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Editor's note: This is part of the the first issue of Reset: San Francisco, a new series looking at efforts to restore San Francisco’s urban economic core, specifically downtown. It will appear periodically in the Business Times, both online and in print, throughout the remainder of the year. Its goal is to cover, and help shape, the debate over downtown’s evolution as it searches for a new role and a changed future. For the rest of the Reset: San Francisco package, see here.
There are a host of new and old organizations working to better downtown San Francisco and put the city on what they see as a better path. Here's everything you need to know about them.
Bay Area Council
Founded: 1945, by prominent CEOs of the time
Leader: Jim Wunderman, CEO
Nonprofit status: 501(c)(4)
Number of members: 325
Annual revenue: $6.67 million
Primary funding: Member support
Website: bayareacouncil.org
Contact: Rufus Jeffris, SVP, Communications: rjeffris@bayareacouncil.org
Mission in downtown S.F.: The Bay Area Council’s mission is to engage business and civic-minded leaders to ensure the Bay Area, including San Francisco and all 101 cities and towns across the region, is the most innovative, sustainable, inclusive and globally competitive region in the world.
Abundant San Francisco
Founded: 2023, by Zack Rosen
Leader: Zack Rosen, Founder
Primary funding: Donors
Contact: Colby Zintl: colby@abundantsanfrancisco.org
Mission in downtown S.F.: Abundant San Francisco is committed to creating a vibrant downtown San Francisco, with plentiful housing, accessible public spaces and clean, safe and efficient transit. The organization works with a coalition of donors, city officials, business leaders and advocates to advance a vision for downtown as San Francisco’s next great neighborhood.
Housing Action Coalition
Founded: 1999, by a large group of San Francisco-based homebuilders and advocates. Prior to 2017, it was the San Francisco Housing Action Coalition.
Leader: Corey Smith, Executive Director
Nonprofit status: 501(c)(3)
Number of members: ~200 business members
2024 budget (approx.): $1.4 million
Primary funding: Foundations, businesses and homebuilding industry
Website: housingcoalition.org
Contact: corey@housingactioncoalition.org
Mission in downtown S.F.: Our mission is to advocate for more homes for Californians. Housing abundance means that more people of all income levels can live in our amazing city and work in and enjoy downtown.
Golden Gate Restaurant Association
Founded: 1936, by San Francisco restaurateurs
Leader: Laurie Thomas, Executive Director
Nonprofit status: 501(c)6
Number of members: ~800 member locations in San Francisco
Annual revenue: $394,000
Primary funding: Membership dues and sponsorship dollars
Website: ggra.org
Contact: ggra@ggra.org
Mission in downtown S.F.: We help San Francisco restaurants to survive and thrive through advocacy, education, marketing, events and training. We work with our industry partners, government officials and our members to promote restaurants’ interests. We offer online education and programs to make sure our members are apprised of evolving legislation and compliance.
Hotel Council of San Francisco
Founded: 1987, by Paul Handlery, Richard Swig, Bob Wilhelm and Werner Lewin
Leader: Alex Bastian, CEO
Nonprofit status: 501(c)(6)
Number of members: 160 hotel members; 75 allied members (aviation, sports teams, restaurants, transport, etc.); 28 board members
2024 budget (approx.): $1.28 million
Primary funding: Membership dues and events
Website: hotelcouncilsf.org
Contact: abastian@hotelcouncilsf.org
Mission in downtown S.F.: Our mission is to ensure the vitality and growth of our community and our city. Doubling down on hospitality is the fastest way for San Francisco to come back better and stronger than before. In 2019, this industry was responsible for 25,000 jobs and $440 million in tax revenue.
Advance SF
Founded: 2021, by co-chairs Larry Baer (President & CEO, SF Giants); Lloyd Dean, CEO Emeritus, CommonSpirit Health; Vice Chair Liz Minick, Managing Director, San Francisco-East Bay Market Executive, Bank of America
Leader: Wade Rose, President
Nonprofit status: 501(c)(3)
Number of members: 28
2024 budget (approx.): $2.3 million
Primary funding: Membership dues
Website: advancesf.org
Contact: chris@advancesf.org
Mission in downtown S.F.: Advance SF is an organization comprised of San Francisco’s leading employers dedicated to supporting an equitable, resilient and vibrant economy shared by all people working and living in San Francisco. Through education, advocacy and research, the organization is working to transform downtown into a thriving neighborhood where people can work, play and live.
GrowSF
Founded: 2020, by Sachin Agarwal and Steven Buss
Leader: Sachin Agarwal, Director
Nonprofit status: 501(c)(4)
Number of members: None (but has social media with tens of thousands of followers)
Annual revenue: $615,974
Primary funding: 1,200 donors
Website: growsf.org
Contact: sachin@growsf.org
Mission in downtown S.F.: Our leaders have failed at the basics: public safety, clean streets and supporting businesses. GrowSF is focused on publishing highly researched voter guides and electing leaders who want to support businesses and see S.F. thrive.
