Prominent figures within the tech industry have been recognized as the driving forces behind substantial land acquisitions in Solano County, California, situated in close proximity to a U.S. Air Force base.
According to a report from The New York Times, these Silicon Valley executives, operating under the name Flannery Associates, have invested around $900 million to procure extensive farmland, frequently surpassing market values.
Their aspiration involves the creation of an ambitious urban development project, aiming to establish a cutting-edge city with futuristic characteristics. However, to bring this vision to fruition, they now face the task of garnering support from local stakeholders, legislators, and federal entities.
In 2017, Jan Sramek, a former trader at Goldman Sachs, introduced the idea of establishing a Californian city focused on pedestrian-friendliness, as mentioned in the report.
The conceptualized urban center aims to create numerous job openings while also acting as a testing site for inventive architectural concepts and novel models of governance.
This notion garnered interest and financial support from prominent tech figures including Reid Hoffman, co-founder of LinkedIn, as well as investors Marc Andreessen and Chris Dixon, along with billionaire venture capitalist Michael Moritz, the report further stated.
The true intentions and the individuals behind Flannery’s leadership remained concealed until the conclusion of August.
“We got the F.B.I. and Treasury involved,” said Democratic California Rep. John Garamendi, who claimed he only became aware of Flannery’s identity after the Times contacted him.
Government entities like the Air Force, the Department of Agriculture, and the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States undertook investigations into the individuals behind the significant land acquisitions in close proximity to a vital military base.
Rumors circulated, speculating on whether the acquired land might be intended for wind farms, harbors, or even potentially serving as a base for foreign influence operations, including those linked to China.
In a July report by The Wall Street Journal, Flannery had previously conveyed to Solano County that the land was being purchased by a consortium of families seeking to expand their investment portfolio beyond stocks into tangible assets, including agricultural land in the western U.S.
Prompted by mounting suspicions within the Solano community, Garamendi, along with Democratic California Representative Mike Thompson, initiated efforts to uncover the true identity of the company behind these acquisitions.
“I couldn’t find out anything,” Garamendi remarked.
According to a report by the Daily Caller, Flannery has procured a minimum of 20 parcels of land encircling Travis AFB, a base that houses a unit crucial for enabling worldwide U.S. military logistical operations.
