Suspicion grips rural enclave over plans to construct ‘America’s most stunning new city’

Wealthy investors are seeking to build an idyllic new town for ‘high agency individuals’ in California wine country.  

Proposals for Esmeralda, which will be located 90 minutes north of San Francisco in Sonoma, state the community will become ‘America’s most beautiful new town’.

But not everyone is happy with the tech-fueled vision of utopia put forth by founder Devon Zuegel.

Locals have expressed concerns that the town will be a ‘crypto and AI powered village full of venture capitalists’.

However Zuegel and her team insist the community will not just be an exclusive enclave for elites and instead aims to have a college campus feel where residents can ‘run into friends just walking’. 

Modeled on ‘an Italian hill town’, locals can enjoy a place where ‘group dinners, creative projects, book clubs, and pickup sports happen spontaneously,’ according to Esmeralda’s website.

‘It would be great to be a parent there, too. Instead of being a chauffeur for your kids, you could give them more freedom and just tell them to be back by dark,’ the description states.

While it may sound like a distant dream, Esmeralda is inching ever closer to becoming a reality after investors obtained an exclusive option to purchase a 267 acre parcel of land.

‘If you dream of living in a small town while being surrounded by creative, high-agency people, we’re building this for you,’ Zuegel, a former GitHub employee, said. 

But amid the excitement, discontent is bubbling up among some skeptical locals.

‘How will you determine if people are ‘high-agency’ enough to live in your town? Credit check?’ One person asked.

‘Crypto and AI powered village full of VCs near Healdsburg. Definitely what locals want,’ another added.

 ‘Where will the cleaners live?’ One person joked.

Cloverdale local Nancy Reyes told the San Francisco Chronicle: ‘It sounds like they want to make it like Healdsburg. And not a place for people like me.’ 

Nearby Healdsburg is struggling with a housing crisis, as luxury condos, hotels and high rises continue to spring up. 

However Zuegel insists that the neighborhood will support ‘a wide range of incomes and life stages’.

To ensure this, the 170 proposed homes will be, ‘a diverse range of housing types and styles’. 

‘In our many conversations on the ground with Cloverdale residents over the past year-plus, we haven’t heard people express concerns that our project will make the community unaffordable,’ she explained. 

‘In fact, most residents have told us they are excited about its inclusivity. Cloverdale hasn’t seen much market-rate housing development in the last decade, and the region desperately needs more housing supply at all income levels.’

In order to achieve this, the development will be financed by the Esmeralda Land Company, an independent, for-profit company backed by investors.

But despite its high-end backers, Zuegel asserts that Esmeralda will be for everybody.

‘Far from being a gated community, we plan to build out a vast new network of publicly accessible trails across the site, including the SMART Pathway and the Great Redwood Trail,’ she explained.

‘The Institute will host activities, events, and classes that all Cloverdale residents can enjoy. Historically, this land has been closed to the public. We plan to change that.’

Zuegel explained how idyllic childhood summers spent at her grandmother’s house in town of Chautauqua, New York served as inspiration for the project.

Each year the walk-able community of 8,000 people springs to life with a series of lectures, workshops and performances across a series of pavilions.

Zuegel describes the feel as a ‘college campus meets a family summer camp’. 

‘My fondest childhood memories are the summers I spent at Grandma’s house in Chautauqua,’ she explained. ‘I’d sit on the porch reading, and family friends would walk by and stop to chat. 

‘Sometimes I’d jump down and join them on their way to a lecture or workshop.’

This summer, Zuegel tested out her vision with Edge Esmeralda, a temporary pop-up town modeled on Chautauqua’s summer program.

The 1,300-person gathering in Healdsburg was designed to be a prototype for the permanent town which will run again each year.

Participants aged six weeks to 86-years-old paid up to $2,158 each for a month-long ticket.

Attendees were invited to enjoy sessions on how to make wearable AI and constructing solar power A frames among other workshops and talks.

San Francisco Standard reporter Zara Stone described the event as, ‘biotech meets blockchains meets blood draws’. 

Participants could take their pick from virtual reality experiences, yoga, group therapy and other sessions.

Events had titles like, ‘Cities of Tomorrow: Flying Cars Meet Ancient Urban Designs’, ‘Protocols for Decolonization’, ‘How to Die: A Death Ritual’ and ‘Help Build a Data Terrarium’.

‘Our vision for Esmeralda is to build a year-round community that takes the best parts of Chautauqua and updates it with the Bay Area’s dynamism, diversity, and culture of invention,’ Zuegel said.

But in terms of the town’s aesthetic, Zuegel is looking further afield to Mediterranean influences.

‘Two key components will make Esmeralda special: Our ‘hardware’ – an Italian hill town and Our ‘software’ – a culture of learning and building,’ she explained.

She cites Las Lomas Pueblo in Andalusia as among her inspirations. The Spanish town boasts ‘human-scale streets’, as well as abundant greenery and plazas.

She is also inspired by the oceanside town of Las Catalinas in Costa Rica, built just over a decade ago, ‘with the bones of a classic Mediterranean hill town’. 

Similarly, the walkable centers of Serenbe, a chain of villages on the outskirts of Atlanta modeled on the English countryside echo the kind of community Esmeralda could be.

Currently, the Esmeralda Land Company has executed a purchase and sale agreement on property in Cloverdale.

Before closing, it is conducting due diligence on the lot, which sits in Cloverdale.

Prior to Zuegel’s purchase, the property had been greenlit for a development including a hotel, spa, restaurants, homes, stores and an event center. 

Esmeralda’s leaders have met with city officials to build upon their vision, including the plans for a 150 room hotel. 

‘The City Council has been very supportive of the proposed AVR project based on approval of the current entitlements and is eager to see if the project progresses past the due diligence phase,’ City Manager David Kelley said.

‘The community is cautiously and optimistically waiting to see if the project moves forward and what changes to the approved development plan will be sought. 

‘While it is still early in the due diligence process, I suspect that there will be wide community support for the development elements outlined by the Esmeralda Land Company.’

Esmeralda is keen not to repeat the mistakes of California Forever, another proposal for a walkable urban center in the San Francisco Bay area which has stalled amid allegations of elitism.

‘Although we are very different from California Forever, there is a lot to learn from their experience,’ Zuegel said.

‘California Forever is proposing to build a large new city built from scratch in a rural, unincorporated area; we are proposing to create a new neighborhood inside the boundaries of an existing incorporated city, on a former industrial site.

‘The political and social context couldn’t be more different. Since we announced our plans to purchase the property this summer, we have received tremendous local support: hundreds of messages of encouragement, and dozens of invitations for coffee and walks. 

‘Everyone I have met wants to share ideas and learn more about our plans. I’m impressed with the YIMBY sentiment in Cloverdale.’