Digital City Briefs - San Francisco

San Francisco Leads the Way

2012-10-06T10:21:00.000-04:00

San Francisco was named the “Best City” in Businessweek.com’s ranking of 100 largest cities in America. The survey analyzed attributes such as leisure, educational facilities, economic factors, crime and air quality.

“The City by the Bay, this year's winner, provides residents with the best blend of entertainment, education, safety, clear air, and a prosperous economic base.”

Reference: Konrad, Alex, America's Best Cities, Business Week, October 2, 2012
Photo: Belvedere around San Francisco Yacht Club by Brocken Inaglory under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.

Other Recent Posts:

Smart Street Lights

Facebook’s New Campus

Mountain View 2030 Plan without Housing for the Techies

Real Time Transit Data Visualization

Smart Street Lights

2012-09-06T20:39:00.003-04:00

San Francisco plans to reduce its street lighting bill in half by connecting streetlights to mini power grids that can be monitored and controlled remotely; and by installing LED light bulbs. The city would be able to dim street lights where they are not needed, or brighten street lights in response to fog or critical traffic conditions automatically and in real time. This project is a part of a larger pilot program to connect core city services to a unified wireless system in order to deliver services more efficiently.

“Here’s how the pilot project will work. Nodes attached to each streetlight will monitor the light’s power consumption and relay that information to the utility. Using that data, the city can monitor conditions, remotely control the streetlights or set timers or automatic indicators for turning the streetlights on or off.”

Reference: Richman, Eli, San Francisco Tests a Streetlight That Thinks for Itself, Governing, September 2012

Other Recent Posts:

Facebook’s New Campus

Mountain View 2030 Plan without Housing for the Techies

Real Time Transit Data Visualization

Tech Boom Hits San Francisco’s Downtown

Facebook’s New Campus

2012-08-26T07:08:00.001-04:00

“Facebook has hired Frank Gehry's architecture firm, Gehry Partners, to design a new, sprawling office building which will house those engineers in a big, open space, with walls cleverly angled so the insides don't feel oppressive.”

Facebook currently has 2,200 employees in its Menlo Park complex. The new campus will allow Facebook to add 6,600 employees on the East Campus and another 2,800 employees on the West Campus.

Reference: Thomas, Owen, Here's A First Look At Facebook's Amazing New Campus Designed By Frank Gehry, August 24, 2012

Other Recent Posts:

Mountain View 2030 Plan without Housing for the Techies

Real Time Transit Data Visualization

Tech Boom Hits San Francisco’s Downtown

Noteworthy Affordable Housing, San Francisco

Mountain View 2030 Plan Approved without Housing for the Techies

2012-07-28T07:32:00.001-04:00

After four years of visioning process, Mountain View has approved its 2030 Plan. The plan encourages development along El Camino Real, North Bayshore, Moffett Boulevard and the San Antonio Shopping Center area. However, it removed an allowance for 1,100 apartments in the North Bayshore area which would have provided much needed housing for the employees of high tech companies such as Google.

“Environmentalists were split over the pitch for new housing in North Bayshore, with supporters saying it would reduce greenhouse gasses from commuters and wildlife preservationists saying it would encroach on wildlife in Shoreline Park.”

Reference: DeBolt, Daniel, Google housing axed in city's general plan, July 13, 2012

Real Time Transit Data Visualization

2012-07-28T07:21:00.002-04:00

The prevalence of personal digital devices such as smart phones and tablets, is accelerating widespread application of intelligent data on mobile devices which is accurate, informative and instantaneous. NextBus is a high tech company that delivers real time transit information to help riders navigate their journey.

“Because traffic variations, breakdowns, and day-to-day problems faced by transit providers can interrupt service, NextBus was designed to keep your customers on schedule even if their bus isn't.”

San Francisco Public Transit Data Visualization from Jeevan Kalanithi on Vimeo.

