HQ2 makes sure cities consider projects they've ignored for years – and that shows the power of Amazon



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  Amazon AP / Silvia Izquierdo

  • Amazon's search for its second quarters has a disproportionate effect on cities.
  • The possibility of landing at HQ2 prompted cities to embark on or start infrastructure projects
  • The fact that Amazon is the root shows the influence of the H & # x 39, business on American cities


To lure the Amazon, it seems that cities would do anything – even improve their infrastructure. approve projects to strengthen public transit, enrich education and make housing more accessible, all are more attractive to the technology giant.

Cities often make big promises in the hope of becoming a business. But experts say that with Amazon and its promise of 50,000 jobs and $ 5 of local investment, it's different.


"I'm not sure we've ever seen it on the same scale as the Amazon HQ2 research," Sean Slone He explained to USA Today

that Amazon had specifically identified its needs for its potential site HQ2, and two of the most important are education and transit. It is in these regions that cities seem to be focusing.

In May, Atlanta, a competitor of the HQ2, consolidated its public transit network in the transit authority of the Atlanta area. Earlier this year, Georgia announced that it planned to spend $ 100 million and build a rapid transit bus corridor along a busy street in Atlanta. The city has included the project in its launch at Amazon, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

In Washington, DC, widely regarded as a favorite for HQ2, earlier this year, the three zone governments agreed to infuse Washington Metropolitan's sick Area Transportation Authority. DC proper, Virginia and Maryland have each agreed to provide $ 500 million a year to fund the turnaround of the metro rapid transit system, which runs through every state, reported the Washington Post


. According to the Wall Street Journal, a regional transportation system connecting the city and its regional suburbs after HQ2's bid has failed due to lack of transportation.

Educating the future workforce – Amazon or any other large company

  hq2 DC Government Other states are looking at their workforce, and realize that they must change the way they approach education to attract big fish like Amazon.

Kansas City, which has not been selected, is making efforts to revise its computer courses and train new teachers.

"You can draw a dividing line between Amazon and the legislation that just passed," Ryan Weber, head of the KC Tech Council, a local group advocating for technical education, told USA Today. "I think this has been a priority because of the response from the Amazon."

Cities like Cincinnati and Sacramento, which also failed in HQ2 cities, are now putting their employment program on technological challenge.

Amazon is not the only company that cities are looking for, especially one that Amazon no longer considers. But the HQ2 contest is perceived as a wake-up call for cities across the country because they see why their offers have failed and see the changes they must make to be competitive, according to the Wall Street Journal.

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