WALLOPS ISLAND, VA - An email sent Monday, Aug 4 notified employees of NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center and Wallops Flight Facility [GSFC/WFF] of closures slated for October 1st, including the Wallops Visitor Center in Accomack County.
WBOC obtained the email from a Wallops employee who has requested anonymity for fear of reprisal.
This is formal notice regarding several upcoming facility closures at Goddard and Wallops effective October 1, 2025.
- Cafeteria (GB/WFF)
- Vending Services (GB)
- Motor Pool Services (GB/WFF)
- Recreation Center (GB)
- Rocket Club (WFF)
- Visitor Center (GB/WFF)
- Dormitory Facilities Bldg F-4
Management has assessed these closures and is providing this notice to support timely and transparent communication.
The Union representing Federal employees at the NASA Wallops Flight Facility released a response Thursday afternoon.
WBOC spoke with the Wallops American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) Union Vice President Ben Robbins on Thursday morning regarding the closure.
"The visitor center is not merely a luxury," Robbins said. "It is a vital link between space exploration and the American public that serves as a necessary asset when one considers that we [WFF] are situated in a semi-isolated region where opportunity and visibility are scarce."
Robbins told WBOC that AFGE employees at Wallops feel the move is punitive and that management did not give them a rationale for the planned closures.
The Wallops Visitor Center draws significant numbers of people to Accomack County and the Eastern Shore of Virginia annually. According to the Union's release, the NASA Wallops Visitor had 41,578 walk-in visitors and 3,598 spectators at rocket launch viewing events in 2024 alone.
Gene Solomon of Gainesville, Virginia, visited Wallops for the first time on Thursday. Solomon said visiting the NASA launch site was one of the primary reasons his family decided to plan a summer vacation on Chincoteague.
"When I was a kid, John Glenn orbited the Earth three times, and I've always been fascinated by it, so we had to come over here," Solomon said.
Robbins cited decreased economic traffic to the town of Chincoteague and other surrounding stakeholders as a concerning potential consequence of closing the visitor center.
"Any negative impact to Wallops certainly can have a trickle-down effect around the whole area," Chincoteague Mayor Denise Bowden said. "We want to see Wallops thrive and we want people to have their jobs and we want people to come here and visit."
The Union urged Members of Congress, the Virginia General Assembly, and Local Government to help reverse the decision. Virginia State Senator Bill DeSteph (R) told WBOC that Wallops has a tough task ahead, meeting their operating budget while continuing to support the infrastructure needed for increased mission operations.
"With the ever-increasing DoD [Department of Defense] and commercial missions, man, we got to do something to protect them and keep them there," DeSteph said.
The Virginia State Senator said he communicates with federal representatives weekly about Wallops and works with fellow local lawmakers to protect state funding.
The state dumps a tremendous amount of money into Wallops and I'm there as the Senator trying to protect that," DeSteph said. "Rob Bloxom is there as the delegate trying to protect that - at least the state portion of the money we're putting in."
NASA Goddard and WFF provided WBOC with the following statement on Thursday evening.
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center and Wallops Flight Facility are reviewing functions and capabilities as the center works to close out Fiscal Year 2025 and look ahead. While we are exploring a number of actions, including some that may involve closure of facilities, no decisions have been made. Any changes as a result of these discussions will be communicated as appropriate to the workforce, contractors, and the public, and in accordance with the law.