Musk gets his Texas wish. SpaceX launch site is approved as the new city
of Starbase
[May 05, 2025] By
VALERIE GONZALEZ and JIM VERTUNO
McALLEN, Texas (AP) — The South Texas home of Elon Musk’s SpaceX rocket
company is now an official city with a galactic name: Starbase.
A vote Saturday to formally organize Starbase as a city was approved by
a lopsided margin among the small group of voters who live there and are
mostly Musk’s employees at SpaceX. With all the votes in, the tally was
212 in favor to 6 against, according to results published online by the
Cameron County Elections Department.
Musk celebrated in a post on his social platform, X, saying it is “now a
real city!”
Starbase is the facility and launch site for the SpaceX rocket program
that is under contract with the Department of Defense and NASA that
hopes to send astronauts back to the moon and someday to Mars.
Musk first floated the idea of Starbase in 2021 and approval of the new
city was all but certain. Of the 283 eligible voters in the area, most
are believed to be Starbase workers.
The election victory was personal for Musk. The billionaire’s popularity
has diminished since he became the chain-saw-wielding public face of
President Donald Trump’s federal job and spending cuts, and profits at
his Tesla car company have plummeted.
SpaceX has generally drawn widespread support from local officials for
its jobs and investment in the area.
But the creation of an official company town has also drawn critics who
worry it will expand Musk’s personal control over the area, with
potential authority to close a popular beach and state park for
launches.
Companion efforts to the city vote include bills in the state
Legislature to shift that authority from the county to the new town’s
mayor and city council.
All these measures come as SpaceX is asking federal authorities for
permission to increase the number of South Texas launches from five to
25 a year.
The city at the southern tip of Texas near the Mexico border is only
about 1.5 square miles (3.9 square kilometers), crisscrossed by a few
roads and dappled with airstream trailers and modest midcentury homes.
SpaceX officials have said little about exactly why they to want a
company town and did not respond to emailed requests for comment.
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A statue of SpaceX founder Elon Musk on Saturday, May 3, 2025, is
seen near the town of Boca Chica, Texas, that would become Starbase,
Texas, if local residents approve a measure to make the area
surrounding the rocket launch site its own city. (AP Photo/Valerie
Gonzalez)
 “We need the ability to grow
Starbase as a community,” Starbase General Manager Kathryn Lueders
wrote to local officials in 2024 with the request to get the city
issue on the ballot.
The letter said the company already manages roads and utilities, as
well as “the provisions of schooling and medical care” for those
living on the property.
SpaceX officials have told lawmakers that granting the city
authority to close the beach would streamline launch operations.
SpaceX rocket launches and engine tests, and even just moving
certain equipment around the launch base requires the closure of a
local highway and access to Boca Chica State Park and Boca Chica
Beach.
Critics say beach closure authority should stay with the county
government, which represents a broader population that uses the
beach and park. Cameron County Judge Eddie Trevino, Jr. has said the
county has worked well with SpaceX and there is no need for change.
Another proposed bill would make it a Class B misdemeanor with up to
180 days in jail if someone doesn’t comply with an order to evacuate
the beach.
The South Texas Environmental Justice Network, which has organized
protests against the city vote and the beach access issue, held
another demonstration Saturday that attracted dozens of people.
Josette Hinojosa, whose young daughter was building sandcastle
nearby, said she was taking part to try to ensure continued access
to a beach her family has enjoyed for generations.
With SpaceX, Hinojosa said, “Some days it’s closed, and some days
you get turned away,”
Organizer Christopher Basaldú, a member of the Carrizo/Comecrudo
Nation of Texas tribe, said his ancestors have long been in the
area, where the Rio Grande meets the Gulf.
“It’s not just important,” he said, “it’s sacred.”
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Vertuno reported from Austin, Texas.
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