The American multimillionaire Elon Musk succeeded on Saturday his bet to create a small town in Texas around the industrial complex of his space company SpaceX, some of its employees who voted yes in almost unanimity.
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Most of the 283 people called to the ballot boxes, employees or people linked to the Boca Chica Bay site, on the Mexican border, had up to 1 hour GMT on Sunday to approve the transformation of Starbase, a 4 km2 coastal land, into a full -fledged municipality.
Almost 100 % of voters-the majority having voted in advance as is generally the case for all elections in the United States-said yes and a senior executive in SpaceX will even be the mayor of this commune renamed “Starbase”.
“Starbase, Texas (…) is now a real municipality!” Exclaimed the richest man in the world and ally of President Donald Trump, on his social network X.
The creation of this city is a success for Elon Musk which has invested in the Doge commission charged by the White House to slar in public spending, but which has not fulfilled, and by far, its objectives of clear cuts.
He is also faced with great difficulties with his Tesla automotive business and said that he would gradually return to his business.
SpaceX installed its industrial complex in this coastal wetland, bordered by the Rio Grande River and natural areas, to carry out tests and rocket launches. The site has been operational since 2019.
Elon Musk’s project to make a city of it “will only cause more environmental destruction in the region,” said AFP Bekah Hinojosa, co -founder of a local environment for the environment.
“There will be more illegal discharges, they will increase their dangerous rocket operations and cause more seismic activity that will shake our homes, and destroy more natural habitats,” she anticipates.
Infrastructures
It was Elon Musk himself, who has the biggest fortune on the planet according to the ranking of Forbes magazine, which had proposed the name of Starbase after a visit to the site four years ago.
The official request to make it a real municipality was filed with Local Authorities in Texas, a state led by the Republicans, in December, after the victory of Donald Trump.
SpaceX argued that it already ensures the management of infrastructure, including roads, and health or education services.
The company also promised that the creation of the city would not question its efforts to reduce its environmental impact.
Solicited by AFP, SpaceX did not follow up.
In 2024, the American Federal Environmental Protection Agency had a fine of SpaceX for illegal spills in Texas rivers.
The company was also accused of having damaged wild bird nests with its rockets.
“To compensate for this heinous crime, I will refrain from eating omelette for a week,” said Elon Musk in response on social networks.
