At a news conference in Austin on Monday, Governor Greg Abbott reiterated that the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission will not place a sale of Boca Chica State Park before a vote any time soon. Abbott said he knows little about the rumored transaction, which was first reported by Texas Monthly, and stressed that his priority is to protect Texas parkland.
Governor’s stance on park preservation
“What I know is that that’s not coming up for a vote anytime soon,” Abbott said. He added that he is unaware of the specific details the commission may be reviewing, but highlighted his record of adding new parks across the state. “No state in America has been adding more parkland than what I’ve done and what Texas has done; I want to continue to preserve our parkland in the state of Texas,” he declared.
Commission’s schedule and past dealings
The Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission, whose members are appointed by the governor, was scheduled to discuss a potential sale of roughly 1,300 acres of public land in Cameron County during a closed‑door portion of its November 5 meeting. However, a spokesperson for the agency, Stephanie Garcia, told Texas Monthly that the commission is not considering the sale at that meeting.
In 2024 the commission approved a land‑swap deal with SpaceX that would have transferred 43 acres from Boca Chica State Park to the company in exchange for 477 acres adjacent to the Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge. SpaceX later withdrew from that agreement, leaving the park’s future ownership in question.
Local reaction and political context
Democratic gubernatorial candidate Gina Hinojosa, a native of Brownsville, criticized the governor’s relationship with SpaceX owner Elon Musk. “Like so many families in the Valley, I spent my summers at Boca Chica Beach,” Hinojosa said. “Now, after 12 years of selling out Texas to his corporate donors and making working people foot the bill, Greg Abbott is handing over our land to the world’s only trillionaire. Let me be clear: Texas is not for sale.”
Hinojosa’s remarks reflect broader concerns among some residents and environmental groups about SpaceX’s presence in the Gulf Coast region. Activists have argued that rocket launches have harmed local wildlife and have pursued legal action to limit further land acquisitions. A federal judge recently denied a request to block the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service from granting SpaceX 715 acres of land in a nearby refuge in exchange for private land.
What the park means to Texans
Boca Chica State Park spans more than 1,055 acres of dunes, marshes, and coastal grassland just three miles north of the Rio Grande mouth. The largely undeveloped area was selected by SpaceX in 2014 as a test site for rocket launches because of its remote location. Since then, the company has bought privately owned parcels nearby for future development, prompting ongoing debates over land use, environmental stewardship, and state sovereignty.
Looking ahead
Governor Abbott’s comments suggest that any potential sale will remain off the agenda while the administration continues its broader park‑expansion efforts. The Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission’s next public meetings will likely address other park‑related initiatives, keeping the focus on preserving Texas’s natural heritage.
For now, Texans can expect the governor’s office to prioritize adding new parkland rather than negotiating the transfer of existing state property to private interests.
Original reporting: Texas Tribune (HLL/CB) — read the source article.
