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Text: Adelaide locals resist Tesla factory bid over anti-Elon Musk sentiment Adelaide residents have pushed back at Tesla’s bid for a new factory in the city’s south, targeting Elon Musk and the company’s environmental and ethical credentials Of nearly 1,000 submissions sent to the local council, 95% called for the proposal to be struck down, citing “anti-Tesla and anti-Elon Musk sentiment” and “Musk’s influence on global discourse via social media platforms”, as well as the environmental impact and potential loss of green space. More than half of the 948 community submissions came from outside the council area, but submissions from those in the immediate area of the proposed factory site overwhelmingly opposed the development at 121 against and 11 for. Dozens of submissions referred to Musk’s interventions in American and European politics and his apparent fascist-style salute earlier this year. One critic, citing Guardian reporting, wrote: "I could not think of a worse developer to sell the land to. Tesla sales have been plummetting [sic] … this is likely to attract protests and negative attention that the neighbourhood does not need or want." Tesla and South Australian government agencies emphasised the economic benefits to the region in their letters of support, while a handful of residents said the land should be put to productive use and one celebrated Musk’s “visionary approach”.