Site selection consultant John Boyd, who’s advised companies like Boeing, AT&T and PNC Bank in their own selection process, said there were not many surprises in the list, and believes Amazon will end up going with a city on the East Coast to improve its stance when it comes to recruiting.
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On Thursday, four months after Amazon set off the feeding frenzy of proposals, the online retailer announced it had whittled down a list of 238 proposals to just 20 cities. Other contenders: Washington, D.C.; Chicago; Indianapolis; Columbus, Ohio; and Los Angeles, the only West Coast city to make the list. It declined to say when the company may make a final decision.
Ives said that based on the list of finalists, he believes the victor will be an East Coast city that is home to a strong base of intellectual property and technology companies, colleges in the surrounding area, and is also a location that helps serve Amazon’s political interests.
Another tech giant, Apple, announced on Wednesday it planned to build a second campus and add 20,000 jobs.
Toronto, a growing tech hub, was the only city outside the USA on the list.
The company opened bidding for its second headquarters building to localities and states/provinces across North America in September of previous year, according to Reuters. Amazon’s solicitation to local governments and real estate developers and landlords for bids previous year sparked a frenzied competition. He told reporters it was too early to speculate on any proposals his administration might offer during the next round of discussions with the Seattle-based company.
A rendering of the site Boston is proposing in its bid for Amazon to create its second headquarters in the city.
Amazon said it would be a $5 billion investment and bring 50,000 new jobs, with an average salary of more than $100,000.
Washington, D.C. has offered Amazon a number of incentives, according to a Freedom of Information Act request filed by WAMU and obtained by the Washington Business Journal.
Amazon’s announcement Thursday effectively says no thanks to some of the longer-shot proposals.
The online retailing giant said that after sorting through 238 proposals, the potential locations still include tech-strong places such as Boston and NY. We put together an impressive bid that will serve us well as we continue to attract investment and talent.
What’s more, we don’t know if the city’s reputation for violent crime will factor into Amazon’s thinking.
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PAY UP: Boston and MA are unlikely to match the sky-high incentive offers made by other states, including $7 billion from New Jersey and $5 billion from Maryland. Here in Georgia, Gov. Nathan Deal may call a special session of the legislature if necessary to come up with needed sweeteners to reel in Amazon.