Reference: Kalanithi, Jeevan, San Francisco Public Transit Data Visualization and Smart transportation systems on the rise, NextBus, June 3, 2012

Other Recent Posts:

Tech Boom Hits San Francisco’s Downtown

Noteworthy Affordable Housing, San Francisco

Affordable Housing and New Developments

New Urban Housing

Tech Boom Hits San Francisco’s Downtown

2012-07-03T13:03:00.000-04:00

San Francisco’s urban core is changing. Tech companies such as Twitter, Zynga and Yelp are moving to San Francisco creating jobs and raising commercial rents. Twitter plans to have 2,600 employees in six years at its downtown location. In addition, the area south of downtown has become popular among tech workers who commute to Silicon Valley but live downtown. Many tech giants such as Google, Microsoft and Yahoo run private shuttle buses for their employees.

“At risk, many say, are the very qualities that have drawn generations of outsiders here, like the city’s diversity and creativity. Families, black residents, artists and others will increasingly be forced across the bridge to Oakland, they warn.”

Reference: Onishi, Norimitsu, New San Francisco Tech Boom Brings Jobs but Also Worries, The New York Times, June 4, 2012

Other Recent Posts:

Noteworthy Affordable Housing, San Francisco

Affordable Housing and New Developments

New Urban Housing

Noteworthy Affordable Housing, San Francisco

2012-06-29T20:35:00.001-04:00

The Armstrong Place is a low income housing project in a poor neighborhood of San Francisco.

The project uses color to enhance the architectural quality and incorporates family gardens to grow fruits and vegetables, and an efficient way to capture rain water to manage the storm water bio-dynamically. It can be reached by the city’s light rail system.

Reference: Arieff, Allison, Affordable Housing That Doesn't Scream 'Affordable', the atlanticcities.com, October 21, 2011

Other Recent Posts:

Affordable Housing and New Developments

New Urban Housing

Urban Housing for 132 Apartments

Affordable Housing and New Developments

2012-06-03T15:56:00.002-04:00

The tax dollars collected through the tax code are meant for major infrastructure projects. However, San Francisco – as many other cities – has found a solution in using tax dollars to entice private developers to make major infrastructure projects possible. For example, the city sold development rights for a 1,070-foot office tower on public land, to a private developer to make the proposed Transbay Terminal feasible.

Such investments generate an economic activity, which is meant to benefit everyone in the city. However, the reality is quite different. With these high-end commercial and residential projects, the people who work in the city cannot afford to live in the city. Although, the new project would contribute $27 million into the affordable housing fund, that would be insufficient for the additional needs generated by thousands of new office workers.

“San Francisco has to get a grip. The city can't keep allowing more high-end housing and highrise office space without a plan to meet its housing needs.”

Reference: Guardian Editorial, Housing and highrise offices, San Francisco Bay Guardian, May 30, 2012

Related Posts:

Steering Growth Near Transit Hubs

Remaking LA’s Boulevards as Public Places

The Demise Of Suburbs

Steering Growth Near Transit Hubs

2012-05-25T21:38:00.000-04:00

San Francisco added only 418 new residential units in 2011. If you consider demolition of existing units, that number goes down to 269 units, which is a 78 percent drop from 2010. However, the housing market appears to be improving with 1,998 units approved for construction in 2011. 81 percent of these units will be in buildings of 20 units or more.

In order to satisfy a 2008 state law that requires reduction of greenhouse emissions to 1990 levels by 2035, the Metropolitan Transportation Commission and the Association of Bay Area Governments have approved a strategy that would steer growth into already developed areas around transit hubs. Although the cities and counties are not obligated to follow this strategy, the money for transportation improvements would go to areas that adhere to it. The strategy will undergo further analysis before it is considered for approval in spring.

The critics argue that the strategy is unconstitutional and would deprive people of their rights to live in single family homes outside dense urban areas. The supporters believe that it would protect open space and encourage development closer to jobs and transit lines.

