Photo above: The Mare Island Causeway lift bridge towers seen over brush, Vallejo, California, August 2022. Kiddo27, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Right now, mostly plans. The Mare Island Company’s draft plan would allow up to 14,000 homes and 14,900 to 17,000 jobs on the former Navy shipyard, but the City of Vallejo has not approved it, and there is no approval date or construction date. A handful of smaller projects are moving through the city on their own, including a 96-unit Lennar neighborhood called Coral Sea Village.
“Proposed” doesn’t mean approved, and approved doesn’t mean under construction. Here is where each project stands, with the official source and date.
What is Mare Island today?
It’s the former Mare Island Naval Shipyard, on Vallejo’s waterfront. The City of Vallejo says it opened in 1854 as the nation’s first naval station on the West Coast and closed in 1996. Today the city says it’s home to more than 100 businesses, Touro University, a nature preserve, trails, historic sites and an existing residential neighborhood (City of Vallejo, Mare Island page, checked September 24, 2026).
Touro University California, at 1310 Club Drive, teaches more than 1,400 students on the island (same page). The island also has its own ferry stop at 1050 Nimitz Avenue (San Francisco Bay Ferry, Mare Island Ferry Terminal page, checked September 24, 2026).
Who is developing Mare Island?
The Mare Island Company. The city explains that the owners of the island’s developable land, The Nimitz Group, and its managers, Southern Land Company, assigned the Mare Island Company to plan and manage the development (City of Vallejo, Mare Island page, checked September 24, 2026). The city is working with them on a new Specific Plan, and the city makes the approval decisions.
What is the Mare Island Specific Plan?
It’s the rulebook for what can be built where on the island. The current plan was adopted by the Vallejo City Council in 1999. The Mare Island Company submitted a draft update in October 2024 (City of Vallejo, Mare Island Specific Plan page, checked September 24, 2026).
What the October 2024 draft proposes, per the city:
- Nine neighborhoods, each with its own character, drawn from the island’s history and ecology.
- Up to 14,000 homes and between 14,900 and 17,000 jobs.
- More housing types, walkable neighborhoods, updated transportation options, and more manufacturing jobs.
Those numbers are the developer’s draft, not an approval. They can change before the plan ever reaches a vote.
Has the city approved the plan?
No. The city sent the Mare Island Company a consolidated comment letter on the first draft on February 7, 2026, and staff is meeting with the company on a revised plan (City of Vallejo, Mare Island Specific Plan page, checked September 24, 2026). The City Council got an informational update on April 27, 2026. It was an update, not a vote.
The comment letter asks for a lot before the next draft. A few examples, from the city’s February 7, 2026 letter:
- An infrastructure plan and a financing plan.
- A development agreement that spells out phasing for transit, infrastructure and parks, plus an affordable housing plan.
- A future sea level rise analysis, requested by the Vallejo Flood and Wastewater District, for the infrastructure plan and the environmental report.
What happens next, and when?
The city lists these next steps, in this order (City of Vallejo, Mare Island Specific Plan page and Long Range Projects list, May 2026, checked September 24, 2026):
- More coordination with the Mare Island Company.
- Finishing federal environmental (NEPA) documents.
- Releasing the state environmental (CEQA) Notice of Preparation.
- Drafting the Infrastructure Plan and Financing Plan.
- A second draft of the Specific Plan.
- A Draft Environmental Impact Report for public review.
The city has not posted dates for any of those steps. When the Notice of Preparation and the Draft EIR come out, those are your chances to comment. Anyone who tells you when the first new homes will be finished is guessing.
What smaller projects are already in the pipeline on Mare Island?
A few, on their own tracks. This is what the City of Vallejo lists for Mare Island addresses on its current applications list (City of Vallejo, VALUE List, updated July 9, 2026, checked September 24, 2026):
| Project | Where | What | City status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Coral Sea Village (Lennar) | Coral Sea Village Circle, off Flagship Drive | 75 vacant lots turned into 68 detached single-family homes and seven fourplexes, 96 units total | Application listed as complete, no hearing date listed |
| Mare Island Dry Dock 1 | 1024 Nimitz Avenue | Recommissioning the dry dock for marine vessel repairs, with view fencing for public access | Application incomplete, hearing date to be determined |
| Coal Sheds improvements (Mare Island Company) | 850 Nimitz Avenue | Facade work on City Landmark structures, paving, landscaping and signage | Preliminary review, last updated September 30, 2024 |
| Touro University guard house | 1310 Club Drive | A 340-square-foot guard house plus site improvements | Approved, last updated April 7, 2025 |
“Complete” is an application status on that list. The list shows approved projects as “Approved,” so complete does not mean approved. The April 27, 2026 Council update also covered a Beautification Plan and a Connolly Corridor Project, but the city pages we checked don’t give details or dates for those.
