Masterminds behind California Forever plea for Gavin Newsom’s help

The billionaires behind a proposed California utopian city are making a last-ditch push for Gavin Newsom and state lawmakers to clear hurdles they say are standing in the way of the massive project.

California Forever, a proposed new community on 25,000 acres in Solano County, wants the state to approve a package of changes before the legislative session ends this month.

The plans are backed by Silicon Valley billionaires and investors who envision a major hub for manufacturing, shipbuilding and housing between San Francisco and Sacramento.

But the ambitious idea has struggled to get off the ground — and its backers now point to Texas as evidence of what they say is at stake.

Saronic Technologies, a defense manufacturer that had considered locating a new factory at California Forever, instead chose Brownsville, Texas.

“I’m sick and tired of the brand of California. Texas has beaten us. This state’s beaten us,” former Assembly Speaker Bob Hertzberg told KCRA 3’s California Politics 360.

“All we’re asking in this effort that we’re engaged in, private sector funded, is just let’s get rid of a few of the impediments, not local control, but a few of the impediments that slow down the ability for people to want to come.”

Hertzberg and former Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg, both former legislative leaders, have been hired by California Forever to lobby for the changes.

Steinberg said the project could help tackle two problems that have long plagued California: a housing shortage and a lack of high-paying industrial jobs.

“We believe in California, and we see a unique opportunity,” Steinberg told KCRA 3. “This is a statewide issue.

“We know several things about California. No. 1, we have a housing shortage. And No. 2, we don’t have enough high-wage manufacturing, shipbuilding, industrial kinds of jobs.”

The proposal would not eliminate environmental laws, Hertzberg and Steinberg said. Instead, they want faster review timelines for certain projects, including a 270-day environmental review process and the ability to rely on a 2008 environmental impact report for the proposed shipyard.

They are also seeking a mechanism to resolve disputes between cities and counties over how tax revenue generated by major developments would be divided.

The changes would only take effect if a major employer actually commits to moving into the project, the former lawmakers said.

The proposal faces fierce opposition from Solano Forever, a coalition of residents, local leaders and organizations that has urged Newsom and legislative leaders to reject the changes.

“Advancing these proposals at the last minute would be extraordinarily harmful to Solano County communities and the environment, and we urge you to reject any such legislation,” the group said.

Critics have raised concerns about the project’s potential demands on water, land and sensitive marshlands, as well as the lack of direct voter approval. A ballot measure tied to the development was withdrawn in 2024.

California Forever has described the project as an opportunity to bring new jobs and housing to land that has remained largely undeveloped for decades.

The proposed development is roughly five times the size of Manhattan, although Steinberg said the immediate goal is far more limited: attracting one or two major employers and building enough housing to support their workers.

With the legislative session nearing its August conclusion, the project’s backers are seeking to move the changes through a budget trailer bill, which would face a faster process than conventional legislation.

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