Nawrocki & Szeliga attend Rocket Lab Space ribbon cutting

The delegates were honored to attend the announcement and ribbon cutting for the new Space Structures Complex in Middle River, located in District 7A on Friday.

The event included many local and state representatives, including U.S. Senator Ben Cardin, Congressman Dutch Ruppersberger, and County Executive Johnny Olszewski Jr., Senator JB Jennings, and Baltimore County Councilman David Marks.

This expansion of the space systems business with a dedicated production and development complex is a great continuation of the manufacturing history of Eastern Baltimore County.

The complex will support the development and manufacturing of space rockets. The site will also play a role in the development and long-term supply of parts for Rocket Lab’s new medium-lift launch vehicle, Neutron.

Rocket Lab’s new Space Structures Complex will be established in the former 113,000-square-foot Lockheed Martin Vertical Launch Building in Middle River, which has been home to aerospace manufacturing since 1929.

Rocket Lab expects to employ up to 65 people at the facility by the end of 2025. While the equipment and infrastructure are not in place yet, the delegates enjoyed a tour of the facility today.

Delegate Nawrocki stated, “As a resident and representative of Middle River, today’s announcement was personally gratifying as it continues the long history of manufacturing in the area that my family has been a part of dating back to aircraft building at these facilities in World War II. It’s a great day for Eastern Baltimore County.”

Delegate Kathy Szeliga agreed, saying, “I recently discovered that my father worked at the former Glenn L. Martin facility! This exciting announcement continues the legacy of so many families who also share in this local history of aeronautical engineering and innovation.”

B.J. Joseph

Benjamin Joesph has covered news in Eastern Baltimore County since 2006. He started as a reporter with the original East County Times in 2006. He started East Baltco News and later Eastcountytimes.com in 2022.