Elon Musk can now add a Texas city to the long list of ventures he’s juggling. Over the weekend, the SpaceX development site in Boca Chica, Texas—known for test launching the company’s Starship rocket—was officially incorporated as a city after residents overwhelmingly voted in favor of the move.
“Becoming a city will help us continue building the best community possible for the men and women building the future of humanity’s place in space,” read a post from the official X account of Starbase, which was created shortly after the vote.
The newly incorporated city spans about 1.5 square miles and sits 20 miles outside of Brownsville, Texas. It’s home primarily to more than 200 SpaceX employees and their families. According to a results report from Cameron County, the vote to incorporate passed with 212 votes in favor and just six opposed.
For the past six years, SpaceX has used the site—now known as Starbase—as its primary launch facility for Starship, the world’s largest rocket and a key part of Musk’s vision to colonize Mars. The area also includes SpaceX manufacturing facilities, employee housing, a grocery store, and the staff-only Astropub restaurant.
A SpaceX employee will serve as mayor
The vote also installed three current and former SpaceX employees in key leadership roles. Bobby Peden, a 12-year SpaceX veteran who currently serves as vice president of Texas Test & Launch, will be mayor. Jenna Petrzelka, a former operations engineering manager, and Jordan Buss, SpaceX’s senior director of environmental health and safety, were elected as city commissioners.
Musk has long pushed for Starbase to become a city, though he has yet to publicly share his plan for the company town’s future. Incorporation is expected to ease bureaucratic hurdles as SpaceX continues developing and testing rockets. For example, the company currently needs local approval to shut down nearby beaches and parks for launches—something that could become more streamlined under city governance.
The Starbase vote marks a rare recent win for Musk, who has faced increasing criticism in recent months. As the head of the Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), Musk has drawn backlash for his role in slashing federal budgets and workforces. His rising political profile has also sparked protests and investor angst against Tesla, his electric vehicle company.
Starbase isn’t Musk’s only footprint in Texas. Bastrop County, near Austin, Texas, is playing an increasingly important role for The Boring Company, Musk’s tunneling venture. That area, too, has reportedly been floated as a possible site for another company town.