TogetherSF
Founded: 2020, by Kanishka Cheng and Griffin Gaffney, TogetherSF; Kanishka Cheng , TogetherSF Action
Leader: Kanishka Cheng, Executive Director, TogetherSF; CEO, TogetherSF Action
Nonprofit status: 501(c)(3) TogetherSF; 501(c)(4) TogetherSF Action
Number of members: 93,000 San Franciscans in coalition
Annual revenue: Together SF: $1.56 million; Together SF Action $1.74 million
Primary funding: High-dollar grassroots donors
Website: togethersf.org
Contact: kanishka@togethersf.org
Mission in downtown S.F.: TogetherSF Action educates and empowers San Francisco residents to demand efficacy from their local government, with a focus on good governance, street conditions, public safety and economic prosperity. A prosperous downtown is a critical part of San Francisco’s recovery.
YIMBY Action
Founded: 2017, by Laura Foote and Sonja Trauss
Leader: Laura Foote, Executive Director
Nonprofit status: 501(c)(4)
Number of members: 3,692
2024 budget (approx.): $1.26 million
Primary funding: 67% individuals, 6% foundations, 27% corporate
Website: new.yimbyaction.org
Contact: hello@yimbyaction.org
Mission in downtown S.F.: To end the housing shortage and create vibrant, affordable communities for all.
San Francisco Bay Area Planning and Urban Research Association (SPUR)
Founded: 1910, by Alice Griffith and Langley Porter
Leader: Alicia John-Baptiste, CEO
Nonprofit status: 501(c)(3)
Number of members: ~3,000
Annual revenue: $6.22 million
Primary funding: Individual, corporate and foundation philanthropy
Website: spur.org
Contact: Karen Steen, communications and content director: ksteen@spur.org
Mission in downtown S.F.: SPUR envisions downtown San Francisco evolving into a bustling, 24-hour destination with thriving cultural districts supported by world-class transit, bike and pedestrian connections; welcoming public spaces; and affordable homes and spaces for small businesses, artists and community organizations.
SF New Deal
Founded: 2020, by Jacob Bindman, Jenais Zarlin and Lenore Estrada
Leader: Simon Bertrang, Executive Director
Nonprofit status: 501(c)(3)
Number of members: 30 community, government and nonprofit partners
2024 budget (approx.): $12 million
Primary funding: City contracts, private and corporate philanthropy
Website: sfnewdeal.org
Contact: Jacob Bindman, chief program officer: jacob@sfnewdeal.org
Mission in downtown S.F.: SF New Deal strengthens neighborhoods by making it easier for underresourced small business owners to succeed.
Building Owners and Managers Association of San Francisco (BOMA)
Founded: 1911, by San Francisco building managers and city leaders
Leaders: Amber Brown, President, Senior Property Manager, BXP; John Bryant, CEO
Nonprofit status: 501(c)(6)
Number of members: 256 member buildings ; 156 associate members (vendors)
2024 budget (approx.): $2.4 million
Primary funding: Membership dues
Website: bomasf.org
Contact: jbryant@boma.com
Mission in downtown S.F.: BOMA San Francisco strives to support a thriving commercial real estate market in downtown San Francisco. We support economic vibrancy downtown by connecting building owners and managers with government partners and community stakeholders. We advocate on behalf of the commercial real estate industry.
San Francisco Citizens Initiative for Technology and Innovation (SF.Citi)
Founded: 2012, by Ron Conway and Alex Tourk
Leader: Rebecca Prozan, Board Chair
Nonprofit status: 501(c)(6)
Number of members: More than 20 members among tech companies located and operating in San Francisco
Annual revenue: $300,969
Primary funding: Membership dues
Website: sfciti.org
Contact: hayden@sfciti.org
Mission in downtown S.F.: SF.Citi aims to reinforce San Francisco’s status as the AI capital of the world by assisting in downtown’s revitalization. We facilitate collaboration between the tech community and city leaders to navigate issues like business tax restructuring and public safety, aiming to create a welcoming environment for all tech companies.
Neighbors for a Better San Francisco
Founded: 2021, by Mary Jung and Jay Cheng
Leader: Jay Cheng, Executive Director
Nonprofit status: 501(c)(3) Neighbors; 501(c)(4) Neighbors Advocacy
Number of members: 800
Annual revenue: Neighbors $1.82 million; Neighbors Advocacy $4.85 million
Primary funding: Individuals
Website: neighborsbettersf.com
Contact: jay@neighborsbettersf.com
Mission in downtown S.F.: Neighbors for a Better San Francisco is an organization of long-time San Franciscans dedicated to pushing forward responsible, bold policies and leaders in local elections. We are focused on restoring public safety, solving homelessness and enforcing fiscal accountability.
NOTES
501 (c)(3) organizations are classified as public charities and are prohibited from involvement in politics. 501(c)(4) are social welfare organizations that can engage in politics as long as it is not their primary purpose. 501(c)(6) organizations are generally trade associations or similar groups that can engage in politics related to their purpose.
Organizations were asked for financial information. For those that declined to provide it, financial data from the group’s most recent IRS Form 990 was used if available.
