As of tonight, the state of Texas has a new city, Starbase, population 283. NBC News reports,
A vote Saturday to decide whether to turn part of south Texas into a new city centered around Elon Musk’s SpaceX delivered a victory to the tech billionaire and his rocket company. As expected, the measure passed with broad support, paving the way for a newly incorporated city made up almost exclusively of SpaceX employees and people connected to the company.
The initial vote tally was 173 in favor of incorporation and 4 against; only 143 votes were needed for the measure to pass.
Why? NBC explains,
Neither SpaceX nor Musk has detailed the purpose of incorporating a city around the rocket company’s operations. There has been speculation, however, that having greater municipal control of the area could ease some of the bureaucracy and restrictions around SpaceX’s tests and rocket launches.
At the moment, SpaceX must obtain permission from authorities in Cameron County to close a highway and shut down public access to Boca Chica Beach and Boca Chica State Park to keep people safe during rocket launches.
I have long been fascinated by the idea of a start-up city. At some point, already established cities accumulate too many regulations and too many entrenched interests to allow for economic development. A fresh start, a greenfield effort, would give voluntary inhabitants the freedom to thrive.
Some historic examples would include the City of Industry, California, and Lake Buena Vista, Florida.
Bon voyage, Elon!
