The state has started lining up engineers for the roads SpaceX will need in southern Vermilion Parish, and the first firm publicly tied to that work is a longtime political donor to Gov. Jeff Landry.
Royal Engineers & Consultants, based in New Orleans, is DOTD’s pick to handle work connected to the Starbase Louisiana site near Pecan Island, The Center Square reported Saturday. Campaign records reviewed by the outlet show the firm gave $115,000 over six donations since 2019 to Cajun PAC II, a committee Landry once chaired. The biggest single check, $50,000, came in June 2024.
What parish drivers should watch
For people who use LA 82, the bigger question is the bill. State agencies are studying routes, bridges and traffic around the launch site, and LA 82 is being looked at for possible improvements, according to the report. Nobody has decided how much of that SpaceX pays and how much falls to taxpayers.
What is still unknown
- Was it bid? DOTD did not say, according to The Center Square.
- What does it cost? Not disclosed.
- What will Royal do? Not disclosed. The contract runs through 2031.
DOTD defended the pick, saying the firm’s Louisiana staff are “strategically located near the SpaceX site.” Royal declined to comment, and the governor’s office had not responded, the outlet reported.
Who Royal is
The firm is no stranger to state work. It holds more than $44 million in active state contracts and has inspected highway and bridge projects across south Louisiana for two decades, according to the report. Its political giving has crossed party lines, reaching Republicans and Democrats alike over the years.
The Times is tracking the road question, and every other piece of the SpaceX project, on Starbase Watch.