Tesla’s new Gigafactory in Austin, Texas, received approval from Travis County Commissioners this week to have a 15,000-person grand opening next month. The party will take place on April 7 from 4:00 p.m. to midnight at the new manufacturing site on Harold Green Road, about 5 miles east of downtown Austin.
The permission for the fireworks show is “conditional,” according to Travis County Fire Marshal Tony Callaway, and is dependent on the weather at the time, which may be volatile in central Texas in April.
Commissioner Ann Howard told Callaway, “Let’s cancel the fireworks show if we need to.” She said that some neighbors in the area had expressed worries about the fireworks show. “We’ll be available for you if you need to cancel at the last minute.”
Late last year, Tesla relocated its corporate headquarters from Palo Alto, California, to Austin, Texas. Elon Musk, the company’s CEO, has also relocated his personal house to Texas.
Tesla announced in its fourth-quarter earnings report earlier this year that the $1.1 billion, the 4.3-million-square-foot facility has already begun producing the Model Y.
Commissioner Brigid Shea praised Tesla’s coming to Texas on Tuesday, dismissing objections of the company’s $65 million in tax rebates from Travis County.
“For the majority of their 5,000-plus employment in Austin, they’re seeking people with less than a college degree,” Shea said Tuesday. “That’s more than half of our population,” says the narrator.
“Those who are stuck in dead-end jobs, don’t have health insurance, don’t receive retirement benefits, and don’t have a real way out of poverty are those people. And I believe this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for our town, with several advantages.”