A 1971 effort to quantify the city's values and design goals reflects many of the same priorities that planners and residents face today.

In 1971, San Francisco published its Urban Design Plan, a blueprint for preserving the character of the city and addressing growing concerns about building height and density. John King describes the plan, which warned against "unstructured and unabated growth" and the "jarring disharmony" caused by 'unusual' buildings like the Transamerica Pyramid, approved for construction in 1969.
The plan also acknowledged the role of high-rises in the growing city, "a necessary and expressive form for much of the city’s office, apartment, hotel and institutional development," and encourages 'respectful' new development that fits into the city's unique environment.
The plan includes a wealth of photos, sketches, and maps that illustrate the planners' ideas about creating a pleasant urban environment and their design best-practices.
Notably, the plan calls for reducing traffic in residential areas through what we now call traffic calming measures such as narrowed streets, landscaping, and traffic diversion. Planners in 1971 also suggested "close by and visible" parks, pointing to the city's waterfront as an underused recreational space. As King notes, "This was written 20 years before the Embarcadero Freeway was torn down, and 30 years before Crissy Field opened in the Presidio."
The conclusion we can draw from the plan more broadly, writes King, is the idea that the city's fractious population can come to some agreement on what they value in their built environment—and that San Franciscans love their city enough to fight for it.
FULL STORY: Planners tried to define what makes San Francisco special — in 1971. Here’s how their designs fared

Trump Administration Could Effectively End Housing Voucher Program
Federal officials are eyeing major cuts to the Section 8 program that helps millions of low-income households pay rent.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

Ken Jennings Launches Transit Web Series
The Jeopardy champ wants you to ride public transit.

Driving Equity and Clean Air: California Invests in Greener School Transportation
California has awarded $500 million to fund 1,000 zero-emission school buses and chargers for educational agencies as part of its effort to reduce pollution, improve student health, and accelerate the transition to clean transportation.

Congress Moves to End Reconnecting Communities and Related Grants
The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee moved to rescind funding for the Neighborhood Equity and Access program, which funds highway removals, freeway caps, transit projects, pedestrian infrastructure, and more.

From Throughway to Public Space: Taking Back the American Street
How the Covid-19 pandemic taught us new ways to reclaim city streets from cars.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Heyer Gruel & Associates PA
Ada County Highway District
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions
Salt Lake City
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service