Marc Andreessen's family plans 'visionary' development near 'California Forever' project: report

Tech mogul Marc Andreessen's family owns land near the controversial “California Forever” city project he backs — and plans to build more than 1,000 homes as part of a “visionary” real estate plan, according to a report.

Andreessen, co-founder of venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, is one of several Silicon Valley bigwigs trying to build a new city on rural farmland in Solano County. The California Forever project was delayed for at least two years in July after encountering strong resistance from local residents.

Meanwhile, an LLC operated by Andreessen's wife, Laura Arrillaga-Andreessen, and her brother-in-law, John Arrillaga Jr., owns three parcels of land totaling about 730 acres within a few miles of California Forever's properties, according to documents obtained by TechCrunch.

The project was already in development in 2015 – two years before California Forever began buying up huge tracts of land in the area – and does not appear to be affiliated.

The land was reportedly acquired in 1985 by the siblings' father, the late John Arrillaga Sr., a real estate mogul, and his partner Richard Peery. The limited liability company, called A&P Children Investments, envisions a mixed-use development that will include more than 1,000 homes on a plot of land in nearby Vacaville, California.

At a local city council meeting in April, an A&P Children's representative reportedly said the project was a “visionary” housing project.

“What we’re looking to do here is something that’s unique to Solano County and indeed most of California,” Rep. Greg Brun said, according to TechCrunch.

Brun added that the project would not have “the problems you've had in the past.”

Andreessen and Arrillaga Jr. could not immediately be reached for comment on the report.

A spokesperson for California Forever told the outlet that its executives “never made an offer” to purchase the land — and had already been buying up land in the area for years before learning that Andreessen’s family owned the parcels.

“We were not aware that the Arrillaga and Peery families owned land in Solano County until about two years ago, when we were already five years into the project,” the spokesperson said.

The billionaires who back California Forever, including Andreessen, LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman and Steve Jobs' widow, businesswoman Laurene Powell Jobs, have remained silent about their involvement since it was revealed that they funded nearly $1 billion in stealth land purchases in Solano County.

Project CEO Jan Sramek pitched California Forever to residents as a walkable city that would solve problems plaguing the state, such as housing costs, arduous commutes and environmental crises.

Sramek and his partners had planned to seek city approval through a referendum in November, but they put that plan on hold pending the results of environmental impact studies.

Lawmakers and local residents have criticized the tactics California Forever used in its push to build the city, with one resident once comparing Sramek to a “snake oil salesman” during a heated town meeting.

“Postponing the vote gives everyone a chance to pause and work together, which is what is needed – not a fight between friends across the county on both sides of the issue,” according to a joint statement from the county and California Forever.