Tech Billionaires Release Map of Utopian City They Want to Build in California

California Forever, the quixotic, WatchRemake this Sci-Fi Film with Peter Capaldi! CCShare SubtitlesOffEnglishAt the same time, the project backers claim they’ll invest as much as $200 million in a number of neighboring towns and cities, to assist those communities with development. Other promises, like financial commitments to support local parks, trails, and agricultural spaces, have also been included in the proposal. AdvertisementIn short: After getting off on the wrong foot with locals, California Forever appears to be putting its money where its mouth is, in an attempt to buy some loyalty from the surrounding community. The website vaunts an idealistic vision of its future city, painting an idyllic scene of gentrified urban harmony:...[our] initiative proposes to build a dynamic new community, with middle-class homes in safe, walkable neighborhoods. The plan also includes a commitment to bring good-paying jobs in advanced manufacturing, renewable energy, construction, and other industries, as well as large investments in education, green spaces, clean energy, and the revitalization of downtowns across the county.AdvertisementThe map unveiled on Wednesday shows the unnamed city sitting somewhere between the Solano County communities of Rio Vista and Suisun City. Other than that, it doesn’t give much away. It shows that the community would be a mix of residential neighborhoods and commercial businesses, along with an industrial sector and some open space. There would also be sheep, apparently, and what looks like a very large stork. Perhaps the most important thing that the group announced this week was its East Solano Homes, Jobs, and Clean Energy Initiative, which it has officially filed with the Solano County Registrar of Voters. This ballot initiative will determine whether the group can move ahead with its development plans. The 83-page ballot initiative was uploaded to California Forever’s website, showing, for the first time, extensive details about the proposed project. The group needs to acquire 13,000 signatures from locals in support of the initiative for it to appear on this year’s ballot. After that, residents will decide whether they want the development when they vote in November.AdvertisementThe California Forever project By all accounts, the project’s backers have their work cut out for them. Local opposition has been stiff. California Forever previously held a series of “town halls” throughout Solano County, the bulk of which went disastrously. County residents repeatedly showed up to the meetings and heckled the company’s CEO and project lead, former Goldman Sachs trader Jan Sramek. The fact that the company has tangled with local farmers and is

Based on reporting by gizmodo.com.