US Space Command’s move to Redstone Arsenal is about to accelerate sharply, with roughly 900 staff expected in Alabama by 2028, the largest surge of the relocation.
Col. Raymond Ruscoe, deputy director of the command’s Redstone transition team, laid out the timeline Wednesday at the Launch Regional Partnership’s State of the Region event in Decatur. Ruscoe put current numbers at more than 120 staff already working in the region, about 200 expected by year’s end, and roughly 400 by the close of 2027.
The biggest surge lands in 2028, when the headcount should approach 900, he said. The command counts about 18,000 military and civilian personnel across the globe, with roughly 1,800 of those jobs slated to shift to North Alabama.
The command has secured 960 temporary workspaces across five locations on the arsenal while a permanent headquarters is built. The planned facility will offer about 900,000 square feet of usable space and, for the first time since 1985, allow the command to operate under one roof.
Alabama officials see the move as a regional economic engine. The Launch partnership, which spans 13 North Alabama counties, made the relocation a centerpiece of its annual regional update alongside workforce and infrastructure priorities.
The transition team is renovating existing buildings to handle the command’s classified and technical work while construction proceeds on the permanent campus. Ruscoe said the move restores a setup the command has not had for decades: a unified headquarters.
