NASA to seek private rocket companies for future KSC launch sites

NASA said Monday that it wants proposals from companies to build privately run rocket-launching sites at Kennedy Space Center, which would accelerate the transformation of Kennedy and Cape Canaveral into a public-private spaceport used by NASA, the military and commercial space interests.

It's part of the agency's newly revised master plan for redevelopment of Kennedy Space Center during the next 20 years. The master plan includes eventual development of two new vertical pads for launches and two horizontal sites for spaceships that use runways.

NASA expects to solicit proposals for the vertical sites this summer and could pick winners by late summer or early fall, said Scott Colloredo, director of KSC planning and development.

The Space Coast region lost about 8,000 jobs when the shuttle program closed in 2011. Since then, NASA has pursued the idea of a multiuser spaceport as its best hope to bring back some of those jobs and spur long-term space business.


The launch-site proposals alone likely would not bring many jobs, but NASA is counting on the launches to support rocket, spacecraft and payload development and assembly. It will be reviewing proposals looking for that potential.

U.S. Rep. Bill Posey, R-Rockledge, hailed the move as "a positive step in reaching out to commercial space companies to bring more industry to the Cape."

The first proposals will involve two sites. The first is north of Launch Complex 39B, one of NASA's sites used for the space shuttle and Apollo and now being rebuilt for the next NASA rocket, the Space Launch System.

The other is south of there, between Launch Complex 39A, which was leased in 2013 to SpaceX, and Launch Complex 41, which the Air Force controls and provides to United Launch Alliance.

Eric Stallmer, president of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation, said several companies may be interested, starting with Blue Origin, which lost a bid to SpaceX for the 39A launch site in 2013 and just launched its first rocket last week in Texas.

Others may include United Launch Alliance, Sierra Nevada and suborbital and space-tourism companies such as Virgin Galactic, he said.

"I think there's definitely, definitely an interest. Certainly, with more and more launch providers coming online, it's a great thing for Kennedy and for Florida and for the commercial space industry," Stallmer said.

Colloredo said NASA is trying not to have preconceived notions about what sorts of rockets might use the sites.

"We designated the master plan with commercial needs and potential uses in mind. What we want to do now is bring in industry that can apply their own creativity and innovation for their business using our unique location and capabilities,'' Colloredo said.

The agency has been negotiating for more than a year to lease the old shuttle runway and other facilities to Space Florida, the state's space agency.

In addition, the agency has leased several other operations centers to Boeing, United Launch Alliance and other private companies in spacecraft and payload processing. The master plan calls for much more of that by setting aside land for development of such activities.