Episode 95: The Reinvention of Downtown San Francisco Part 1

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San Francisco Middle Wage Job Report

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"I think that there is a recognition that we're all interconnected and that this area is important. It's essential for, the City and the region. I think that there is a, great opportunity for all these groups to come together and to build something great." - Chris Wright

Our show today focuses on the impact the COVID 19 pandemic is still having on the city of San Francisco's downtown community area. Along with this businesses workers and visitors, the city of San Francisco, along with businesses and community leaders have developed studies plans and funding to attempt to reinvent the downtown San Francisco community. We've invited two thought leaders to share with you their work to address these issues and how you can get engaged.

Our guests for this episode are the Vice President of Advance SF, Chris Wright, and the Executive Director of The Bay Area Council Economic Institute Jeff Bellisario.

Chris Wright - Advance SF

Chris Wright is the Senior Vice President of Advance SF (ASF), an organization made up of San Francisco’s leading employers and focused on the City’s economic vitality and livability. Chris promotes ASF’s mission to be a leading voice in efforts to make the City an affordable, thriving place for everyone through advocacy, education, and research. Chris has served in this position at ASF and its prior iteration as the Committee on Jobs since 2008.

Before joining the Committee on Jobs, Chris served in several representatives and government relations roles, including as the U.S. Secretary of Education’s appointed Regional Representative (SRR) for Region IX and as a senior staff member for the Committee on House Oversight under California Congressman Bill Thomas. Before his time on the Hill, Chris also worked as an aide to a member of the Pennsylvania Assembly.

A graduate of Albright College in Reading, Pennsylvania, Chris earned his Bachelor of Arts Degree in 1992. While working in Congress, he attended the University of Pennsylvania’s Executive Master’s Degree Program in Government Administration.

Chris has been an active member of several civic groups, including the Planning Association for the Richmond neighborhood, the Friends of Alamo School Foundation, SF Parent PAC, and the San Francisco Neighborhood Emergency Response Team (NERT). He and his wife reside in San Francisco, California, with their two sons.

Jeff Bellisario - Bay Area Council Economic Institute

Jeff Bellisario is Executive Director of the Bay Area Council Economic Institute. He supports a wide range of Institute research through project management, research design, and analysis. His research interests lie at the intersection of community development and finance, and his past projects include analyses of Bay Area housing programs, public-private partnerships for infrastructure, and the economic impacts of transportation investments.

Prior to joining the Bay Area Council Economic Institute, Jeff worked in Chicago in various portfolio management and investment analysis positions for John Hancock Financial Services and State Farm. Jeff holds an MPP degree from the UC-Berkeley Goldman School of Public Policy and a BS in Finance from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He enjoys long runs through the hills of the East Bay and cheering on his favorite baseball team, the Chicago Cubs.

Advance SF

Advance SF is an organization made up of San Francisco’s leading employers dedicated to addressing issues that impact the ability of companies and individuals to prosper. Through education, advocacy, and research, the organization is a meaningful partner in efforts to transform San Francisco into an affordable, thriving city with a good quality of life for all. You can read copies of both the Middle Wage Jobs Report and the recommendations along with the results from the San Francisco Survey at https://advancesf.org/policy-research/

Bay Area Council

The Bay Area Council has been at the intersection of business and civic leadership, shaping the future of the Bay Area since 1945. Today, our vision is to make the Bay Area the best place to live and work. More than 330 of the largest employers in the region are members of the Bay Area Council and are committed to working with public and community leaders to keep the Bay Area. To read all of the research and recommendations from the Bay Area Council Economic Institute research and policy documents go to http://www.bayareaeconomy.org/recent/

Converting Office Space into Residential Housing

Per our interview with Chris and Jeff we discussed that one of the strategies of dealing with the severe housing shortage in the City of San Francisco is by converting vacant office space into residential housing. Please check out this very informative webinar produced by friends of the show SPUR on what it takes to convert office space into residential housing. You can watch the video of the workshop here. You can also dive into the reporting by Kevin Truong and Sarah Wright of The San Francisco Standard who do a great job of walking readers through the reality check of what it takes to convert office space into residential housing.

Videos

Find out more about the Bay Area Council and watch the presentation of their annual Bay Area Council Poll which gauges the attitudes of Bay Area voters on a wide range of issues.

Volunteer

To get engaged in supporting Advance SF’s work on downtown San Francisco fill out their contact form

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“I think a focus on the downtown core, is important and an understanding that we do need to bring this area back, to bring the entire city back just because it is the lifeblood of San Francisco and the economic driver of not just the City, but, to a certain extent the entire region. So, this becomes more than just this San Francisco question. It becomes a very much regional question going forward”

— Jeff Bellisario, Executive Director, Bay Area Council Economic Institute

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