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Amazon announces candidate cities for HQ2

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Re: Amazon announces candidate cities for HQ2

#251

Post by wbl »

prions wrote: post #225
chollida1 wrote: post #3

Nice to see Toronto on the list, though game theory suggest that we're only here because having a Canadian Candidate has the potential to have all 3 levels of government involved rather than just state and city. I'm not really sure how to go about handicapping the finalists. Given the current political climate, Toronto is interesting because it's the only city that gives Amazon some escape form the US government. You…

Give your requirements, Newark would be the best candidate - EWR close by, with public transportation connections - Strong local universities, both in tech and business (Rutgers, NJIT, Stevens) - Newark development is rising, downtown is still relatively sparse - Audible is already in Newark Skeptical it will actually happen though. Wouldn't even consider myself a fan of Newark (even though I go to school here), but…

Columbia and NYU and Cornell Tech don't make the list? Newark is a borough.

Re: Amazon announces candidate cities for HQ2

#252

Post by keiraarts »

chollida1 wrote: post #3

Nice to see Toronto on the list, though game theory suggest that we're only here because having a Canadian Candidate has the potential to have all 3 levels of government involved rather than just state and city. I'm not really sure how to go about handicapping the finalists. Given the current political climate, Toronto is interesting because it's the only city that gives Amazon some escape form the US government. You…

Out of curiosity, would the exchange rate for USD to CAD be a great advantage for Amazon?

Re: Amazon announces candidate cities for HQ2

#254

Post by ascagnel_ »

asheldon wrote: post #176
justin66 wrote: post #143

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Or the fact that their employees would need to sell their organs in order to afford single-bedroom apartments. But I'm curious, have they actually publicly stated that they want a lot of geographical distance between the old and new HQ? It's an assumption that informs a lot of what's being said here.

They haven't said it, but probably because it's not a criterion cities can do anything about. Having HQ2 far away from Seattle reduces business risk from e.g. major earthquakes.

Having HQ2 far from Seattle also means they can pull out of a different labor pool.

Re: Amazon announces candidate cities for HQ2

#255

Post by gizmo385 »

ForrestN wrote: post #245

It's interesting how little culture figures in to this conversation. It seems to me that the North and the South (Canada aside) are drastically different in ways that will really matter to a lot of people. I don't work at Amazon, but my family and I would not feel fully safe or comfortable living in Texas, Tennessee, Georgia or North Carolina.

> my family and I would not feel fully safe or comfortable living in Texas, Tennessee, Georgia or North Carolina

I'm a little surprised by this. You wouldn't feel safe? Why not?

Re: Amazon announces candidate cities for HQ2

#256

Post by blackaspen »

nosequel wrote: post #89
robbiemitchell wrote: post #43

NYT walked through a process of elimination and concluded it will be Denver. https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/09/09/upshot/where-...

I was happy to see that Denver pitched Amazon with talent and not tax incentives [1]. I think most in Colorado would be perfectly happy if Denver didn't win and would be very unhappy if Denver won by giving tax breaks. - [1] https://www.denverpost.com/2017/10/18/amazon-headquarters-co...

I live inbetween Boulder and Denver -- that's my sentiment. I really don't want Amazon to move in, and I'd be even more unhappy with it if we do ultimately give some terrible incentives (terrible for CO residents).

Re: Amazon announces candidate cities for HQ2

#257

Post by nsnick »

patrickxb wrote: post #240

I think travel between HQ and HQ2 has to be a nonstop flight for it to be viable. The cities sorted by number of nonstops to Seattle per day: Los Angeles 23 Denver 18 Chicago 14 Dallas 12 Washington, D.C. 7 Atlanta 6 Newark 6 New York 6 Boston 5 Austin 3 Nashville 2 Philadelphia 2 Raleigh, N.C. 2 Indianapolis 1 Toronto, Canada 1 Miami 1 Columbus 0 Pittsburgh 0 Montgomery County, Md. ? Northern Virginia ?

Pittsburgh has flights to Seattle. https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/flights/todayinthesky/...

Also, Northern Virginia is the location of Dulles. Montgomery county would also use Dulles or BWI which has 3 flights per day. Interestingly, with traffic, Washington D.C. is not within 45 minutes of Dulles so Washington D.C. is probably just looking at Reagan which has 1 flight per day to Seattle.

Re: Amazon announces candidate cities for HQ2

#258

Post by oblio »

wonderwonder wrote: post #208
dominotw wrote: post #47

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> escape form the US government. Curious what specifically would be different between Canada and USA polices towards amazon.

The current administration in the US is actively anti-amazon. Primarily due to Bezos' ownership of the washington Post and its unflattering portrayal of Trump. If Amazon chose a Canadian city, the administration would likely go all in on attacking them. A hostile government is a tough thing to overcome even for a company as wealthy as Amazon.

Bezos sponsors research for the "10k year clock". Also, this HQ2 is going to be used for many years.

I doubt a 4 year administration worries them as much as you think.

Re: Amazon announces candidate cities for HQ2

#259

Post by phildougherty »

patrickxb wrote: post #240

I think travel between HQ and HQ2 has to be a nonstop flight for it to be viable. The cities sorted by number of nonstops to Seattle per day: Los Angeles 23 Denver 18 Chicago 14 Dallas 12 Washington, D.C. 7 Atlanta 6 Newark 6 New York 6 Boston 5 Austin 3 Nashville 2 Philadelphia 2 Raleigh, N.C. 2 Indianapolis 1 Toronto, Canada 1 Miami 1 Columbus 0 Pittsburgh 0 Montgomery County, Md. ? Northern Virginia ?

There may be some chances for an improvement at Pittsburgh airport with the announcement of $1.1bn in major renovations being funded: http://www.post-gazette.com/business/development/2017/09/12/...

I could see Southwest adding a PIT -> Seattle non-stop in a hurry if needed.

Re: Amazon announces candidate cities for HQ2

#260

Post by gizmo385 »

illegalsmile wrote: post #174
nosequel wrote: post #89

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I was happy to see that Denver pitched Amazon with talent and not tax incentives [1]. I think most in Colorado would be perfectly happy if Denver didn't win and would be very unhappy if Denver won by giving tax breaks. - [1] https://www.denverpost.com/2017/10/18/amazon-headquarters-co...

I live in CO but not front range and the front range population impacts the entire state from natural resources to transportation and recreation. When it comes down to it I would be OK if Denver didn't win though at the same time feel as if that's squandering growth and cool things for my own personal gains. Ultimately if Amazon adds 25-50K population to the front range that's a drop in the bucket of the already ~4.4…

> Ultimately if Amazon adds 25-50K population to the front range

I think that if Amazon moved out here, the ultimate increase in population would be a lot more than the 50k potential hires that Amazon is advertising on the tin. That also creates a ton of jobs in the surrounding areas for the various amenities that people working at Amazon can afford, and you need people to work those jobs.

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