Gov. Dunleavy, Mayor Berkowitz ask for U.S. Space Command headquarters to be moved to Anchorage

Gov. Mike Dunleavy and Anchorage Mayor Ethan Berkowitz are asking the U.S. Air Force to consider Anchorage as the headquarters for the U.S. Space Command.

“On behalf of the people of Alaska, and specifically Anchorage, Alaska, I am submitting our request for consideration to host the headquarters of the United States Space Command,” Dunleavy and Berkowitz wrote in a one-page letter to U.S. Air Force Assistant Secretary John Henderson.

The letter was written on the governor’s letterhead and dated Wednesday.

The U.S. Space Command was established last year at the direction of President Donald Trump and is currently located in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The Department of Defense in May announced a search for a permanent headquarters for the agency, with a selection expected in 2021.

“After careful review of the screening and evaluation criteria, I believe our community meets all minimum eligibility requirements and would earn a competitive score when assigned against the evaluation criteria,” the letter from Dunleavy and Berkowitz reads.

The governor and mayor said they would like to work with Henderson’s team through the evaluation phase in the coming months.

They offered Mark Lester, president of Alaska Aerospace Corp., as a contact. The state agency provides launching services at the Pacific Spaceport Complex on Kodiak Island.

Trump established the U.S. Space Command to improve U.S. military operations in space. The search for a permanent headquarters followed the establishment of the U.S. Space Force, a branch of the U.S. Armed Forces that was created last year.

Information about the Anchorage relocation request was posted to Dunleavy’s Facebook page on Friday.

“With a well-established U.S. Air Force and U.S. Army presence on Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson - JBER, a vibrant military and veteran community, strategic geopolitical location, tremendous venues for training, and the Alaska Aerospace Corporation available for collaboration, we believe Anchorage is well suited to be the new HQ for Space Command,” Dunleavy’s post read.

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