Amazon HQ2: what it means for the people of Queens

Syed Rahman is caught in the middle. The second year student at Vanderbilt University in Long Island City, Queens, has long dreamed of a job in the tech industry, but social housing in his neighborhood has convinced him that the only way to to do it is to find a job in the so-called "Silicon Alleys" of Manhattan.

That was until Amazon announced its intention to build one of its HQ2 business campuses in her hometown, just five blocks from the Queensbridge Houses, near the place where he grew up. According to city agreements, the office, located along the Anable Basin, could reach 8 million square feet in the most ambitious scenarios, about the capacity of four buildings of the Empire State. The move is expected to create 40,000 jobs with an average salary of $ 150,000 a year, which will put young job seekers like Rahman in a desirable position.

But although he is seduced by the possibilities, Rahman feels concerned by his less privileged neighbors. Since 2010, a construction boom has changed the face of Long Island City (LIC). Western Queens, once home to artists' communities and an abandoned factory cemetery, now has its own silhouette, punctuated by tall buildings and commercial amenities that have attracted residents of Manhattan and Brooklyn. Stores for parents and teenagers have slowly disappeared and the cost of living is steadily increasing. Rahman fears that the problem will continue to worsen as the sudden influx of high-paying Amazon employees moves into a neighborhood housing the largest social housing complex in North America.

Image: Amazon

"Between Queensbridge and LIC, there is a history of two cities," says Rahman about the contrast between housing projects and newly constructed buildings with "an average rent of $ 3,500 for a two-bedroom apartment" at a distance walking. Despite high rents, those with the highest incomes began to move to Long Island City due to their larger living spaces compared to similarly priced apartments in adjacent boroughs. And then, there is transportation: the proximity of LaGuardia Airport, access to four subway stations and a ferry stop that connects LIC to Manhattan and Brooklyn not only attract locals. West Queens, but also the reason why Amazon chose to build its headquarters. The.

The population of Long Island City is growing rapidly, paving the way for even more expensive housing costs. According to the American Community Survey, LIC recorded population growth of about 11% between 2010 and 2016, more than double the rate recorded in New York. (The shoreline along Vernon Boulevard alone has almost doubled from about 3,700 to 6,700.) Last year's study found that LIC exceeded the rest of the United States in terms of new residential developments, and a local development agency The region is growing from 80,000 to more than 100,000 over the next three years.

Meanwhile, the income gap continues to widen: the median household income at Queensbridge Houses in the north of the country is $ 15,000, compared to $ 133,000 in high-rise buildings south of Hunters Point. Both locations are within 5 blocks of Amazon's HQ2.

These alarming numbers are among the reasons why many have protested Amazon's decision, noting that a surge in the number of high-income residents will dramatically accelerate the negative impact on families in the region. middle-class and low-income, long-time occupiers of the region. The agreement, which, according to community leaders and local politicians, was concluded in secret and without their involvement, surprised officials such as Assemblyman Ron Kim (D-Queens). "It was completely unexpected," he says, adding that "corporate welfare" does not really generate wealth for working-class and middle-class families. Kim, who represents Flushing, pointed to the emails he received from Seattle on the day of the announcement of the deal. "The gap between the rich and the poor grew only after Amazon was installed in a part of Seattle, only inflating housing prices and harming middle-class families. The same thing will happen here.

Some local businesses are excited about Amazon's move as they expect sales to increase. The conservators intend to recruit more staff and extend working hours, as they expect Amazon workers to experience a daytime shock that will occupy an office building in Court Square during campus construction. The influx of people has already proven successful for business over the years, says Bobby Patel, who runs a grocery store two blocks away from QG2.

"When we first opened in 2001, we had a lot of customers in the morning and I closed in the middle of the afternoon," he says. After opening a high school across the street in 2003, Patel was able to run the store until early in the evening and even later, then that more and more people have moved to the neighborhood. "Nowadays, this area is safe at night and I can open late so more people can come to my store." Patel welcomes the potential of new customers and is not discouraged by the development and longevity. expansion of its own convenience store, Amazon, the cashier less Amazon Go.

Lena Afridi, director of economic development policy for the Housing and Neighborhood Development Association, is less certain of the positive impact of this initiative on Long Island City. Rather than creating affordable housing and solving the city's dilapidated infrastructure, she estimates that Governor Andrew Cuomo (D-NY) and New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio have chosen to invest in something that will instead increase the prices of local residents. "Along line 7, there are already so many people. The number of people in Queens is [unprecedented]and the infrastructure installed there has not been maintained, "says Afridi.

