Texas Weighed Selling Boca Chica State Park to SpaceX, Report Says

The Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission has been discussing a sale of Boca Chica State Park, the roughly 1,300-acre beachfront park next to SpaceX’s Starbase site in Cameron County, according to a Texas Monthly report published October 16, 2026. Two sources told the magazine that SpaceX was the prospective buyer.

Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) says the commission won’t take up a sale at its November meeting. Nothing has been sold, and no vote has been scheduled.

What the report says

According to Texas Monthly, a draft agenda for the commission’s November 5 meeting listed the sale of “1,300 acres” as a topic for executive session, the part of the meeting held behind closed doors. That date is two days after the November election. The magazine reported that the talks had gone far enough for the item to be put on a draft agenda.

TPWD spokesperson Stephanie Garcia told Texas Monthly that the commission is not considering the sale at the November meeting. She didn’t answer follow-up questions about the earlier discussions, why the agenda changed, or whether the idea has been dropped for good. Sources told the magazine the item could come back later. The commission has nine members, all appointed by Gov. Greg Abbott.

Texas Monthly also reported that SpaceX has asked the Federal Aviation Administration to raise its yearly launch limit at the South Texas site from 25 to 456.

How we got here

Boca Chica State Park sits at the southern tip of the Texas Gulf Coast, about 20 miles east of Brownsville, and has long been a local spot for swimming and fishing, according to the Texas Tribune. TPWD bought the land from The Nature Conservancy in 1994. Until 2023 it was leased to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as part of the Lower Rio Grande Valley National Wildlife Refuge.

This isn’t the first time the park and SpaceX have been linked:

• 2024 land swap. In March 2024, the commission voted unanimously to start negotiating a trade: 43 acres of Boca Chica State Park to SpaceX in exchange for 477 acres along the Lower Laguna Madre next to Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge, the Tribune reported. The 43 acres were small tracts without water frontage, surrounded by private land or SpaceX facilities. TPWD said at the time that the trade wouldn’t affect public beach access through the park or along State Highway 4. SpaceX later backed out, according to Texas Monthly.
• Beach control. Last year, state lawmakers gave Starbase partial control over Boca Chica’s public beaches, Texas Monthly reported.
• Federal refuge swap. In March 2026, the Fish and Wildlife Service proposed trading refuge land along the Rio Grande to SpaceX for private land in the Laguna Atascosa refuge, Courthouse News reported. Texas Monthly says the agency approved a version of that deal this summer, giving SpaceX 715 acres in exchange for 683 acres.

Why people are paying attention

The area is habitat for endangered species, including the ocelot. Critics in the 2024 debate also pointed to Piping Plovers and Kemp’s ridley sea turtles. Texas Monthly notes that wildlife near the launch site already deals with lights, noise, fires and debris from failed launches.

Luke Metzger of the advocacy group Environment Texas told the magazine a sale would look bad and stressed how sensitive the area is. His group has started a public petition asking TPWD not to sell. Bekah Hinojosa, a Brownsville resident who co-founded the South Texas Environmental Justice Network, described SpaceX’s actions to Texas Monthly as a “hostile takeover” of Boca Chica Beach.

The report also lands as the state is growing its park system with the $1 billion Centennial Parks Conservation Fund that lawmakers created and voters approved. That fund is paying for new land elsewhere, including a future park on Lake Palestine.

What it means for visitors

For now, nothing about the park has changed hands. A sale would need to come back before the commission, and TPWD says that won’t happen at the November meeting. Because Starbase now shares control over the public beaches there, check current access with TPWD and Cameron County before you drive out.

Nearby state parks you can visit now

Boca Chica isn’t listed in our directory, but three Rio Grande Valley state parks about 25 to 75 miles away are open and popular with birders:

• Resaca de la Palma State Park in Brownsville covers about 1,400 acres along old Rio Grande channels called resacas. Private cars aren’t allowed past the visitor center, so you walk, bike or ride the tram over more than eight miles of trails, with four decks overlooking the water. The park often fills up, so TPWD recommends reserving day passes. Adults pay $4, and kids 12 and under get in free.
• Estero Llano Grande State Park in Weslaco is a World Birding Center site where about 340 bird species have been documented. It has more than 5 miles of trails through wetlands and woodland, about 2 miles of them wheelchair accessible, and a few American alligators live in Alligator Lake. It’s open daily from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., and adult entry is $5.
• Bentsen-Rio Grande Valley State Park, southwest of Mission, is the World Birding Center’s headquarters, with about 360 species recorded. Look for Great Kiskadees and Altamira Orioles from the trails or the two-story Hawk Observation Tower. TPWD lists September through April as the busy season, so reserve a pass to guarantee entry. Adult entry is $5, and there are five walk-in primitive campsites.