Intrigue is building around a nearly 5,000-acre site in Pinal County that's months away from being auctioned off by the Arizona State Land Department.
A hypersonic missile startup last year targeted about 1,000 acres of state-owned land in Pinal County for a massive missile testing facility. California-based Castelion, which was founded by former SpaceX employees, was confirmed to be exploring the site before ultimately choosing New Mexico for its sprawling complex.
Pinal County’s Board of Supervisors set up the land east of San Tan Valley in October 2025 for a prospective “Project Ranger” – the name of Castelion’s New Mexico project of roughly the same size.
Flash forward a year, and the site is now being contemplated for a new project that could wind up being almost five times larger.
Thousands of additional acres are being sought for an even larger defense-related development called “Project Paperclip,” according to records filed with the Arizona State Land Department.
Read more of this story from the Business Journal.
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