Space Force: Palmdale in Race for HQ

Palmdale has applied to become the location of the headquarters for the U.S. Space Command. The Antelope Valley city has received an endorsement from Gov. Gavin Newsom and support from State Sen. Scott Wilk, Assemblyman Tom Lackey and Los Angeles County Supervisor Kathryn Barger. The city has not heard back yet from the federal government regarding its application, a spokesman said. Mayor Steve Hofbauer said that with its rich aerospace history, the region is the best place for the headquarters. “Some of the most sophisticated aircraft, including the space shuttles, have been designed, built, flown and tested here at (Air Force) Plant 42 and at Edwards Air Force Base,” Hofbauer said in a statement. “Aerospace is in our DNA.” City Manager J.J. Murphy, a retired Air Force officer, told the Business Journal the presence of industry giants including Northrop Grumman, Lockheed Martin, Boeing and NASA in Palmdale provides myriad career opportunities for space command personnel when they retire from the military. He added the city is in the midst of a “renaissance period,” with a burgeoning downtown scene and several major infrastructure projects in the works. “Within the next five years, we should have an operating commercial airport here in Palmdale. We will have high-speed rail service via Virgin Trains from Palmdale to Las Vegas. That’ll help young entrepreneurs make a decision (to relocate). We have affordable, high-quality housing with market-rate apartments coming on the market in the next 12 months,” he said. “Landing Space Force would be a cherry on top.” Criteria for the Space Command headquarters include having a population base within the top 150 largest metropolitan statistical areas in the country, a military base within 25 miles and a livability index score of 50 points out of 100 or higher as determined by the American Association of Retired Persons Public Policy Institute. Palmdale meets all those criteria. Murphy added the city has thousands of acres of wide-open land for Space Force. “We have two spaces that are directly adjacent to Plant 42. One is city owned and is 600 acres. We would certainly be able to offer that up as part of a future stage if we make the next round. We also … have 17,500 acres directly adjacent to Plant 42 that is currently owned by Los Angeles World Airports.” He said LAWA bought the space years ago for Los Angeles International Airport East campus, which never materialized. “What better use of that land than the Space Force HQ?” he posited. The U.S. Space Command is a separate branch of the Defense Department responsible for military operations in outer space, specifically at altitudes of 100 kilometers or more.