Starbase: Musk's rocket company SpaceX's base is now officially a city.

The area home to Elon Musk's SpaceX aerospace company has officially become a city. Starbase, as it's been dubbed , is located in Cameron County, Texas, and will now be governed by a three-member city commission made up of high-ranking SpaceX figures who ran unopposed. The vote among residents to form the city was 212 in favor and six against.

Cameron County officials certified the results of the local elections held in early May this week, which ultimately saw the vote in favor of creating the new city. “With a local government, we are excited to create the best city for our community,” Starbase wrote on its account on the social media platform X—also owned by Musk—after the decision was announced.

Only the 283 residents of Boca Chica Village, an unincorporated area of ​​Cameron County that primarily serves SpaceX workers, voted in the election.

In December, Elon Musk posted a statement on his X account announcing that he had initiated legal proceedings to convert his Texas operations center into an independent municipality. In addition, in July, Musk moved the official headquarters of several of his companies from California to Texas, a state that offers a more favorable regulatory and tax environment. The local governor, Republican Greg Abbott, launched a grand welcome: “This is excellent. Starbase, Texas. The official home of SpaceX. Proud to have you!” he tweeted in response to Musk’s message.

The creation of this new city gives Musk's company greater control over the area, near a national park and reserve located on the shores of the Gulf of Mexico. The tycoon and key figure in the Trump administration has sought for years to get rid of environmental and federal restrictions governing SpaceX rocket launches.

With support from the Texas Republican Party, the state Senate passed a law that will allow authorities in the new city of Starbase to close a beach in Boca Chica, a power that, until then, had been vested solely in the county.

Several environmental groups in the region have expressed their dissatisfaction with Starbase's activities, claiming they threaten the area's indigenous population and destroy "dozens of acres of natural habitat," the South Texas Environmental Justice Network said in a statement .

While this doesn't mean SpaceX now has free rein to bypass state or federal regulations, the new status does give it access to more powers . For example, control over roads and the authority to provide healthcare and education services to residents. They will also be able to expedite building permits within the city, making the city more attractive for skilled workers who want to move there.

Currently, about 260 employees live at Starbase with their families, for a total of about 500 people. Another 3,100 workers commute from Brownsville—25 miles from the base—and surrounding areas.