Most of what Vermilion Parish has learned about Starbase Louisiana has arrived in pieces, from a ribbon-cutting announcement to lawsuits and records requests. Here it is in one place, with where each piece came from.

What is SpaceX building?

A launch site for Starship on a tract of roughly 125,000 acres in the Pecan Island area, which the company bills as the world’s largest spaceport, according to The Center Square. SpaceX’s own job postings for the project list Pecan Island as the location. Here is where that is.

When?

Groundbreaking is penciled in for 2027 and the first launch for 2029, per The Center Square.

How many jobs?

The outlet reports a target of 3,000 direct jobs within ten years, at an average of $92,600 a year. SpaceX has already posted its first eight openings for the site. See them all. Whether the jobs go to locals is not guaranteed: the parish tax agreement treats local hiring as a goal, not a rule, Acadiana News First reported.

What does the parish get, and give up?

SpaceX’s yearly payments to the parish open at $25 million and climb 2% a year for 25 years, about $800 million altogether by the Gulf States Newsroom’s math, as reported by WWNO. On the other side of the ledger, the newsroom pegs the property tax break near $23.8 billion over those years. The Center Square values the whole state-and-local incentive package around $27.5 billion.

How was it approved?

The parish Industrial Development Board signed off Aug. 25 on an agenda that called the deal “Project Osprey,” WWNO reported. Three residents and the Vermilion Citizens Coalition sued Oct. 26, saying the Police Jury and the board broke the Open Meetings Law eight times along the way. Our story on the suit.

What are residents asking?

The citizens’ group Vermilion United wants a verbal SpaceX promise of fire equipment put on paper and is questioning where a $600,000-a-year administrative fee will go. More here.

What is next door?

About 4,000 acres of Section 16 school land sits beside the site near White Lake. It could be swapped, but not sold without the Legislature’s OK, after an appraisal, Acadiana News First reported.

What comes next?

  • A judge has yet to schedule the open meetings suit.
  • The state’s cooperative endeavor agreement with SpaceX stays private until at least Dec. 14, according to Vermilion United.
  • Gov. Landry’s former chief of staff, Kyle Ruckert, is now registered to lobby for SpaceX, The Center Square reported.

The running timeline, numbers and open questions live on Starbase Watch.