The Council Got It Wrong.

 Badly.

An analysis of the proposed Solano County Fairgrounds project

By The Observer
July 18, 2010

In February, the Vallejo City Council voted 6-1 to move forward with a redevelopment project for the fairgrounds, officially called Solano360. The project includes, among other things, up to 670,000 sq ft of retail space. The vote gives the Solano County Board of Supervisors nearly complete control of the project for the next two years. It will hire a master developer (or take on the job itself), conduct an economic and environmental impact study, go through an expedited permitting process with the city, and, if all goes well, sign on tenants that it believes should go to the fairgrounds and not somewhere else in Vallejo. The county will spend about $3 million to do these things, in addition to $1.5 million it has already spent. While this may seem like a big favor for a bankrupt city, no one should forget that it’s really taxpayer money that’s being put on the table. Besides, the Council has a well-earned reputation for negotiating bad deals. This fact alone should make Vallejoans extra cautious about supervisors bearing gifts.

To continue reading in your browser, click here.

To get a pdf version (32 pages) of this article, please click here.