Push to move NASA headquarters to Florida still a buzz among space community

Yahoo

31-01-2025

ORLANDO, Fla. — The idea floated earlier this month by Gov. Ron DeSantis that NASA might consider moving its headquarters from Washington to Florida remains a topic of interest in space circles.
During a panel discussion about public-private partnerships during the commercial space convention SpaceCom's final day at the Orange County Convention Center on Thursday, the top-voted question during a Q&A portion asked for panel members to weigh in on the idea of bringing the headquarters to Kennedy Space Center.
While there was laughter among the crowd, it still prompted an evenhanded answer from Jonathan Baker, the chief of spaceport development at Kennedy Space Center.
'We're focused on exploration and innovation, and so we want to enable that in whatever way possible, right? So however the agency deems best to accomplish that here at KSC, we're ready and on board to support that,' he said. 'Whether that means a move for headquarters or not. We are ready to support whatever the agency needs to move forward.'
Rob Long, the CEO of Space Florida, the state's aerospace finance and development authority, smiled and chimed in as well.
'I mean, it would make a lot of sense to move NASA headquarters to Kennedy Space Center,' he said. 'Just saying.'
While the back-and-forth was made with some levity, the idea isn't completely unrealistic, especially in an era under President Trump's second administration married with SpaceX founder Elon Musk's push to cut government spending as head of Trump's new Department of Government Efficiency.
In his comments earlier this January, DeSantis while attending an event at KSC said he had been discussing the potential move with then KSC Director Janet Petro, who has since been named acting interim NASA administrator.
'They have this massive building in Washington, D.C., and like nobody goes to it, so why not just shutter it and move everybody down here? I think they're planning on spending like a half a billion to build a new building up in D.C. that no one will ever go to either,' DeSantis said. 'So hopefully, with the new administration coming in, they'll see a great opportunity to just headquarter NASA here on the Space Coast of Florida. I think that'd be very, very fitting.'
NASA headquarters currently employs nearly 2,500 people among its total workforce of nearly 18,000 civil employees. The agency also has its work spread out among 10 field centers including KSC, Johnson Space Center in Houston and Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama.
'We have an opportunity, of course, to bring down more federal resources. We also have an ability to fuel innovative research initiatives and allow for the development of national space policy right here in the Sunshine State,' DeSantis said. 'So the possibilities are significant.'
Long, a retired colonel from the Space Force who took over the CEO role at Space Florida in 2023, said he'd be more than happy if that was the ultimate decision, adding to other recent moves to bring more jobs to the Sunshine State.
That includes the Space Force's choice of Patrick Space Force Base as the future headquarters of STARCOM, the Space Force training and readiness command.
Brig. Gen Kristin Panzenhagen, who leads Space Launch Delta 45 also based at Patrick SFB, said an advance team has already been at the base since 2024.
'Just a handful of folks at Patrick for about the last year working with us on planning, making sure everything's going to go smoothly when the larger body arrives,' she said.
At full capacity, STARCOM numbers, which include both military and civilian personnel, are expected to top 450, the Space Force previously stated.
'We are planning the first main group of folks (this summer) and then hopefully they'll reach full operational capability the following year,' Panzenhagen said. 'So it's been a very close partnership with STARCOM and the Space Launch Delta 45 as the host installation to make sure everything's ready for their arrival.'
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