Just a few months after SpaceX indicated plans to open a restaurant and shopping center near its Starbase spaceport in South Texas, the company appears to have even more amenities for employees on the way.
The spacecraft manufacturer plans to build a $499,000 sushi restaurant and a $13.5 million recreation center in Brownsville, close to its launch facilities.
Both projects are set to start on May 1 and be completed in May 2025, according to filings with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation.
The 2,502-square-foot restaurant is set to go up on St. Jude Street, and SpaceX already posted a job listing for a sushi chef. Among the responsibilities are catering company events and creating "a pleasant and fun environment for SpaceX employees to meet and share a meal.” The pay range listed is $97,500-$115,000 per year.
Meanwhile, the recreation center on LBJ Boulevard is set to be more than 16,000 square feet. Like the sushi restaurant, a California design firm is listed as the architect for the project. Known as Jeffrey Miller Architecture and Design, the firm notes its expertise in retail and hospitality and has experience with projects by the beach, including a residence on the Northern California Coast.
SpaceX’s plans for further development near Boca Chica Beach come as South Texans try to prevent the company from swallowing up more land in the region. Last week, multiple groups in the Rio Grande Valley sued Texas Parks and Wildlife in an attempt to reverse the commission’s move to allow negotiations to proceed on a land swap with SpaceX.