The proposed Teal Club development in Oxnard will put up to 990 residential units on farmland north of the Oxnard Airport along Teal Club Road, seen Feb. 24, 2025. The city plans to annex the unincorporated acreage before construction begins.
Solano County, California – Two of Solano County’s smallest cities are considering a major move: expanding their boundaries by annexing land owned by California Forever, the company behind a controversial proposal to build a brand-new city from scratch in the region’s rural core.
Suisun City and Rio Vista, each measuring just 4 and 6.6 square miles respectively, are exploring whether to take over portions of the company’s 60,000 acres of unincorporated farmland. While California Forever is pushing a ballot initiative to enable the creation of a new city on 17,500 of those acres, both cities have directed staff to explore annexation as a way to expand their tax base—and, in Rio Vista’s case, preserve its identity as a “quaint river town.”
Though still early in the process, both cities are drafting reimbursement agreements that would allow them to study annexation using California Forever’s funds. The company has said it’s open to discussions. “We’re looking forward to getting a reimbursement agreement signed with the cities and getting into discussions of what could be possible,” CEO Jan Sramek said in a statement.
Annexation would mean bringing land currently overseen by the county into a city’s boundaries, allowing the city to collect taxes and potentially control development. But the process is complex, involving environmental reviews, infrastructure assessments, negotiations over tax revenue splits with the county, and approval from Solano’s Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO).
LAFCOs were established to manage city growth and prevent the chaotic annexation waves of the past, when cities rapidly expanded into rural land, often leaving counties with “checkerboards” of unincorporated pockets. “LAFCO was created to rein in this crazy annexation wave,” said urbanist and land use expert Alex Schafran.
While annexation usually begins when a developer seeks city services for a new project, this case is unique—here, the cities made the first move. Still, the motivations are familiar: access to development, tax revenue, and control over what gets built nearby.
But not all landowners are on board. Suisun City officials say some nearby property holders have declined interest in annexation, citing adequate services and concerns about higher taxes.
The process can take years. After cities complete municipal services and environmental reviews, LAFCO considers whether they can realistically serve the new areas. If enough landowners or voters protest, an annexation can be killed or sent to a ballot.
County officials also play a key role. While California Forever’s current ballot initiative requires countywide voter approval, successful annexation could bypass that requirement by removing the land from unincorporated status. Still, County Administrator Bill Emlen doubts either city can currently provide the services necessary for full annexation of the proposed new city area.
“There’s a lot of procedural ground to cover,” said Jim Burling of the Pacific Legal Foundation. “This isn’t happening overnight.”
