. Working with major employers to rethink the design and location of corporate campuses to promote a more walkable and transit-oriented city;
5. Building a community of San Jose civic innovators who are committed to shaping the city’s future growth.

SPUR selected the focus areas based on a series of in-depth conversations with San Jose civic leaders about the most pressing needs facing the nation’s 10th largest city. They align with San Jose’s ambitious long-term growth plan anchored by the city’s “Envision 2040” strategy, which aims to build a more walkable, mixed-use downtown core with easy access to transit and other amenities, while creating more options for residents to connect. At the same time, SPUR will regularly convene thought leaders, urbanists and residents to help solve the city’s most pressing urban questions.

Support for these projects forms one part of Knight Foundation’s efforts to expand opportunities in San Jose, while fostering talent retention and attraction. Knight recently funded SPUR’s urban design and public space revitalization efforts and the establishment of the SPUR Urban Center in San Jose.

About SPUR

Founded in 1910 in San Francisco, SPUR’s mission is to promote good planning and good government in the San Francisco Bay Area through research, education and advocacy. A member-supported nonprofit organization, SPUR brings people together from across the political spectrum to develop solutions to the big problems our cities face.

In 2010, SPUR began the process of expanding to San Jose. This decision – the biggest change in SPUR’s history – reflects our organization’s belief that the capital of Silicon Valley has an important role to play in shaping the Bay Area’s future. A key voice for forward-thinking urban policy, San Jose has the potential to be a model for change across California and the United States as cities once built for the suburban lifestyle now seek to retrofit for urban values, connections and community.

About the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation

Knight Foundation supports transformational ideas that promote quality journalism, advance media innovation, engage communities and foster the arts. We believe that democracy thrives when people and communities are informed and engaged.  www.KnightFoundation.org

CONTACTS:

Leah Toeniskoetter, San Jose Director, SPUR, 408-638-0091, [email protected]

Anusha Alikhan, Director of Communications, Knight Foundation, 305-908-2677, [email protected]