Amazon

[Conan71]

Austin has the hip factor and all, but I think people will be really sorry about burdening their already insufficient infrastructure if Amazon chose ATX.

DFW could likely handle that sort of influx.

[Hoss]

Austin has the hip factor and all, but I think people will be really sorry about burdening their already insufficient infrastructure if Amazon chose ATX.

DFW could likely handle that sort of influx.

Given that they have a large airport also.  However, don't put Atlanta out of the running.  Hartsfield is a huge airport (busiest in the world actually) and tax incentives in Georgia have driven the film industry there (many Marvel films get filmed there now).

[TulsaGoldenHurriCAN]

Agreed.  And Pittsburgh.  Don't see that one happening, either.   And why would they do West Coast?  Strategically that would not make any sense.  East Coast somewhere is best bet, assuming incentives work out, etc.   Austin, as cool as it is, is going to be hurt by lack of direct flights in/out.   Dallas, maybe, but East just seems to make more sense for them.

I've said Atlanta from the start, and they are still in there.  I'll add DC area, and Raleigh as options.  But it will all come down to who  makes the best offer among the real 3-4 choices they want.

Yeah, I'm putting my money on the east coast city with best incentives. I'd double down on a DC-area place to win. They have the jobs and train rides to all the major metros in the NE. They are going to waste a lot of cities' time with this and I doubt they will really consider those outside the few they really want outside some deals they can't refuse. The $7B NJ break is pretty ludicrous so I wouldn't be surprised if they take that or use it to force a DC area city to match it.

The DC location is perfect for Amazon because they have 3 separate state/district governments vying to provide the best tax incentives and when all is said and done, they might be able to put major centers in all 3 to take advantage of different incentives (discounts/corporate tax breaks/"personal income tax diversion"/free land/etc).

Bezos just bought the Washington Post and the largest house in DC so that seems like a pretty significant vote for DC area.

[rebound]

Bezos just bought the Washington Post and the largest house in DC so that seems like a pretty significant vote for DC area.

Did not know that.  I change my vote.  DC area for the win.

[TulsaGoldenHurriCAN]

In all seriousness though. Columbus, Raleigh, and Indy seem like the only outliers in this group (and Toronto I suppose). The rest of basically the same as every biggest city/fastest growing city list you ever see. Wonder how legitimate of a shot they have.

In all seriousness though. Columbus, Raleigh, and Indy seem like the only outliers in this group (and Toronto I suppose). The rest of basically the same as every biggest city/fastest growing city list you ever see. Wonder how legitimate of a shot they have.

I bet they included Toronto just to give the US a scare. They may be able to offer "cheaper labor" (their claim is about 30% less than other places), but I'm guessing almost everything else would be worse long-term (Far smaller workforce of Canadians; Canada can't out Corporate-Welfare the US! And the costs of building or land there are bound to be more than the US). Think of all the VISAs and issues for such a huge company sending employees and shipping stuff to and from Canada that frequently (where shipping is often much more expensive). That would be a pretty sour move to make Americans far more likely to shop Walmart or others.

Plus Toronto is north of Buffalo which is known for terrible extremely-snowy winters where a 6 foot snow storm can unexpectedly shut down the entire area for many days. That would be asinine to move their HQ2 there. DC is in the same climate zone as Oklahoma. While they do get much more snow than Tulsa, the 15 inches DC gets is much lower than the average US city and nothing compared to the 4 feet toronto gets on average.

So in conclusion Toronto is most likely on the list for leverage with the US federal government and to see how far the Canadians will go with incentives so they can make their real targets pay up. I'm guessing the DC-area cities know they're at the top and so it will be interesting to see how it pans out.

[Conan71]

Yeah, I'm putting my money on the east coast city with best incentives. I'd double down on a DC-area place to win. They have the jobs and train rides to all the major metros in the NE. They are going to waste a lot of cities' time with this and I doubt they will really consider those outside the few they really want outside some deals they can't refuse. The $7B NJ break is pretty ludicrous so I wouldn't be surprised if they take that or use it to force a DC area city to match it.

