We are disappointed by Solano Land Trust’s actions, but not surprised. Their primary donor is the Orderly Growth Committee, funded by a tax on every trash bill in Solano County. We would hope that those funds would be put to better use by focusing on homes and jobs for Solano County’s residents. Please see our full statement attached.

Today, 20,472 voter signatures were submitted to the Solano County Registrar of Voters to place the East Solano Homes, Jobs, and Clean Energy Initiative on the November ballot. The number of signatures submitted far exceeds the 13,062 valid signatures required by law to qualify the initiative.

During months of community engagement, California Forever regularly heard from Solano County residents concerned about the lack of good paying jobs, long commutes, cuts to government services due to declining tax revenue, and a general sense that Solano County is being left behind the rest of the region. A new study prepared by Michael Genest, former California Director of Finance, details this significant economic gap between Solano County and its neighboring counties.

California Forever is excited to announce an initial gift to UC Davis’s Energy and Efficiency Institute's Agrivoltaics Support Fund to help advance research into ways to use land for solar energy production at the same time as agricultural activities and habitat conservation - also known as agrivoltaics/ecovoltaics, agrisolar, or agrophotovoltaics (APV).

Opponents of the East Solano Homes, Jobs, and Clean Energy Initiative have been spreading misinformation regarding the petition currently in circulation that would qualify the measure for this November’s election. This is an attempt by the opponents to prevent Solano County voters from deciding what future they want for themselves and their children. Here are the facts.

(Solano County, Calif.) - California Forever today announced its first cable advertising run and released a new aerial photo that puts into broader perspective the location of the new community in Solano County.

The Press Release for the East Solano Homes, Jobs, and Clean Energy Initiative.

Solano County residents have endured long, exhausting commutes to the Bay Area or Sacramento for jobs with higher wages for too long. Many of us travel 1-2 hours each way. I commuted to San Francisco for two hours each day for over eight years. In a car, this time is wasted time full of frustration and only adds to our stress. This constant back and forth on the roads drains Solano County of its skilled labor pool and contributes to other counties’ economies.

As one of the fastest growing and most economically productive areas in the world, the San Francisco Bay Area accounts for just 2.9 percent of the country’s population. Yet the nine-county region is responsible for 5.5 percent of the country’s GDP. In short, the Bay Area generates a ton of wealth. But the benefits of that wealth haven’t reached all corners of the Bay Area.

Our family has lived in Solano County for over a century. My great-grandparents first settled in Montezuma Hills in East Solano in 1905. But whether your family has lived here for several generations or only a few years, we all agree there’s a unique and special reason we chose to move here or choose to stay here. Where we sometimes disagree is how we keep it special, protect Travis Air Force Base, protect our economy, and offer living opportunities for the next generation.

As a Solano County resident and Realtor of more than 45 years, I’ve seen our communities both flourish and also face difficult challenges. In recent years, rising costs of housing have become one of the most critical challenges we face. According to recent data, housing prices in Solano County have increased by more than 25 percent in just the last two years alone. This has not only made Solano County unaffordable to many, but it has also created an unfortunate trend of young people moving away from home as they become adults.