A billionaire-backed development group pushing to build a new city in Solano County, California has enlisted two of the state’s most prominent Democratic political veterans to help navigate what promises to be a complicated legislative and regulatory path.
California Forever, which has spent roughly a decade assembling land and political support for the project, recently hired former state Senate President Darrell Steinberg and former state Senate Majority Leader Bob Hertzberg. Both figures carry deep relationships in Sacramento and have backgrounds in environmental law — credentials the group appears to be leaning on as the project faces scrutiny from environmental advocates.
What’s Being Proposed
The plan calls for a manufacturing-focused community on the outskirts of Suisun City, built on land California Forever has already acquired. The proposed development would require Suisun City to annex that land — a significant governmental step that would formalize the project’s footprint within an incorporated municipality.
In terms of scale, proponents envision something roughly the size of Cleveland. Backers argue the project would deliver billions of dollars in investment and create tens of thousands of jobs, framing it as a major economic opportunity for a region that has historically lagged behind the broader Bay Area economy.
Steinberg has been direct about the urgency his team sees in moving the project forward. “The state and county need the ability to say yes now to these numerous opportunities,” he said publicly, signaling that part of his role involves pushing for expedited approvals rather than a drawn-out multi-agency review process.
Opposition Takes Shape
Not everyone shares that sense of urgency. Suisun City Councilmember Princess Washington has pushed back on what she described as an unrealistic timeline. “It’s unheard of for a project to be done as quickly as they want it to be done,” she said, reflecting broader concerns among local officials about the pace California Forever is seeking.
Environmental groups are also organizing resistance, with advocates focused on protecting the outer Bay Area greenbelt — the open land buffer that separates the region’s suburban edges from agricultural and rural terrain. A development the size of the one proposed would represent one of the most significant land-use changes in the region in decades, and that scale has galvanized opposition from conservation interests concerned about habitat, water use, and long-term land management.
The hiring of Steinberg and Hertzberg — both Democrats with established environmental credentials — appears designed in part to preempt that criticism and signal that the project intends to engage seriously with regulatory requirements rather than circumvent them. Whether that framing holds up under scrutiny from organized environmental groups remains to be seen.
Broader Context
California Forever’s effort reflects a wider national trend of private capital attempting to build planned communities from scratch, often in regions where existing infrastructure constraints or housing costs have made organic growth difficult. Similar projects have advanced in Texas and Arizona, though California’s regulatory environment — including the California Environmental Quality Act — makes the permitting process substantially more complex.
The Solano County proposal also comes as California continues to grapple with housing shortfall and a manufacturing base that has contracted significantly over several decades. Proponents of California Forever argue that a purpose-built industrial and residential hub could address both challenges simultaneously, though skeptics question whether a project of that ambition can be executed on private land under public oversight without decades of litigation.
California’s land-use and development debates extend well beyond Solano County. Disputes over large-scale projects — from data center development in Imperial County to major urban infrastructure expansions — have consistently tested the limits of state permitting frameworks and local authority.
What’s Next
The immediate focus for California Forever is the annexation question in Suisun City, which would require action by local officials before the broader project can advance through state environmental review. Steinberg and Hertzberg’s roles are expected to include direct engagement with state lawmakers and regulatory agencies as the project builds its approval case.
Local opposition, including from councilmember Washington and environmental coalitions, is likely to press for a slower, more conventional review timeline — setting up a prolonged negotiation between the development group and the various governmental bodies with jurisdiction over the site.