Concerned Californians gathered earlier this month to protest a billionaire group’s efforts to build a 53,000-acre “walkable and green” city.
California Forever, a group of Silicon Valley tech titans, hopes to create a new city in a rural area 60 miles northeast of San Francisco.
But the residents reject this idea. Among them are the roughly 200 people who attended a Solano County Water Authority meeting about the group’s proposal to fund a study to improve the county’s water supply.
California Forever called the proposal a “free lunch” for the community in a press release.
Brian Brokaw, a spokesman for the group and its subsidiary Flannery Associates, called the naysayers “a small but vocal minority.”
Solano County residents crowded into a rally to protest a billionaire-backed group’s efforts to build a utopian city on rural land (pictured: an artist’s impression from the California Forever website).
According to Flannery Associates, the proposed new city will be “walkable and green,” create thousands of jobs and “bring back the California dream.”
“We’ve learned from both our previous surveys and our more recent survey and community engagement that a lot of people are either supportive or undecided, but are very open-minded,” Brokaw told The Daily Beast.
He added: “Because of all the mystery and intrigue surrounding the project in recent years, people will be skeptical and suspicious.”
At the meeting, five people, including California Forever founder Jan Sramek, spoke in favor of the project, while more than two dozen spoke against it.
Biology professor Jim DeKlowe called the proposal “oligarch city” and expressed fears that its development would harm local swamps.
He said it was an “undermining of the democratic process” and a waste of “40 years of planning.”
Another local, Jeanne McCormack, said her family had lived on the land for more than 100 years.
“We will not leave and we will not cooperate,” she said. “And I’ll die if I try to stop it.”
The board ultimately decided to stop the discussions.
The group is led by former Goldman Sachs trader Jan Sramek (pictured) and backed by tech moguls including LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman
At the meeting earlier this month, five people, including Sramek, spoke in favor of the project touted as “walkable and environmentally friendly,” while more than two dozen spoke against it
Flannery has bought up land near Travis Air Force Base in Solano County, Northern California, raising concerns about possible security risks
Flannery Associates drew the ire of Solano Country residents when the group began purchasing acres of land six years ago.
The company invested more than $800 million discreetly buying up tracts of land around Travis Air Force Base in Solano County and acquired about 814 additional acres in October, meaning it now has more than 53,000 acres in the region .
Flannery says the proposed new city will be “walkable and green,” create thousands of jobs and “bring back the California dream.”
However, the controversy continued as Flannery earlier this year denounced a group of farmers who refused to sell their land, accusing them of colluding to increase its value.
According to court documents obtained by , the group is currently embroiled in a $510 million lawsuit.
The land purchases also worried lawmakers, including U.S. Representative John Garamendi, who was concerned about the project’s proximity to Travis Air Force Base.
These fears led to a national security investigation by the Treasury Department, which continues even after the founders were unmasked in late August.
Flannery Associates is led by former Goldman Sachs trader Jan Sramek and has the backing of tech moguls including former Sequoia Capital chairman Mike Moritz, LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman and venture capitalist Marc Andreessen.
According to county records, the group purchased about 814 additional acres in October, meaning it now owns more than 53,000 acres in the region
Despite growing tensions, the group said its project was gaining momentum – suggesting it now has the land it needs to begin building the city.
“As far as future purchases are concerned, with the exception of a few remaining properties that Flannery has under contract and will close in the coming weeks, Flannery has assembled all of the properties needed and does not anticipate making any additional purchases,” the company said in a statement .
The investors’ goal is to build “a new community, solar farms and a greenbelt of agriculture and habitat in eastern Solano County,” according to the project website.
“This would bring thousands of good-paying jobs, new pathways to middle-class homeownership in safe, walkable neighborhoods, and a new source of clean energy for every Solano County resident,” it continued.
Next November, Solano County residents will vote on whether to amend a local growth ordinance to allow the development of a new city.
California Forever’s ballot proposal, to be released early next year, will contain the most detailed description of the project to date.
Until then, the group is trying to gain community support, holding town halls and announcing a “community advisory board” of 21 residents.