The City of Starbase is now official.
On Tuesday morning, the Cameron County Commissioners Court certified the May 3 election results that created the new city near Elon Musk's rocket launch site outside Brownsville. The approval occurred with no dissent.
"We congratulate Starbase, the new mayor and the new two city councilman and wish them the absolute best. We look forward to working with them for the betterment not only of Starbase but of Cameron County, Texas," County Judge Eddie Treviño said.
While certifying the results, the commissioners stressed that they do not have power to block the new city — even if they disagree with its creation.
"Each of us when we take our oath of office commit and swear to uphold the Constitution and laws of this country and of this state. We don't get to pick and choose which ones we are going to follow or not follow," Treviño said.
"So that's exactly what were doing here today. We understand some people may disagree with it, may disagree with the process, but we follow the law, as did the individuals who wanted to incorporate."
Only people who live in the immediate area were eligible to vote in the Starbase vote. Almost all of them work for SpaceX, according to a Texas Newsroom analysis of the voter rolls.
The election was not close: 212 voted for and 6 against.
Musk, SpaceX's CEO, has wanted to incorporate the area around his rocket testing and launch site for years.
SpaceX will now have more control over this mostly rural spot on the Gulf Coast. The incorporation also gets SpaceX one step closer to gaining greater control over the nearby public beach, with must be closed for launches for safety reasons.
A bill pending in the Texas Legislature would shift control over closures during the week from the county commissioners to Starbase city leaders. Local activists are suing over the beach control issue, arguing the state Constitution guarantees public access to beaches in Texas.
Two of these activists showed up at the commissioners court meeting Tuesday to voice their opposition to the new city. They said SpaceX has been a bad neighbor that had polluted the land and blocked local access to it.
"You are allowing a billionaire to come into our home and to be able to push you all around and buy you all out," Josette Angelique Hinojosa with the South Texas Environmental Justice Network, one of the groups suing, said during a public comment period before the election certification vote.
"Where are your priorities?" she asked. "Are they with the corporations or with the community?"
Activity at the site could soon spike. Last week, the Federal Aviation Administration gave SpaceX the OK to increase its launch cadence from about five to 25 times a year.
