States have until December 1 to nominate locations for a large new military installation. The Pentagon aims to select a site by June next year, assessing proposals against four main criteria: available land, capacity to house personnel, energy and water independence, and opportunities for public-private financing.
“We talk about this as a base, but this is building a city,” said Dale Marks, the official tasked with coordinating the search and preparing the site-selection process.
The initiative followed Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s call to identify an optimal location for a hardened, resilient joint military installation in the continental United States. The rationale includes the rapid development of disruptive technologies, closer alignment among strategic adversaries, and persistent cyberattacks against critical infrastructure.
A base designed for future warfare
The new installation is expected to support military formations built around advanced capabilities, including autonomous uncrewed strike wings, directed-energy and counter-drone brigades, hypersonic units, and joint operational task forces supported by artificial intelligence.
To reduce concerns that the administration might favor states led by Republicans, officials intend to make the selection process as transparent as possible. A review panel is planned, while possible presidential involvement has been raised but not confirmed.
Four factors that will shape the decision
Land: The Pentagon is generally seeking sites between 100,000 and 250,000 acres. Smaller or larger proposals may also be considered if they offer compelling advantages.
Capacity: The base must be able to accommodate 15,000 to 25,000 active-duty service members and their families—about 80,000 to 100,000 people in total. It will also need to support future formations built around large numbers of autonomous systems.
Self-sufficiency: The installation is intended to operate independently of civilian utilities. Plans call for small modular nuclear reactors, hardened microgrids, and on-site systems to capture, treat, and recycle water. Within its first 24 months, the base is expected to demonstrate that it can sustain 30 continuous days of combat operations without the civilian power grid or outside energy supplies.
Partnerships and financing: States are being encouraged to propose public-private partnerships. Under this approach, the Defense Department could fund infrastructure directly tied to military missions—including power-projection capabilities, underground command shelters, munitions bunkers, and tactical testing grounds—while commercial investors could build and operate supporting digital infrastructure.
Initial proposals due December 1
Governors and state military leaders have until December 1 to submit initial nominations. Marks’ team will then work with each candidate to develop its proposal and assess the advantages and drawbacks of each location.
The review will extend to local planning details: where the security perimeter should go, whether it needs to be a conventional fence, and whether the Pentagon or local communities should build housing. In some proposals, local partners could provide supporting infrastructure and services, such as hospitals and schools.
No overall cost estimate has been provided because no site has been chosen. However, the 2028 budget request is expected to include initial funding to get the project underway.