The DC location is perfect for Amazon because they have 3 separate state/district governments vying to provide the best tax incentives and when all is said and done, they might be able to put major centers in all 3 to take advantage of different incentives (discounts/corporate tax breaks/"personal income tax diversion"/free land/etc).

Bezos just bought the Washington Post and the largest house in DC so that seems like a pretty significant vote for DC area.

Don't they also have three or four airports within an hour or 1.5 hour train ride from DC?  Seems to match up with all their stated transit needs/desires.

[Red Arrow]

Don't they also have three or four airports within an hour or 1.5 hour train ride from DC?  Seems to match up with all their stated transit needs/desires.

!.5 hrs is probably optimistic.  Baltimore to Dulles is only about 40 air miles away but still over 2 hrs by train. (Airport to airport)

https://goo.gl/maps/UKjtXY5novt
http://vfrmap.com/?type=vfrc&lat=38.947&lon=-77.460&zoom=10

Downtown Washington to Baltimore is a lot better (32 or 42 miles by car)
https://goo.gl/maps/FVg6fgskAcM2

Dulles Int'l is over an hour  (27 mi by car)
https://goo.gl/maps/D5gxPra7HYQ2

Reagan National is about 1/2 hr
https://goo.gl/maps/88EbaVbLqtC2

[erfalf]

Too good not to share. I didn't link to the Twitter feed (cause it was 20 posts). From the incomparable David Burge:

Handicapping the Amazon HQ2 Final 20 (1/21)

Atlanta
Pros: access to megachurches, pro & college sports, unlimited willingness to whore itself out
Cons: lack of building space due to 50 new taxpayer sports stadiums
Odds: 4-1

Austin
Pros: access to beards, Barvarian-Korean taco trucks, insipid singer-songwriters
Cons: Elderly Maoist city council will vote to nationalize Amazon for the proletariat
Odds: 4-1

Boston
Pros: major universities, Bellichek, the beautiful melliflouous Boston accent
Cons: major university grads can neither drive or lift more than 40 pounds
Odds: 10-1

Chicago
Pros: beautiful mid September to late mid September weather, deathbed-level desperation
Cons: Building costs 5x national average due to bribery and kevlar
Odds: 20-1

Columbus OH
Pros: The Excitement City of central Ohio; chance to meet Big Nut and dot the "i" at the Horseshoe
Cons: Will have to change name to Aazon
Odds: 40-1

Dallas
Pros: central location, palatial high school football stadiums, most Chili's and Applebee's per capita in the world
Cons: local oil family dynasties full of conniving murderers
Odds: 19-1

Denver
Pros: microbrews, weed, snow sports
Cons: drunk/high employees keep smashing into trees
Odds: 30-1

Indianapolis
Pros: chance to watch high school basketball and cars go round and round
Cons: Overshadowed by Indiana's glamour city, Fort Wayne
Odds: 50-1

Los Angeles
Pros: weather, chic Hollywood celebrity rapists, vibrant hordes of roving schizophrenic garbage pickers
Cons: eventual apocalyptic destruction by wrathful biblical god
Odds 100-1

Miami
Pros: U of Miami's prestigious School of Tanning, exciting nightlife with lummoxes from New Jersey in rental Lambos
Cons: 87% of Floridians die from humorous causes
Odds 100-1
Montgomery County MD
Pros: chance to share cul-de-sac with Assistant Undersecretary for Mohair Price Supports
Cons: If DC is Hollywood For Ugly People, this is Encino For Ugly People
Odds: 250-1
Newark
Pros: tax package includes 3 free murders per employee clause; Chris Christie now available for motivational speeches
Cons: for God's sake I only have 280 characters here
Odds: 200-1

Nashville
Pros: bargain basement Austin
Cons: lured by the bright lights of Music City, Amazon tragically dies face down in the back seat of a Cadillac, clutching a gun and bottle of whiskey in a rhinestone suit
Odds: 20-1

New York
Pros: Spider-Man the Musical, go-getting Stalinist mayor willing to kill any groundhogs or illegal cigarette vendors in Amazon's way
Cons: lack of affordable heating grates
Odds: 40-1

Northern Virginia
Pros: friendly neighborhoods of CIA spooks always willing to lend you cyanide or strangling wire
Cons: no market for Alexa as all homes are already bugged
Odds: 20-1

