The Benicia Independent - Eyes on the Environment / Benicia News & Views
A sarcastic take on California Forever's huge outlay to win over voters.
Quick question: Will California Forever be required to report the new medical facility in Rio Vista as a campaign expense? CBS News seems to think so – they headlined the
Update from BenIndy, June 25, 2024 In a move that surprised approximately no one, the Solano County Board of Supervisors has ordered California Forever to produce a report on its East Solano Plan initiative within 30 days, to be delivered on or about July 23. The initiative will then be placed on the ballot for voters to decide its fate in November....
Update from BenIndy, June 25, 2024 In a move that surprised approximately no one, the Solano County Board of Supervisors has ordered California Forever to produce a report on its East Solano Plan i…
Got a few hours? Watch the Board of Supervisors meeting LIVE NOW by clicking this link or the image below.
Got a few hours? Watch the Board of Supervisors meeting LIVE NOW by clicking this link or the image below.
By Roger Straw, June 25, 2024 Quick question: will California Forever be required to report the new medical facility in Rio Vista as a campaign expense? CBS News seems to think so – they headlined the story, “California Forever founder announces planned clinics in bid to win over Solano County voters”. If, as reported in the Vallejo Times-Herald…...
By Roger Straw, June 25, 2024 Quick question: will California Forever be required to report the new medical facility in Rio Vista as a campaign expense? CBS News seems to think so – they headlined …
TODAY! From Solano Together message, sent June 24, 2024 Today, June 25, at 2 p.m., the Solano County Board of Supervisors will convene to discuss California Forever’s East Solano Plan. At this meeting, the Board of Supervisors can adopt the Initiative, order a 30-day study, or put the Initiative on the ballot. Attendees will have the opportunity for a public comment and we ask you to urge the Board to conduct a 30-day study of the Initiative....
From Solano Together message, sent June 24, 2024 TODAY, June 25, at 2 p.m., the Solano County Board of Supervisors will convene to discuss California Forever’s East Solano Plan. At this meeting, th…
YIMBYs are feuding over ‘California Forever,’ billionaire-backed utopia in rural Bay Area The San Francisco Standard, by Gabe Gerschler, June 24, 2024 A plan backed by billionaire techies that promises to bring hundreds of thousands of new homes to a remote part of the Bay Area is causing a major rift within one of the state’s most influential housing organizations....
[Note from BenIndy: You may have heard that California YIMBY recently endorsed California Forever’s East Solano Plan, but did you know that its co-founder, who is also a current member of its…
JUNE 20, 2024 BENICIA – The Progressive Democrats of Benicia (“PDB”) stand with the Solano Together coalition of individuals and organizations, including the Greenbelt Alliance, Solano County Orderly Growth Committee, Center for Biological Diversity, Sierra Club California, and others, in opposing the California Forever’s East Solano Plan. PDB’s mission is to promote equity, justice, and environmental stewardship in our community. We advocate for democratically determined, sustainable, and inclusive solutions that honor both the needs of Benicia and Solano County residents and the preservation of our natural environment. ...
[Note from BenIndy: The Progressive Dems were not the first and will likely not be the last Democratic club in Solano County to urge opposition to this project, but it was actually the Solano Count…
CBS News Sacramento, by Ashley Sharp, June 19, 2024 SOLANO COUNTY -- California Forever released a report Tuesday addressing one of the biggest questions surrounding its billionaire-backed push to build a new city on Solano County farmland: where exactly they are getting the water to sustain a community of up to 400,000 people? Leaders say this initial review found they have secured enough water for the first stage of buildout at 100,000 residents and laid out the company's plan for how they say they will scale their water usage for when the community grows by four times....
CBS News Sacramento, by Ashley Sharp, June 19, 2024 SOLANO COUNTY — California Forever released a report Tuesday addressing one of the biggest questions surrounding its billionaire-backed pus…
From Solano Together message, sent June 18, 2024 Next Tuesday, June 25, at 2 p.m., the Solano County Board of Supervisors will convene to discuss California Forever’s East Solano Plan. Our coalition will show up strong and we urge you to do the same and voice your concerns and opposition to the California Forever/East Solano Plan. Here is how you can do it....
