On Tuesday, December 5th, Flannery Associates (California Forever) held a meeting at the Veterans Hall in Rio Vista. In attendance were over 200 residents, the media, and other interested parties. Jan Sramek, founder and CEO of California Forever, gave a 40-minute PowerPoint presentation, interspersed with questions from the audience. During the sometimes-contentious discussion that followed, Mr. Sramek fielded questions that ranged from why they were so secretive about the purchase of over 60,000 acres of land in Solano County to the potential benefits for Rio Vista and its residents. The meeting lasted over two and a half hours.
An informal survey conducted by California Forever indicated that Solano County residents’ primary concerns include, job opportunities within the county; long commutes to jobs outside the county; the rising cost of housing in Solano; water resources; air quality; and the high cost of living and lack of job opportunities forcing their children to move to other states. California Forever maintains that their project will positively address all these matters.
They propose developing a city of 50,000 new residents on land they purchased along Highways 12 and 113 and bordering on the City of Rio Vista. It is planned as an attractively landscaped “high density” city with homes within walking distance of schools, shops, and jobs of all kinds. The jobs would include a mix of agriculture (both indoor and outdoor), technology, retail, light manufacturing, education, and professional services, including physicians, attorneys, financial, and accounting.
To quote their PowerPoint presentation, the proposed Benefits to Rio Vista would be:
- Good-paying jobs nearby.
- Population base that helps Rio Vista downtown reach its full potential.
- Medical services, restaurants, and shops in close proximity to Rio Vista
- The best shot for Rio Vista of having Highway 12 relocated with a new bridge or tunnel built.
- All the while being not too far but also not too large for preserving Rio Vista’s unique character.
Though many at the meeting were vocal about these points, most adopted a “wait and see” attitude.
The California Forever organization plans to open an office in Rio Vista (as well as other Solano cities) to respond to residents’ questions and share information about their development plans. They will have a detailed proposal ready by January 24th and hope to gather enough signatures to put a measure to approve their development on the November 24th State ballot.
For more information, see the website www.californiaforever.com.