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Elon Musk's SpaceX Requests Election to Incorporate Starbase, Texas as New City

Dec 13, 2024, 10:15 AM

SpaceX, led by Elon Musk, has initiated a process to transform its Starbase site in South Texas into an incorporated city. The company has sent a letter to local officials, including Cameron County Judge Eddie Treviño Jr., requesting an election to approve the incorporation of Starbase, located at Boca Chica Beach near the Mexican border. This move is part of Musk's broader vision to develop the area, which is crucial for the design, construction, and launch of SpaceX's Starship rockets. The petition for incorporation was submitted by residents of the area currently identified as Starbase, Texas. Starbase General Manager Kathy Lueders wrote in the letter that the incorporation would help grow the workforce necessary to rapidly develop and manufacture Starship. The Starbase site currently employs over 3,400 full-time SpaceX workers and contractors, and the incorporation aims to streamline processes required to build the necessary infrastructure to make the region a world-class place to live. This proposal has sparked some resistance from local residents, with a group called Save RGV filing a lawsuit against SpaceX over environmental concerns, including the use of 500 acres of land meant for a new park which is now in limbo after a failed SpaceX land swap.