SpaceX wants to turn its Texas launch site into a city

Starbase sits on the Gulf of Mexico near Brownsville. SpaceX employees say they want their own official city. (Credit: Michael Gonzalez/The Texas Tribune)

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McALLEN — SpaceX’s goal is to colonize Mars. But first, it wants to create an official city in Texas.

Employees living on the site of SpaceX's operations in South Texas are requesting a special election to determine whether the site can be incorporated into a city.

Current residents of Starbase, the company’s South Texas headquarters and launch site, submitted a petition to Cameron County Judge Eddie Treviño Thursday, according to a SpaceX spokesperson.

"We are investing billions in infrastructure and generating hundreds of millions in income and taxes for local businesses and government, all with the goal of making South Texas the Gateway to Mars," said Starbase General Manager Kathryn Lueders in a letter to Treviño.

Lueders wrote the area is home to several hundred employees and that incorporating the site would streamline the processes of building amenities needed to make Starbase a world-class place to live. Elon Musk, who owns SpaceX, announced earlier this year his intentions to move the company’s headquarters to Texas.

The spaceport — and maybe future city — sits on the edge of the Gulf of Mexico and is about 25 miles east of Brownsville, the state’s southernmost city. A single stretch of highway connects the city to the launch site.

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Spread across acres of previously undeveloped land, Starbase includes launch pads, office space and dozens of portable homes for employees.

"As you know, through agreements with the County, SpaceX currently performs several civil functions around Starbase due to its remote location, including management of the roads, utilities, and the provision of schooling and medical care for the residents," Lueders added. "Incorporation would move the management of some of these functions to a more appropriate public body."

She assured that incorporating would not impact their efforts to minimize effects on the environment that were developed with state and federal agencies. This comes after regulators cited the company for not having the proper authorization for its water deluge system. The company remains a target for local environmental groups who are skeptical the company can operate without damaging the surrounding ecosystem.

Treviño did not respond to a request for an interview.

Last month, the Cameron County commissioners denied a variance request from SpaceX that would allow them to subdivide their limited residential area into more lots.

"SpaceX is not the typical developer whose purpose is to build and to sell infrastructure," read an October 10 letter to the county commissioners from an engineering firm representing SpaceX.

"SpaceX's ability to offer adequate housing to its employees onsite is critical to the development of the space launch complex, and there are currently hundreds of employees on the waitlist to move to the campus," the engineer added. "To do this, SpaceX must maximize its space."

If Starbase were to become its own city, it would harken back to an era when cities were typically built around a single company or industry, such as Sugar Land. The town, about 20 miles southwest of Houston, was centered around the Imperial Sugar Company which was created in 1908 followed by the city which was incorporated in 1959.

Reporting in the Rio Grande Valley is supported in part by the Methodist Healthcare Ministries of South Texas, Inc.