From Solano Together message, sent June 18, 2024 Next Tuesday, June 25, at 2 p.m., the Solano County Board of Supervisors will convene to discuss California Forever’s East Solano Plan. Our coaliti…
By Stephen Golub, June 18, 2024 On June 11, the City Council took the first step in a multi-stage process to put on the November ballot a vote on whether Benicia should adopt a Real Property Transfer Tax (RPTT) for the sale of real estate, be it residential, commercial or industrial. Kudos to the Council for both biting the bullet on this significant step to close the City’s budget gap and conducting its discussion and initial community input in a collegial way....
By Stephen Golub, June 18, 2024 On June 11, the City Council took the first step in a multi-stage process to put on the November ballot a vote on whether Benicia should adopt a Real Property Trans…
The Washington Post, 16 June 2024 Thank you, Garry Trudeau. Gently, prophetically, decisively, truth to power... - BenIndy
The Washington Post, 16 June 2024 Thank you, Garry Trudeau. Gently, prophetically, decisively, truth to power… – BenIndy
From Benicia Black Lives Matter: One last reminder that TODAY is BBLM's Juneteenth Celebration, set from 12PM-5PM and taking place at Benicia Public Library. Located at: Benicia Public Library 150 East L Street, Benicia CA *This venue has plenty of free parking! The event opens at 12PM, the program of speakers begins at 2PM, and the film screening begins at 3PM. ...
From Benicia Black Lives Matter: One last reminder that TODAY is BBLM’s Juneteenth Celebration, set from 12PM-5PM and taking place at Benicia Public Library. Located at: Benicia Public Librar…
Court holds technical issue more important than saving lives Back in 2019, the BenIndy covered news of the passage of the bump stock ban following the Las Vegas massacre. At that time, the welcome headline was Bump Stock Ban Now Official Nationwide – Supreme Court. A few days later, a follow-up story headline was Supreme Court Refuses to Block ‘Bump Stock’ Ban Over Thomas and Gorsuch’s Dissent…...
Court holds technical issue more important than saving lives Back in 2019, the BenIndy covered news of the passage of the bump stock ban following the Las Vegas massacre. At that time, the welcome …
From Benicia Black Lives Matter: Please join Benicia Black Lives Matter this Saturday, June 15th from 12PM-5PM for our fourth annual Juneteenth Celebration! Located at: Benicia Public Library 150 East L Street, Benicia CA *This venue has plenty of free parking! The event opens at 12PM, the program of speakers begins at 2PM, and the film screening begins at 3PM. ...
From Benicia Black Lives Matter: Please join Benicia Black Lives Matter this Saturday, June 15th from 12PM-5PM for our fourth annual Juneteenth Celebration! Located at: Benicia Public Library 150 E…
California Forever's biggest PR problem may be its CEO The Nerd Reich, by Gil Duran, June 12, 2024 The point: California Forever CEO Jan Sramek has a talent for saying disastrous things. It's a gift to the residents of Solano County, who are resisting his effort to build a billionaire-funded tech city in their midst. The Backstory: You know it’s bad when a CEO lands a glossy profile in a major publication and then pretends it never happened....
[From BenIndy: Follow the link to see journalist Gil Duran’s take on the motivations and methods of a certain Jan Sramek, CEO of California Forever. Sramek’s dismissiveness (bordering o…
NPR, by Adhiti Bandlamudi, June 11, 2024 The campaign to build a city from scratch in Solano County submitted enough valid signatures to qualify for the November ballot, election officials said Tuesday. The Solano County Registrar of Voters spent a month reviewing over 20,000 signatures turned in by California Forever, the billionaire-backed company behind the ballot initiative. The measure needed 14,369 signatures from registered Solano County voters to qualify....
