Billionaire-backed city ‘California Forever’ to guarantee 15K jobs, $400M in ‘down payment assistance’

A controversial proposal to build a billionaire-backed city in California is trying to win over locals with a package of lavish benefits – including $400 million in “down payment assistance” for homebuyers and a guarantee of 15,000 new jobs.

As The Post has reported, California Forever — the firm behind nearly $1 billion in secretive land purchases in Solano County northeast of San Francisco — has faced major blowback from residents and federal lawmakers alike ahead of the November vote that will decide if the project can move forward.

California Forever said the $400 million in financial assistance would provide a pathway for local Solano County residents, including “working families, teachers, nurses, police and firefighters, and construction workers,” to own property in the new development, according to its website.

Officials also insisted that the city would support at least 15,000 jobs that would “pay at least 125% of county average weekly wage by the time we hit 50,000 residents.” The median household income in Solano County was $97,037 as of 2022, according to US Census data.

“The one thing that hopefully people will say when they look at this plan is, ‘you know, they really listened,’” California Forever CEO Jan Sramek said at an invite-only press conference detailing the proposal. “It is a plan that fits in. It respects the heritage of the county.”

The bold promises are part of a list of a so-called “ten guarantees” that the project’s executives say they will provide if their ballot passes. California Forever said the pledges would be “legally binding and enforceable by the county,” though it wasn’t immediately clear how that mechanism would work.