At a press conference held last week in front of Amazon HQ 2, the mayor of Blasio said he was still committed to providing affordable housing to low-income New Yorkers. But instead of repairing the Queensbridge Houses, which reported a heating failure the day after the Amazon's announcement, Blasio announced this week its plans to renovate 62,000 apartments in the Bronx and Brooklyn. . For anti-Amazon protesters like Afridi, it is only the first step to move local families in need.

"People in Queens and New York in general should not have to trade jobs and homes for basic infrastructure such as good public transportation and good schools," she says. "Immigrants, people of color, workers who have made Queens what it is should not have to negotiate their quality of life."

The plan also gives the impression of betraying the progressive values ​​defended by Blasio and Cuomo, explains Renata Pumarol, deputy director of New York Communities for Change, a coalition of working class families committed to social justice. "People are outraged," she says. Pumarol rejects the idea that Amazon will stimulate job creation in the neighborhoods that need it most, as many QG2 jobs will be white-collar jobs and few go to people of color. "Warehouse jobs can be mainly about people of color, low income, but it is about jobs where workers work in terrible conditions. We have heard of people who have to pee in a cup. "

Photo of Natt Garun / The Verge

Amazon promises to invest in the community and develop a local workforce beyond blue collar jobs. In addition to building a waterfront esplanade adjacent to several acres of public open spaces, he plans to hold biannual job fairs and resumes workshops at Queensbridge Houses from 2020. Amazon should also open a vocational training center run by partners such as Pursuit, a non-profit organization that provides software engineering courses to disadvantaged New Yorkers. Jukay Hsu, co-founder and CEO of Pursuit, has started working with local residents over the past seven years. The average annual income of graduates has risen from 18,000 USD to 85,000 USD after 10 months of intensive training.

According to Hsu, the opportunity to work with Amazon allows his organization to create meaningful jobs for New York's most vulnerable communities. "Our role is to make sure these opportunities are truly inclusive."

Pursuit is currently working with companies like Blue Apron to set up pilot training programs for factory workers in the engineering trades. For Queens, Hsu believes that this could be an opportunity to create a model for the rest of the technology industry by creating a workforce integrating gender, socio-economic background, race and community. religious beliefs. The current class of 144 Pursuit is divided in 50% between men and women, 50% immigrants, 60% blacks or Hispanics, and the majority of them benefit from public assistance. He hopes to develop a scalable program for Amazon.

"This is an opportunity to strengthen the community, not only to achieve significant and sustainable salaries, but also to ensure that local start-ups that play a role can ensure that communities benefit. , "Says Hsu.

Nevertheless, a pilot program may not be an immediate enough solution for residents at risk. Pursuit's full-time courses require more than 80 hours of work per week in class and per week over a 10-month period. And after getting a job, graduates should pay 12% of their new annual income over $ 60,000 to Pursuit for three years. (It is unclear if Amazon is considering setting up a similar payroll facility in its vocational training center.) This is a noble effort, but it may take too long for vulnerable communities to participate. before they leave the neighborhood.

Although Amazon is probably speeding up gentrification at Long Island City, Alain Bertaud, a professor and senior researcher at the NYU Marron Urban Management Institute, said that this decision would force city officials to New York to face the mediocrity of its infrastructures and to motivate its reforms. the transit system.

"People in very useful jobs, such as school teachers and firefighters, will find it increasingly difficult to find housing in New York. They will have longer journeys from New Jersey or surrounding areas, "he says. The edge. He adds that "these problems are not a reason to reject Amazon".

"We should address these issues in parallel," Bertaud insists. "Amazon is coming, so we need reform."

In the end, it is up to the community members and politicians responsible for the agreement to hold Amazon accountable for what it has promised the city. Urban Studies theorist Richard Florida says the main problem will not be the amount of the subsidy, but the political pressure on Amazon over the next few years. "I hope that through pressure and community activism, we can make an example of how this should be done," said Florida. The edge. "But the only solution is that the community, local council members, local activists and the mayor's office all keep up the pressure."

As the fight continues in Long Island City, computer science student Rahman tries to keep hope alive. He sees the extremely mixed responses as Queens' representative and his diversity of people, thoughts and opinions. "Let's hope this throws economic activity in the Queens areas that are not currently receiving much attention," he says. He notes that interest in the borough may go a little further than the burgeoning waterfront, thus helping to fairly distribute the wealth in a place where Amazon workers in white collar and the less fortunate will soon fall on their shoulders.