Huntsville and Redstone say they're ready for Space Command
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"It's going to have a tremendous impact," said Martin Traylor. Photo: Courtesy of Kayla Brown, Huntsville/Madison County Chamber of Commerce
Huntsville and Redstone Arsenal are more than prepared to handle the influx of new residents, jobs and work that's coming with Space Command, officials said Wednesday.
Why it matters: Critics of President Trump's decision to move Space Command from Colorado Springs labeled it a political move that would disrupt the agency's established command and local economic base.
Driving the news: Huntsville was chosen after a thorough competition and selection process, officials said at a media event Wednesday at the Huntsville/Madison County Chamber of Commerce.
- Recent road projects, they said, and a long history of relocating major military commands and large employers to the city prove the expected influx from Space Command is nothing the area can't handle.
- Mac McCutcheon, Madison County Commission chair, said the move to Huntsville is about "protecting our warfighter and winning the battle in space."
What they're saying: "Redstone is the historical home of the entire space program," said Martin Traylor, deputy garrison commander for Redstone Arsenal.
- "If you look at the commands that we have there ... the synergy is there already between those commands," he said. "Most of these elements are already dealing with Space Command on a daily basis."
- Co-locating at Redstone will mean "they can literally go down the street and see people face to face. And it's hard to put a price on the relationship factor of leadership like that," Traylor said.
By the numbers: Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle estimates the move will bring 1,400 jobs over five years, or about 280 per year.
- Those people will be in Huntsville, Madison and beyond, he said, noting that about 60% of the 6,500 employees who moved to the area in two years with the Toyota-Mazda plant landed outside the city.
- "That puts us down to about 46 people a year coming into the city of Huntsville," he said. "(That's) a very manageable number for us."
State of play: Lucia Cape, senior vice president of economic development for the Chamber, said Huntsville has experience in this area, pointing to the 2005 Base Realignment and Closure initiative that brought nearly 5,000 employees.
- "That program of work that we put together has been replicated many times since then," she said. "Five years ago, in this room, we presented to the Air Force and share[d] with them that plan ... for Space Command."