Starbase could become the newest city in Texas’s Rio Grande Valley, further cementing Musk’s growing presence in the state. (AP)
Elon Musk is moving ahead with plans to turn Starbase — SpaceX’s rocket launch site — in South Texas into an official city. The CEO of SpaceX and Tesla announced via social media that the industrial headquarters will now officially be located in the city of Starbase, Texas.
On Thursday, SpaceX submitted a letter to local officials requesting an election for the incorporation of Starbase, located at Boca Chica Beach near the Mexican border. Kathryn Lueders, Starbase General Manager, emphasized the necessity of this move, stating, ‘To continue growing the workforce necessary to rapidly develop and manufacture Starship, we need the ability to grow Starbase as a community.’ Cameron County is now tasked with reviewing the petition to ensure it meets all legal requirements.
Should this initiative gain approval, Starbase would establish itself as the newest city in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas.
This update follows Musk’s earlier move in July of this year, during which he shifted the headquarters of both SpaceX and his social media platform, X (formerly Twitter), to Texas due to a new gender identity law in California, which he stated was the ‘last straw.’ He also previously transferred SpaceX’s incorporation from Delaware to Texas.
In 2021, Musk had hinted at the idea of creating Starbase through a tweet, but this recent step marks the first formal petition for incorporation, as confirmed by Cameron County Judge Eddie Treviño Jr.
Starbase currently supports over 3,400 SpaceX employees and contractors, becoming a pivotal site where the company builds and tests its Starship rockets, intended for lunar and Martian missions. Despite the growth and prominence of SpaceX, the company has faced several criticisms from local groups, including a lawsuit by the environmental organization Save RGV, claiming potential pollution in surrounding waters. SpaceX has labelled this lawsuit as ‘frivolous,’ pointing to a state review that concluded no significant environmental risks existed.
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