California forever, the group of investors from Silicon Valley who want to create a brand new city in rural Solano County, has aroused much suspicion among local residents. But on Monday they made a surprising philanthropic announcement.
They will sponsor a group of medical clinics in the province, and many believe this is a way to build goodwill among the local population.
It was Meatball Monday at “Pizza A Go-Go” in the city of Rio Vista, and owner Robin Sibert said there were a lot of questions from customers about what was happening across the street.
“Every person who comes in here today asks me, ‘What’s going on there?’” she said. “And I say, ‘I’m learning it right at the same time you’re learning it.'”
California Forever is proposing the so-called “East Solano Plan,” which would create a massive new planned community on farmland it purchased between Fairfield and Rio Vista. On Monday, founder Jan Sramek gathered the media to announce the company’s sponsorship of a series of new primary and urgent care facilities in Solano County, including in Rio Vista, a community that currently lacks a single healthcare facility.
Dr. Eshan Ghods, a physician at NorthBay Health, said all of his Rio Vista patients have to drive to his office in Fairfield to be treated.
“So, having something closer, where they can get help with transportation to a place that is reasonably less than 45 minutes away, is what is offered here,” said Dr. Ghods.
“To me, this clinic is a great example of what is possible with the right capital and partnerships,” Sramek told the audience at the announcement.
But it was also a good example of why CA Forever has such a hard time gaining the trust of locals. The building they were standing in front of was empty and won’t be open until sometime in 2025. And Robin said she hadn’t seen the signs on the window until that morning.
“I’m right across the street,” she said, “and I didn’t know it was going to be a health center until today.”
CA Forever has received many questions about its secrecy, uncertain water supply, and battles with local landowners. And some believe health care clinic offerings are, too an attempt to mend some fences.
“All that stuff just created a lot of mistrust and suspicion and a lot of negative feelings,” Rio Vista Mayor Ron Kott said. “But I think we’re starting to see that shift a little bit. I think you’re starting to see that as more and more people become aware of some of the positive impacts, it’s starting to turn around a little bit. (The Health) Clinic ) is a big positive, probably one of the bigger ones I’ve seen.”
“People who may have started out skeptical and maybe even jaded have realized that there are people out there who are just trying to do the right thing and build it for the right reasons,” Sramek said.
But CA Forever also needs public support to approve a voter impersonation that would allow the farmland to be rezoned. And so far, polls show the public is still hesitant to do so. Back at “Pizza A Go-Go,” Robin said she’s just afraid of what will happen to her quiet town if thousands of CA Forever residents pass through downtown for their commutes.
“I’ll tell you what I’d rather stay in my small town and drive to the doctor,” she said. “That’s how I feel.”
Details about the new clinics were vague, but Sramek said the company plans to contribute tens of millions of dollars to rural health care over the next 10 to 15 years, regardless of the outcome of the voter initiative. And while a new urgent care clinic would be helpful to many people, the loss of trust is something that could take much longer to heal.
John Ramos
