In true eccentric billionaire fashion, Elon Musk wants to build his own utopia. The SpaceX leader is taking his operations to a new level, planting his flag in coastal Texas, and attempting his own space-centric colony. Whether you believe it or not, Elon Musk’s Starbase seems to move closer and closer to reality as he keeps hitting his creative stride.
Musk has a track record for announcing his wild ideas, and some come to fruition while others do not. His Boring Company’s tunnel: not the most successful project. But, launching an electric super-car into space? Somehow, that happened. What’s a new city in rural Texas to a guy who arbitrarily launched his own flamethrower line?
The Starbase, Texas project is ambitious, and it’s weirdly plausible. Here’s what we know so far:
What to Know About Elon Musk’s Starbase
- The plan for Musk is to build the city in Boca Chica Beach, Texas. The coastal village is already home to SpaceX’s rocket testing facility.
- The Dallas Morning News recently reported on the project by Musk. They note that the idea is a longstanding one of companies, citing Hershey, Pennsylvania as a successful example and towns like Smeltertown, Texas as a failure.
- The news outlet made sure to document the predatory nature of company towns, and how easy it is to take a grip on every facet of an employee’s life when their company owns the house they live in and surrounding businesses.
- Regardless of historical warnings, Musk is pressing onward. He announced back in March that he would be donating $30 million to the Brownsville, Texas area in order to get the project off the ground. Of this amount, $20 million will go to county schools. The other $10 million will go toward revitalization of the downtown Brownsville area.
- He is encouraging people to move down to Texas now. Through Twitter, Musk is claiming Starbase, Texas will see thousands of residents in just a few years. He says he is planning on hiring a legion of new engineers, technicians, and other specialized roles.
- Musk was there just this morning, showing off the entry to the facility and the proposed space-city. The picture also inadvertently sent an unrelated cryptocurrency, which bears the same name, soaring.
On the date of publication, Brenden Rearick did not have (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines.