Here is a brief video on San Francisco's Proposed TransBay Terminal

Reference: After a lull, San Francisco’s set to increase housing construction.
Cabanatuan, Michael, Land-use plan calls for new growth near transit, May 19, 2012

Remaking LA’s Boulevards as Public Places

Thoughtful Urban Planning to Combat Greenhouse Gases

Urbanization for Growth and Development

Personal Rapid Transit System in the Silicon Valley

2012-05-12T07:02:00.001-04:00

Google is developing a master plan for its Mountain View, California campus to accommodate 12,000 additional employees over the next twenty years. Mountain View is also developing a plan to manage Google’s growth, by improving mass transit systems and reducing congestion in the area. One solution being looked at is a high-tech option called personal rapid transit (PRT) which is an elevated rail transit system made up of driverless vehicles. The vehicle can hold up to four passengers and can go directly to the destination without stopping along the way. The computerized system will prevent vehicles from colliding with one another and offer a quiet ride to the passengers. The impact on the environment will be minimal. Similar system has been deployed at London’s Heathrow Airport. NASA also has a PRT system known as NASA SkyTran.

Here is a video showing the PRT at London’s Heathrow Airport:

Reference: Fulton, William, Silicon Valley Considers Personal Rapid Transit System, Governing Magazine, May 2012

Social Media App to Navigate Cairo’s Traffic

Pedestrian Plazas and Bicycle Lanes

Park and Charge Station for Electric Cars:

Real Estate Survey for Silicon Valley Area

2012-05-06T09:50:00.001-04:00

Real Estate Survey for Silicon Valley Area:

One Morning in Tel Aviv

Bidding Wars Return for Home Sales

Tour of Tokyo: Shibuya

Tour of San Francisco

2012-05-06T09:45:00.003-04:00

Tour of San Francisco:

London

Tour of Rio de Janeiro

Moscow City Tour

Urban Development Taxonomy

2012-05-06T09:36:00.002-04:00

How does a city develop into a global destination? Is a city more than a collection of great buildings? Is a city more than a collection of great people? What makes a city great? What are the forces that drive urban development?

There are many sites that provide tourism related information about cities. While we want to understand what makes a city great, we are also interested in the messy gray area, where decisions are made about the future of a city. What drives such decision-making? Is that purely a speculative gamble or are there hidden forces at work? What roles do design professionals play in such decision-making? What role does leadership play? Where does such leadership come from? What role does local government play?

We will focus on four broad categories of urban interventions:

Tourism development:

Urban interventions intended to spur or support tourism.

Hotels, convention centers, museums, art galleries, public arts festivals, fashion shows, business shows, public expositions, public events. Ecotourism, sustainable tourism, heritage tourism, leisure, recreation, urban tourism, parks, sports stadiums, arenas, public plazas,

Smart infrastructure:

Urban interventions intended to spur or support smart urbanization technologies.

Smart grid, smart design, smart transit, smart buildings, renewable energy, sustainable architecture, green building, smart architecture, smart meters, smart traffic signaling, mass transit, smart city, smart infrastructure, augmented reality, urban data networks, collaborative networks, digital city.

Economic development:

Urban interventions intended to spur or support economic development.

Business incubators, start-ups, universities, research centers, innovation labs, demonstration projects, affordable housing, transit hubs, rezoning, urban renewal, environmental remediation, brown fields, urban design, new construction, renovation, mass transit systems, manufacturing, warehousing, freight delivery, transportation, logistics, urban upgrading, finance, law, regulations, institutions, leadership.

Branding and global identity:

Urban interventions intended to create a unique brand.

Global influence, city image, uniqueness, branding, identity, signature buildings, global events, public expositions, leadership, historic preservation, tourist attractions, urban design, celebrations.

Miscellaneous Key words:

General information, summary, statistics, comparative study, geography, emergency preparedness, disaster mitigation, low income housing, urbanization, slum upgrading, geography, climate, culture, people, demographics, history.

Photo Credit: Downtowngal under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported, 2.5 Generic, 2.0