‘A Devastating Outcome’: California Forever Boosters Decry Loss of Shipbuilding Deal
Business boosters in Solano County are decrying the loss of a major shipbuilding contract that had promised to bring thousands of jobs to the underemployed region but say it hasn’t completely derailed California Forever’s plan to build its proposed mega-development.
On Thursday, Saronic, an autonomous shipbuilding defense start-up, announced it would build its Port Alpha naval shipyard in Brownsville, Texas, instead of on California Forever-owned land in Collinsville.
“As California’s most vocal advocates for new industries, high-wage jobs, and homes people can afford, our coalition is extremely frustrated that California lost this historic opportunity,” company officials said in a joint statement with other business advocacy groups. “Shipbuilding is in California’s heritage, and California was the natural home for Port Alpha.”
The company had been courting the shipbuilding start-up since late last year, hoping to ink a deal valued at $3.2 billion. Earlier this month, officials from California Forever were working with Gov. Gavin Newsom on legislation that would smooth regulatory reviews if it secures a deal with a major manufacturer. That legislation, a trailer bill to the state budget, has not yet been published or approved by lawmakers.
With Saronic out of the picture, the company will have to successfully finalize a deal with another manufacturer in order for that legislation, if approved, to have an effect.
Critics of California Forever, however, are celebrating the news and pointing to the loss of the deal as evidence company officials had over-promised on what they could deliver.
“California Forever just suffered a massive loss and I couldn’t be happier,” Michael Jefferson, a member of California ForNever, posted on the group’s Facebook page. “We are one major step forward in stopping this abject top-down travesty.”
Earlier this year, Jefferson, a resident of Suisun City, led a campaign to recall the entire city council. He has said the city has mishandled a proposal to annex some of California Forever’s land and bolster its tax base. This November, a number of council seats are up for reelection, and Jefferson is vying to win the mayor’s seat.
But for proponents of the project hoping to attract new businesses to the county, which has the highest unemployment rate in the Bay Area, the news is shattering.
“This is a devastating outcome,” said Chris Rico, president of Solano County’s Economic Development Corporation. “We have the location, workforce, infrastructure and maritime heritage in this community. The only thing we couldn’t deliver was a clear and predictable path to build at the speed Saronic required.”
Some, like Vacaville Mayor John Carli, say recalcitrance on the part of some local electeds likely contributed to that slow pace and led to the loss of the contract. Last spring, when the company announced interest in developing a shipyard, the county’s Board of Supervisors criticized the plan for lacking details. Earlier this year, Supervisor Mitch Mashburn, a vocal critic, called the proposal a “nothingburger.”
In a statement, Carli called that attitude “a profound dereliction of duty.”
“You don’t win 10,000 jobs by insulting the company bringing them,” Carli said. “Solano County deserves leaders who fight to open doors, not lock them from the inside.”
In the joint statement published by California Forever and other business groups, the company said it had “easily the best site and was one of two finalists for a 10,000 job opportunity,” and pinned some of the blame for the lost deal on the failure to pass special legislation in time.
“Today’s news was really a gut punch to everyone who has worked so hard to take advantage of this opportunity,” said Joshua Arce, executive director for the California Alliance for Jobs, a signatory to California Forever’s joint statement. “It’s disappointing to say the least.”
Company officials say they will continue to work with the state to pass the trailer bill and attract other manufacturers to the future shipbuilding site.
Calls to rejuvenate the shipbuilding industry locally have come all the way from the federal government. Last year, President Trump created a special designation called “Maritime Prosperity Zones,” which offers companies tax incentives and coordinated federal support. When California Forever announced it wanted to take advantage of the program, state lawmakers, including Assemblymember Lori Wilson, voiced support.
In an emailed statement to KQED, she said she was disappointed by the news, but she will continue to work to attract economic development to the region.
“Over the last year and a half, the state and my office have been working with stakeholders to bring shipbuilding opportunities to California,” she said. “Solano County is strategically positioned to lead in shipbuilding and maritime innovation.”