Philadelphia
Pros: birthplace of American government, American Bandstand, city of brotherly love
Cons: constant contusions from battery-laced snowballs thrown by angry drunks
Odds: 25-1

Pittsburgh
Pros: access to Carnegie-Mellon's secret Invincible Self-Aware Flying Deathbot laboratory
Cons: Amazon engineers begin moonlighting as flash dancers
Odds: 15-1

Raleigh
Pros: cheap smokes, moonshine, nearby universities with topnotch douchebag basketball programs
Cons: Folksy local sheriff won't fire nervous trigger-happy deputy
Odds: 20-1

Toronto
Pros: Tim Horton's, poutine, 10% longer football fields, constant entertainment from Prime Minister Zoolander
Cons: lack of professional hockey team
Odds: 12-1

Washington DC
Pros: vast hordes of slimy corrupt weasels willing to use the power of the state to crush any obstacles to Amazon's corporate mission
Cons: for a $500 campaign donation
Odds: 10-1

[SXSW]

Sounds like the city offered Amazon the city-owned property at 23rd & Jackson.  The Parking Lot District (7th/8th & Main/Boston) would've been a better location IMO.

It would involve some work assembling the land but I think the 41st & Union area would be perfect for an advanced manufacturing or engineering/R&D campus.  It has river frontage, highway access, a future direct rail line connection to downtown and could be linked to Midtown with a new bridge at 41st. 

[erfalf]

Sounds like the city offered Amazon the city-owned property at 23rd & Jackson.  The Parking Lot District (7th/8th & Main/Boston) would've been a better location IMO.

It would involve some work assembling the land but I think the 41st & Union area would be perfect for an advanced manufacturing or engineering/R&D campus.  It has river frontage, highway access, a future direct rail line connection to downtown and could be linked to Midtown with a new bridge at 41st.  

Dang, I know Tulsa likely only had about a 0.0000000000001% chance anyway, but we offered 23rd and Jackson. This is a company that currently has made it's home in the center of one of the most vibrant cities in America, and we offer them land with scenic views of some really sad looking low income apartments and a tank farm? Not to mention being smack dab between two oil refineries? For real?

[rebound]

Dang, I know Tulsa likely only had about a 0.0000000000001% chance anyway, but we offered 23rd and Jackson. This is a company that currently has made it's home in the center of one of the most vibrant cities in America, and we offer them land with scenic views of some really sad looking low income apartments and a tank farm? Not to mention being smack dab between two oil refineries? For real?

Exactly what I thought when I read that.

[Townsend]

Dang, I know Tulsa likely only had about a 0.0000000000001% chance anyway, but we offered 23rd and Jackson. This is a company that currently has made it's home in the center of one of the most vibrant cities in America, and we offer them land with scenic views of some really sad looking low income apartments and a tank farm? Not to mention being smack dab between two oil refineries? For real?

When you're desperate and surrounded by a state like Oklahoma and all you have to offer is land with scenic views of some really sad looking low income apartments and a tank farm smack dab between two oil refineries...You offer land with scenic views of some really sad looking low income apartments and a tank farm smack dab between two oil refineries.

Then you pocket the attempt, run for Senate or Governor stating "I tried to get Amazon to Oklahoma!"

[cannon_fodder]

So the "Finalist" list is basically every city or region that fit the original criteria? How dramatic...

[rebound]

So the "Finalist" list is basically every city or region that fit the original criteria? How dramatic...

Except for the international airport part.  Austin is may go direct to Mexico and points South, but that's about it.  I'm assuming by "International" they mean mainly EMEA (because they can cover APAC out of Seattle), and that points towards one of the major East Coast hubs.

[heironymouspasparagus]

Too good not to share. I didn't link to the Twitter feed (cause it was 20 posts). From the incomparable David Burge:


Washington DC
Pros: vast hordes of slimy corrupt weasels willing to use the power of the state to crush any obstacles to Amazon's corporate mission
Cons: for a $500 campaign donation
Odds: 10-1

That is great!!  Thanks for sharing it.


As for the last one, well as soon as Trump and his Swamp Dwellers are gone, it will clean up dramatically again and get back to previous levels.

Odds should improve at that point....