[BenIndy: Here we go!] NPR, by Adhiti Bandlamudi, June 11, 2024 The campaign to build a city from scratch in Solano County submitted enough valid signatures to qualify for the November ballot, elec…
By Benicia Mayor Steve Young, June 9, 2024 Tomorrow, on Tuesday June 11th, the City Council will hold the first of a series of public hearings on a specific tax proposal that, if passed, would increase taxes solely on the sale of real estate. These public hearings will focus on the proposed structure of a proposed Real Property Transfer Tax ( RPTT)...
By Benicia Mayor Steve Young, June 9, 2024 Tomorrow, on Tuesday June 11th, the City Council will hold the first of a series of public hearings on a specific tax proposal that, if passed, would inc…
Sustainable Solano’s Position on California Forever From Sustainable Solano blog, May 29, 2024 Sustainable Solano has remained publicly silent until now about California Forever, both as a proposal and a ballot item. But we have spent that time in active discussions as a team and board to weigh the California Forever proposal and the process taken to get it to this point and test it for alignment with Sustainable Solano’s mission and objective to nurture initiatives for the good of the whole....
Sustainable Solano’s Position on California Forever From Sustainable Solano blog, May 29, 2024 Sustainable Solano has remained publicly silent until now about California Forever, both as a proposal…
June 6, 2024 - In an email today, Solano Land Trust's Nicole Braddock announced that the Land Trust Board of Directors voted to formally oppose the East Solano Plan, also known as California Forever. The Board urges Solano residents to vote no. Here's the email: Dear . . . Solano Land Trust has also been following developments around the East Solano Plan, also know as California Forever, closely as more information about the details, scope, and size of the project have been made available....
June 6, 2024 – In an email today, Solano Land Trust’s Nicole Braddock announced that the Land Trust Board of Directors voted to formally oppose the East Solano Plan, also known as Calif…
By BenIndy, June 5, 2024 A text from BenIndy's editor emeritus today read: Big news today. Cal Fever plans to build a facility to please every sports enthusiast. Next, an apple pie factory and the world's biggest American flag. And something honoring every Solano mom... Yes, the billionaires behind "California Forever" are at it again, announcing yesterday the creation of yet another vague and legally tenuous "incentive" to boost the company's increasingly desperate efforts to drive supporters to the polls in November....
By BenIndy, June 5, 2024 A text from BenIndy’s editor emeritus today read: Big news today. Cal Fever plans to build a facility to please every sports enthusiast. Next, an apple pie factory an…
Benicia Black Lives Matter to host fourth annual Juneteenth celebration at Benicia Public Library Benicia Black Lives Matter is hosting a Juneteenth Celebration at the Benicia Public Library on Saturday, June 15th, from 12 to 5 pm. Juneteenth – which falls on June 19 but will be celebrated on the 15th here in Benicia – was finally recognized as a national holiday in 2021....
Benicia Black Lives Matter to host fourth annual Juneteenth celebration at Benicia Public Library Benicia Black Lives Matter is hosting a Juneteenth Celebration at the Benicia Public Library on Sat…
Sierra Club post, by Claire Greenburger, June 4, 2024 A plan to develop a new city northeast of San Francisco has been seven years in the making, but until recently, the details were largely kept under wraps. Now that the plans are public—and the proposal has garnered enough signatures to make it onto the November ballot for voter consideration—residents and activists are squaring off to defeat what the developers promise will be a kind of green urban paradise....
Sierra Club post, by Claire Greenburger, June 4, 2024 A plan to develop a new city northeast of San Francisco has been seven years in the making, but until recently, the details were largely kept u…
Graphic by Solano NewsNet.Solano NewsNet, by Matthew Keys, June 4, 2024 Vacaville Mayor John Carli declined to sign a Pride Month declaration that was recommended by LGBTQ community advocates, opting instead to have the city’s vice mayor affirm an amended endorsement that he wrote under a little-known policy enacted earlier this year. The matter dates back to mid-April, when executive leaders at the Solano Pride Center sent a draft proclamation to Mayor Carli’s office that declared June as “Pride Month” and contained numerous references to landmark LGBTQ events....