What else is being built in Vallejo?
Off the island, several home projects have city approvals. From the same City of Vallejo VALUE List, updated July 9, 2026:
- Fairview at Northgate, Admiral Callaghan Lane and Turner Parkway: 245 homes, 119 detached single-family and 126 cluster-style detached, with a neighborhood park, linear park and dog park. Approved by the City Council June 9, 2026.
- Vista Cove, northeast corner of Shady Lane and Wildflower Street: 51 single-family homes. Approved by the City Council March 24, 2026.
- Waterstone Phase 2A/2B (Tri Pointe Homes): 185 single-family homes, listed as under construction.
- Gateway Apartments, 5180 Sonoma Boulevard: 343 apartments in 9 buildings replacing a vacant commercial building. Approved by the Planning Commission November 6, 2023.
- Blue Rock Springs (Greg Norman Company), 655 Columbus Parkway: a 500 to 600 lot subdivision with an 18-hole golf course, still at preliminary review.
What does this mean if I’m buying near Mare Island?
Plan for change, and check the facts yourself. We won’t predict what the Mare Island plan does to home values. Nobody knows yet what gets approved, how big it ends up, or when it starts. Here’s what you can do today:
- Read the city’s lists. The VALUE lists on the City of Vallejo Planning Division page show every active application and its status. Check them for the streets around any home you like.
- Check the flood map for the address. Mare Island sits on the water. Look up the exact address on FEMA’s Flood Map Service Center at msc.fema.gov, and read the Natural Hazard Disclosure report before you remove contingencies.
- Ask about historic rules. Some Mare Island buildings are City Landmark structures, and work on them goes through a historic review, per the city’s project list. If a home is historic, ask what that means for repairs before you buy.
- Ask for the tax bill. New neighborhoods can come with special taxes or assessments. Get the current bill for the property and talk to a tax professional about what it means for you.
- Call the city. The Long Range Planning Manager listed on the Mare Island Specific Plan page is Hector Rojas, (707) 553-7283.
Questions people also ask
How many homes are planned for Mare Island?
The Mare Island Company’s October 2024 draft Specific Plan would allow up to 14,000 homes and 14,900 to 17,000 jobs in nine neighborhoods, per the City of Vallejo’s Mare Island Specific Plan page, checked September 24, 2026. The city has not approved it. It sent comments on February 7, 2026, and is waiting on a second draft, infrastructure and financing plans, and an environmental report.
When will construction start on Mare Island?
There is no date. The City of Vallejo lists next steps as federal environmental documents, a state Notice of Preparation, infrastructure and financing plans, a second draft plan, and a Draft Environmental Impact Report, with no dates posted, per the city’s Mare Island Specific Plan page, checked September 24, 2026. Smaller projects like Coral Sea Village move on their own timelines.
What is Coral Sea Village on Mare Island?
It’s a Lennar proposal to build on 75 vacant lots off Flagship Drive: 68 detached single-family homes and seven fourplexes, 96 units in all. The City of Vallejo’s VALUE List, updated July 9, 2026, shows the application as complete with no hearing date listed. The same list marks approved projects as Approved, so complete does not mean approved.
Who owns Mare Island?
The City of Vallejo says the island’s developable land is owned by The Nimitz Group and managed by Southern Land Company, which assigned the Mare Island Company to lead the development, per the city’s Mare Island page, checked September 24, 2026. Touro University California, more than 100 businesses and an existing residential neighborhood are also on the island.
Your next step
Looking at a home on or near Mare Island? Send us the address. We’ll pull the city’s project list for the streets around it, recent sales of similar homes, and the flood map. Talk to a Vallejo agent on our team or call (510) 949-5525.
More on Vallejo: Living in Vallejo, CA · Vallejo housing forecast · Vallejo market update · What’s my home worth?
By Bill Davis, DRE #01880656, The Davis Team at eXp Realty, Vallejo, CA. Updated September 24, 2026.
Sources
- City of Vallejo, Mare Island Specific Plan page (Planning Division, Long Range Projects): cityofvallejo.net (checked September 24, 2026)
- City of Vallejo, comment letter on the Draft Mare Island Specific Plan (File SPA24-0001), February 7, 2026: cityofvallejo.net
- City of Vallejo, Vallejo Land Use Entitlement (VALUE) List, current development applications, updated July 9, 2026: cityofvallejo.net (checked September 24, 2026)
- City of Vallejo, VALUE List, Long Range Planning Projects, May 2026: cityofvallejo.net (checked September 24, 2026)
- City of Vallejo, Mare Island page (About Vallejo): cityofvallejo.net (checked September 24, 2026)
- San Francisco Bay Ferry, Mare Island Ferry Terminal page: sfbayferry.com (checked September 24, 2026)
- FEMA Flood Map Service Center: msc.fema.gov