Vermilion Parish senator wants to join the ‘new space race’

Around 200 Vermilion Parish residents packed the Abbeville Rotary Club’s largest meeting in its 90-year history Wednesday, hoping to have their questions answered and learn new details on a rumored aerospace company land deal on the parish’s coast

They received some answers and plenty of reassurances from their representative in the Louisiana Senate, Bob Hensgens.

The possible project would be part of a “new space race,” he told the assembled crowd at the Erath Community Center, one its residents would do well not to be left behind in.

“We can run from tomorrow, but tomorrow is coming, so we better face it with strong, safe hearts,” he said.

Vermilion Parish would also need to strengthen its infrastructure and school system to withstand the sudden influx of new residents such a project may bring, he noted.

The senator called a question about the long-term impact on families already living nearby “a tough one,” acknowledging that along with new jobs, rising property values and new resources for schools, there would be costs as well.

“We have to admit there will be challenges: short-term construction traffic, noise, and some pressure on housing and services in the growth areas.” But, he added, “we have time to prepare.”

The key, Hensgens said, would be “minimizing the downsides, while maximizing the upsides.”

That’s if the project comes to fruition at all.

Hensgens repeatedly emphasized that he was not aware of any deal having been closed on a land purchase in Vermilion Parish by SpaceX or any other aerospace company: “Like all of you, I’ve heard nothing but rumors since March.”

In a previous interview, Hensgens told The Current he believes his declining to sign an NDA, a new practice by the state’s economic development agency, Louisiana Economic Development, for major industrial development projects, may be the reason he has been kept out of the loop.

“That’s probably why I don’t have the details for some of these questions,” he told The Current earlier this month.

Still, Hensgens said he’s “taking the possibility serious.”

“The fundamentals of the parish line up extremely well,” he said Wednesday, adding that he anticipates a net benefit should the project come to pass.

“This possible project would diversify our economy,” he said. “Our beloved oil and gas, farming and fishing, our ports along the Gulf and coastal waterways, Freshwater Bayou will all become vital corridors for rocket commerce. UL Lafayette, our public school system, regional universities will gain powerful new avenues.”

While making comparisons to projects such as SpaceX’s facility near Brownsville, Texas, and Meta’s massive data center project currently under construction in Richland Parish with regards to the potential economic impact of such a project in Vermilion Parish, Hensgens didn’t address related environmental concerns.

In Texas, 58 households are currently embroiled in a lawsuit with SpaceX over alleged sonic-boom damages from the company’s launches. New Louisiana laws passed during the most recent legislative session would prevent Vermilion Parish residents from filing such lawsuits in case of damages to their homes or any quality of life impacts, should the company set up shop here.

State and federal regulators have also documented multiple environmental violations at the company’s Texas facility, which is located directly next to the Boca Chica Wildlife Refuge.

In 2024, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality found SpaceX had discharged industrial wastewater without a permit four times at its Boca Chica facility, after the EPA separately warned the company of Clean Water Act violations. Ultimately leading to SpaceX agreeing to pay a $3,750 penalty without admitting wrongdoing.

Meta’s Richland Parish project, while not yet completed, has also drawn environmental and cost-of-living concerns, especially with regards to its projected energy and water use.

Meanwhile, the company is currently fighting a court order to disclose data on that anticipated energy use as well as the number of jobs it actually projects to create in the area.

None of the questions related to these issues, despite being posed in response to the club’s request for Q&A input on Facebook, were selected for discussion at the meeting. No additional questions were allowed at the event. Hensgens, flanked by a police escort, left the event without answering any additional questions from press outside of the venue.

The full presentation can be viewed here.