Florida Construction News staff writer
Blue Origin has announced a major expansion of its Rocket Park campus at Cape Canaveral Spaceport, unveiling a $600 million investment designed to strengthen Florida’s position in the aerospace industry and create hundreds of high-paying jobs along the Space Coast.
The project, called “Project Horizon,” will include construction of an estimated 830,000-square-foot upper stage manufacturing facility, increasing the volume and mass of payloads that can be delivered to orbit from Florida.
The development will be supported through Florida’s Spaceport Improvement Program (SIP), a long-standing partnership between Space Florida and the Florida Department of Transportation.
The expansion is expected to create 500 aerospace jobs with an average annual salary exceeding $98,000.
“Project Horizon is the latest and most ambitious chapter in Blue Origin’s decade-long commitment to Florida,” said Dave Limp, CEO of Blue Origin. “Since 2015, we’ve scaled to nearly 4,000 employees, invested more than $2.3 billion across 500 Florida suppliers, and expanded to 11 sites across Brevard and Orange Counties. And we’re just getting started.”
The announcement coincides with record-breaking employment numbers in the state. In April 2026, Florida’s total nonagricultural employment reached 10,032,900 jobs, while the state’s labor force climbed to 11,150,000.
“Space Florida’s charge has always been to think long-term: to make investments today that position our state for leadership tomorrow,” said Jeanette Nuñez, chair of the Space Florida Board of Directors. “Adding another Blue Origin project to our roster is that vision brought to life, and it reaffirms Florida as the world’s premier destination for aerospace.”
Florida Department of Transportation Secretary Jared W. Perdue highlighted SIP’s role in supporting the state’s aerospace infrastructure.
“The Spaceport Improvement Program demonstrates strategy in action, supporting projects that advance innovation and long-term growth across Florida’s spaceport system,” Perdue said.
Florida Secretary of Commerce J. Alex Kelly emphasized the economic impact of Blue Origin’s investment.
“The expansion not only supports high-wage job creation and strengthens Florida’s aerospace workforce, but it reinforces the long-term economic benefits of strategic infrastructure investments across our spaceport system,” Kelly said.
Since 2012, the Spaceport Improvement Program has funded 48 major infrastructure projects, leveraging more than $531 million in state investment to attract approximately $3.3 billion in private industry funding across Florida’s spaceport network.
Col. Rob Long (Ret.), president and CEO of Space Florida, said Florida’s ability to support the full lifecycle of rocket development—from design and manufacturing to launch—gives the state a unique competitive advantage.
“When a company can design, build, and launch from the same state, it creates efficiencies that are hard to replicate anywhere else,” Long said. “Blue Origin continues to choose Florida because of the conditions
