Fifty two percent of Otero County voters in New Mexico voted against a proposed sales tax that would have helped Spaceport America build a commercial spaceport in Sierra County.

Even though the vote won't stop Spaceport America from building a facility in the desert, the company was hoping it would be able to receive another cash injection from tax payers.  Otero County isn't interested in contributing tax dollars, but several other counties have reportedly shown interest in possible taxation to help the company build its spaceport.

According to the county, 9,479 voters showed support of the spaceport, while 10,412 voted against the tax hike.

"This is a disappointment because this tax would have generated tremendous benefits for the people of Otero County," said Steve Landeene, New Mexico Spaceport Authority (NMSA) Executive Director.  "However, we will move forward with the project as we have acquired almost 97 percent of the needed funding, and we will look for support from other local governments or New Mexico counties not currently in the district that have expressed interest in joining."

The company expects to build the spaceport for an estimated $198 million, although there is a $225 overall spending cap in place.

Officials expect construction to begin shortly, with initial plans to open it up sometime in late 2010 or early 2011.  Spaceport America's presence in New Mexico should help boost the state's economy, with thousands of jobs that need to be filled.

Spaceport America is working with Lockheed Martin, Virgin Galactic, ROcket Racing, Micogravity Enterprise and other aerospace companies as it moves forward.  Sir Richard Branson chose Spaceport America as the location where he hopes to launch Virgin Galactic spaceliners, which will offer tourists an opportunity for a suborbital flight for a mere $200,000.

Commercial space ventures continue to explode in popularity, as companies continue to receive funding for private space research.  Space Adventures, a space tourism company, works alongside the Russian space agency to send space tourists into orbit, earning around $30 million per trip.