Revitalizing Downtown San Francisco Series, Part 3

Adaptive reuse of vacant office, ground floor activation, neighborhood programming – all are important approaches discussed for revitalizing Downtown San Francisco. But how do these and other strategies come together to produce a coherent vision for the future? What is required to ensure the future neighborhood is resilient, economically vibrant, and socially inclusive? And what policy changes, financial incentives, or other actions should the City prioritize to achieve this vision? In May, the City and County of San Francisco and the Urban Land Institute partnered to bring together a national and local Advisory Services Panel to consider these questions for the Financial District. Representatives from the City and from the ULI Panel will share the resulting recommendations and will discuss the work the City is advancing to revitalize Downtown.

SPEAKERS:

Anne Taupier, Director of Development
San Francisco Office of Economic and Workforce Development
Anne Taupier serves as the Director of Development overseeing the management and entitlement of large private and public mixed-use development and affordable housing projects on behalf of the City of San Francisco. Her projects include Hunter’s Point Shipyard, 2013 America’s Cup Host City, 5M, The Plumber’s Union Development, The Conservatory of Music student housing, India Basin, the Flower Mart, Potrero Power Station and Balboa Reservoir. Prior to working in the Mayor’s Office, Anne was an investigator for the San Francisco Office of the City Attorney. Anne is a life-long trail runner and former competitive cyclist and tri-athlete.
 
Mike Grisso, Senior Vice President, Development and Land Planning
Kilroy Realty Corporation
Mike Grisso is a Senior Vice President at Kilroy Realty Corporation (KRC), a developer and operator of high-quality commercial properties on the West Coast for more than 65 years. Mike has over 20 years of real estate development experience and leads KRC’s planning and entitlement efforts in San Francisco and the Bay Area. Prior to joining KRC in July 2014, Mike was a Senior Project Manager at the San Francisco Redevelopment Agency and its successor, the Office of Community Investment and Infrastructure. Mike serves on the Executive Committee of the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce, on the Board of the Bay Area Council, on the Executive Committee of the East Cut Community Benefit District, as a Member of ULI’s Urban Development Mixed Use Council, and is Former President of LAI’s Golden Gate Chapter.

Kate Collignon, Partner
HR&A Advisors
Kate Collignon helps communities implement inclusive economic growth and real estate development strategies. Her practice at HR&A Advisors – a nationwide consulting firm that has worked to create more equitable, resilient, and dynamic communities for nearly 50 years – has spanned management of some of the most complex public and private development initiatives in New York City, to cultivation of economic turnarounds in small and mid-sized cities across the Midwest and Northeast, to collaboration with cities across the country around downtown revitalization pre- and post-COVID. Kate previously served as Development Director with Brookfield Properties, as Senior Vice President for Development at the NYC Economic Development Corporation, and on the faculty of the NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service.

Daniel A. Sider, AICP
Chief of Staff, San Francisco Planning Department
Dan’s career in public service has spanned more than two decades, serving four planning directors and five mayoral administrations. As the Chief of Staff, he is responsible for department-wide efficiency and accountability, complex interdivisional and interagency projects, and executive-level policy guidance. In partnership with the Mayor’s Office, Board of Supervisors, and other City departments, Dan works to improve San Francisco’s built environment and increase the production of housing at all levels of affordability for current and future San Franciscans. Dan has served the Planning Department in a variety of capacities, including as the Director of Executive Programs, Assistant Zoning Administrator, Department Ombudsman, Manager of Legislative Affairs, and as a Principal Planner. He also served as the Director of City Greening under Mayor Gavin Newsom. A native San Franciscan, Dan holds a bachelor’s degree from UC San Diego and a Master in Urban Planning degree from Harvard University. He lives halfway outside the fog-belt in Cole Valley.