Leaders at Vandenberg Space Force Base are prepping for a continued increase in launch activity in the coming years while plotting how and where to accommodate potential new customers.

Tom Stevens, one of the top civilians at Vandenberg, spoke recently at Economic Alliance Foundation’s Future Forum in Solvang. The presentation occurred hours before the first launch of 2025 last week and days before the year’s second liftoff and first landing at Vandenberg, possibly as soon as Tuesday.

“The biggest takeaway I want tonight is growth, growth, growth, especially in the space launch (activity),” Stevens, Space Launch Delta 30 executive director, told the crowd of approximately 200 people.

He noted the 51-launch rate seen in 2024 at the base could climb above 70 in 2025.

“We haven’t done that in a long time,”  Stevens said. “It’s probably back in the ’70s since we’ve done that.”

Vandenberg’s leaders continue to look to transform the installation to be a spaceport.

“In the simplest terms, think of it as an airport where space launch is as common as airplanes launching on a daily basis. That’s where we want to get,” Stevens said. 

Why Vandenberg? It all due to site’s location on what’s been dubbed California’s elbow — which means rocket launches into polar orbit, or those crossing above the South and North Poles, can occur without passing over populated areas. 

In comparison, Florida’s rockets primarily fly satellites into equatorial orbit, or in an easterly direction. 

Military officials view the boost in private space business as beneficial to government programs by reducing their costs of putting their satellites in orbit.

“It’s going to help the bottom line, and the government’s going to get a better value launching on a commercial provider,” Stevens said. 

While SpaceX currently accounts for most missions, other launch providers include United Launch Alliance and Firefly Aerospace. Blue Origin and Phantom Space Company are other firms eyeing Vandenberg.

An increase in different launch providers could require expanded and major additions for use of the railroad and the harbor to accommodate deliveries of rockets and satellites. A new air traffic control tower remains a priority project to replace one decades old, he added.

He noted several times some of the projects discussed are “pre-decisional” and could change for any number of reasons.

The boost in activity isn’t limited to space lunches. Vandenberg has a rich history of conducting tests of unarmed Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missiles and will play a role in the development of the next generation ICBM.

“That’s a big growth area right now,” Stevens said. 

That means several hundred new people focused on the next-generation missile program with new facilities, he said. 

Congress has told the Space Force about funding to help complete projects related to increased activity at the California and Florida launch sites.

“That’s good news, but it’s not enough. Spaceport users need capacity now so we’re just not going to get that capacity quick enough for them,” he said, calling for industry-government partnerships. 

“It’s going to have to be a team,” he added.  

Recognizing new launch providers looking to enter the market, Vandenberg also has identified areas for potential new launch facilities, mostly at the southern end of the sprawling 100,000-acre installation with 46 miles of coastline. 

Of course, the new sites would prompt the need for new infrastructure including roads, water, electricity and more.

Base personnel already are responsible for 621 miles of roads and 53 miles of high power lines. The base also has a 22-megawatt solar farm. 

Vandenberg is home to 16 federally protected species, 1,500 archeological sites and 14 ancient Chumash rock art sites.  

“We do a lot to protect the environment,” Stevens said. 

The coastal locale comes with a huge maintenance headache since salt air makes for a corrosive environment.

“In the continental United States, Vandenberg being out on that peninsula pays a dear price for all of that salt fog that rolls in on a daily basis and it’s just murder to keep everything metal,” Stevens said of the war against rust.

EconAlliance’s new executive director, Jenelle Osborne, former mayor of Lompoc, noted the vital role Vandenberg plays for the North County and beyond.

“The base is key to our local economics,” Osborne said. “All of us are impacted from Santa Barbara County to San Luis Obispo County and further. It is so important to national defense so it has impact locally, nationally and internationally.”

The EconAlliance event also included the announcement of awards along with the new board members and officers.

The EconAlliance North County Innovation Award went to TRIC Robotics, while the Santa Barbara Foundation received the Santa Barbara County Impact Award. 

They also recognized EconAlliance Co-Founders Lawnae Hunter and Victoria Conner.