[From BenIndy: For what it’s worth, Mayor Steve Young of the City of Benicia issued (and signed!) a proclamation for Pride Month at its May 21 City Council meeting – a proclamation that decla…
From the Valero Benicia Refinery Community Update newsletter, sent May 31, 2024 Josh Tulino, Vice President (VP) and General Manager (GM) of the Valero Benicia Refinery has elected to retire. Josh began his career with Exxon as a process engineer at Benicia and became a Valero employee when Valero purchased the Benicia Refinery in 2000. Josh held different positions throughout the Valero Energy Corporation circuit and was promoted to VP & GM at our Memphis Refinery in 2017 and then transferred to Benicia as our VP/GM in 2020....
[BenIndy: At last, the rumors have been confirmed. We won’t speculate as to what prompted the Valero Benicia Refinery’s exiting GM/VP to retire at 49; we will simply wish him good luck.…
What will change?
Repost from the Sunflower Alliance, May 16, 2024 Oil companies try to scare us away from limiting fuel production by saying it would increase prices. But demand for fossil fuels is actually decreasing in California and throughout the US West. This should be a good reason for ramping down production. Instead, California refineries are pivoting to export an increasing amount of their products—now about 1/3—including the dirtiest fuel, petcoke....
Repost from the Sunflower Alliance, May 16, 2024 Oil companies try to scare us away from limiting fuel production by saying it would increase prices. But demand for fossil fuels is actually decrea…
Trump found guilty on all 34 counts of falsifying business records in first criminal trial against a US president Guardian, by Hugo Lowell and Victoria Bekiempis, May 30, 2024 Donald Trump has been found guilty of all 34 counts of falsifying business records in a criminal hush-money scheme to influence the outcome of the 2016 election. The verdict came after a jury deliberated for less than twelve hours in the unprecedented first criminal trial against a US president....
[Note from BenIndy: The latest verdict against Trump buoys the hope that justice will be served, and elevates the principle that no individual, regardless of status, is above the law.] Trump found …
A taste of the French Quarter in Benicia May 30, 2024 Here's your reminder that, tonight at 5:30pm, Benicia's Arts and Culture Commission will celebrate the seasonal return of its two popular play-art pianos, Hippo and Jungle, in St. Paul's Courtyard on First Street. Local musicians and performers will be providing a "Dueling Pianos" experience for Farmer's Market guests and passersby.
A taste of the French Quarter in Benicia May 30, 2024 Here’s your reminder that, tonight at 5:30pm, Benicia’s Arts and Culture Commission will celebrate the seasonal return of its two …
By Stephen Golub, May 28, 2024 “Is this the Golub household?” The pleasant young woman who rang my doorbell on Friday was soliciting support for the East Solano Plan, otherwise known as California Forever, otherwise known as Flannery Associates, the shadowy company launched by ultra-rich Silicon Valley investors. The firm has bought $900 million of Solano County land in recent years in order to supposedly build a model city, despite widespread traffic congestion, water shortage, environmental and credibility concerns to the contrary....
By Stephen Golub, May 28, 2024 “Is this the Golub household?” The pleasant young woman who rang my doorbell on Friday was soliciting support for the East Solano Plan, otherwise known as California …
to do in Benicia" – and what else might deliver the same thrills for Benicia youth, minus the racism and looming danger of injuries, arrests, and even fatalities.] By Spencer Ball, May 28, 2024 The game “La Migra” or “Border Patrol” has been treated as a tradition toward high school students at Benicia high school for several decades. The aim of the game is for the higher classmen (Seniors who are able to drive) to chase down lowerclassmen from Jack London Park to the baseball field downtown....
[Note from BenIndy: As part of the Solano AIDS Network and BBLM’s inaugural Fiestas Primavera Festival on March 28, 2024, Benicia High School students were invited to submit writings for an e…
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