Billionaire backers of a new city from San Francisco cleared their first major hurdle on Tuesday after the Solano County Registrar of Voters certified that the group has enough signatures to take its proposal to local voters. The rolling prairie rises northeast of the bay.
The group behind the measure, California Forever, must now convince voters to support the bold idea of creating a walkable and environmentally friendly community with tens of thousands of homes, as well as sports centers, parks, Cycle paths, open spaces and public spaces.
The venture is led by former Goldman Sachs trader and entrepreneur Jan Sramek and has support from a number of tech giants, including LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman; venture capitalist Marc Andreessen; Patrick Collison ) and John Collison founded payment processing company Stripe.
Slamek said in an interview Tuesday that the question before Solano County voters is nothing more than “a referendum on what we want the future of California to look like.”
The state was once a great place, he said, “that built all these incredible things, bridges, water infrastructure, great public works, and now it’s an oasis for the wealthy, or those who are on the cheap When it comes time to buy a house it’s an oasis for people and they get to live here.
He said his proposed new city offered a way “out of this defeatist, build-nothing, argue-everything model” amid a severe lack of affordable housing.
But the proposal has faced opposition from some local leaders and environmental groups concerned about the loss of natural habitat. Opponents of the plan said a recent poll they conducted found 70 per cent of respondents were skeptical.
Duane Kromm, a former Solano County commissioner, said there are “many reasons” to oppose the project. . One reason, he said, is the county’s longstanding commitment to limiting development to existing cities and a lack of transparency from plan backers.
Rep. Mike Thompson (D-St. Helena) even issued a Column Local newspapers opposed the project, writing, “I strongly support efforts to add good-paying jobs, implement clean energy, and provide opportunity to our region. But these efforts require sound public policies that work with our communities, not ones that may never be realized.” Luxurious promises.
Some of the opposition stems from California Forever’s rocky introduction into the local political scene: The effort, launched under the guise of secrecy, became mired in controversy last year amid unfounded speculation that land buyers were foreign agents intent on espionage. .
That’s because, in the years before backers revealed their plans, they used a limited liability company called Flannery Associates to buy land from farmers in a large swath of the county, from the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta. Rio Vista extended west to Travis Air Force Base without telling anyone why. News of the mysterious land sale so close to important military installations has led some, including government officials, to speculate that it could be part of an effort by foreign spies to obtain military secrets.
Last year, it was Revealed on the contrary A bold plan to build a new city from the ground up and revolutionize the way homes are built in California.
In January, Slamek unveiled a blueprint for the new community and announced that his team would begin a signature collection drive to present a measure to county voters to amend the zoning code. From January to March, his team spent $2 million on the work. The organization has also begun rolling out a list of benefits voters can expect from the new community.
Among them: Commitment to create at least 15,000 jobs; $500 million to assist residents with down payments on housing, scholarships and other benefits; $200 million to revitalize the downtown core of Solano County communities such as Rio Vista, Benicia and Dixon; and pledged to protect open space, create walkable neighborhoods and improve traffic flow on nearby roads.
On May 12, California Forever announced it was in conversations with 12 employers interested in expanding to the county. On May 21, the organization said it had awarded $500,000 in grants to local organizations. On June 4, the group pledged to build a regional youth sports center so kids wouldn’t have to constantly travel to San Francisco or Sacramento to play club sports.
Sramek moved to Fairfield Township in Solano County with his family and their golden retriever. He said Tuesday that he felt welcome in his new community and said he enjoyed the hot weather, even on days when temperatures topped 100 degrees.
He said he believes voters can trust his plan to help solve the state’s housing crisis and improve the county’s economic standing. People “have been disappointed with developers before,” he said. But he said his team takes its commitments “very seriously.”
Some elected officials say they are listening.
Rio Vista Mayor Ron Kott said he saw “a lot of advantages.” estate. Among other things, he said it could improve the town’s retail sector and potentially bring in a much-needed medical clinic.
“I need more business,” he said. “I need more sales tax revenue. I need basic services.
