Tech and space entrepreneur Elon Musk wants to build a city around a SpaceX rocket-building facility in Texas.
Musk teased over Twitter on Tuesday that he is attempting to build the city of “Starbase.” Officials in Cameron County, Texas, have confirmed that SpaceX has expressed interest in incorporating a city around its Texas manufacturing plant in recent days.
“Creating the city of Starbase, Texas,” Musk tweeted on Tuesday. “From thence to Mars, and hence the Stars.”
From thence to Mars,
And hence the Stars.— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 2, 2021
For Starbase to become a real city, SpaceX would have to convince local residents to sign a petition calling for the creation of the new city. That petition would then need to be approved by the county judge who would order a public vote on whether or not the city should be incorporated. If the vote is in favor, “Starbase” would then have to craft its own laws and city ordinances, according to the New York Post.
Cameron County Judge Eddie Trevino confirmed on Tuesday that SpaceX had raised the possibility of creating the new city.
“If SpaceX and Elon Musk would like to pursue down this path, they must abide by all state incorporation statutes,” Trevino said in a statement. “Cameron County will process any appropriate petitions in conformity with applicable law.”
The SpaceX facility is located in southern Texas along the Gulf of Mexico. It resides in Boca Chica Village, which would presumably be incorporated under Starbase should Musk pursue his plans and the residents agree.
While SpaceX has operations in Texas, it is headquartered in California. Musk made headlines in December when he announced that he was moving his electric car company, Tesla, out of California to the Lone Star State over California’s onerous lockdown policies implemented after the onset of the pandemic.
“We are a bit worried about not being able to resume production in the Bay Area, and that should be identified as a serious risk,” Musk said in a Dec. 8 interview with Matt Murray, editor in chief of The Wall Street Journal. “The expansion of shelter-in-place, or as we call it, forcibly imprisoning people in their homes, against all their constitutional rights, is, in my opinion, breaking people’s freedoms in ways that are horrible and wrong, and not why people came to America and built this country. What the f***!”
“If somebody wants to stay in the house that’s great. They should be allowed to stay in the house and they should not be compelled to leave. But to say that they cannot leave their house and they will be arrested if they do… this is fascist. This is not democratic. This is not freedom. Give people back their godd*mn freedom,” Musk continued. “Everything people have worked for all their lives is being destroyed in real-time. I think the people are going to be very angry about this and are very angry.”