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SPUR Lunchtime Forum: From urban renewal to contextual planning

"Urban renewal, the result of top-down planning by government entities with extraordinary land use powers, left deep political and physical scars in San Francisco. In response, a variety of efforts to assert community control and preserve the physical qualities of the city defined development politics for a generation or more. Redevelopment Agency Director Fred Blackwell, Planning Director John Rahaim, architect Bob Herman, Steve Nakajo, executive director of Kimochi, Inc, and Regina Davis, executive director of the San Francisco Housing Development Corporation, discuss this troubled chapter in the City's history."

“Urban renewal, the result of top-down planning by government entities with extraordinary land use powers, left deep political and physical scars in San Francisco. In response, a variety of efforts to assert community control and preserve the physical qualities of the city defined development politics for a generation or more. Redevelopment Agency Director Fred Blackwell, Planning Director John Rahaim, architect Bob Herman, Steve Nakajo, executive director of Kimochi, Inc, and Regina Davis, executive director of the San Francisco Housing Development Corporation, discuss this troubled chapter in the City’s history.”

Photo of Michael Rhodes
Michael Rhodes is a former reporter for Streetsblog San Francisco. He lives in the Mission Dolores neighborhood and is a graduate of UC Berkeley's Department of City and Regional Planning.

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