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Jonathan O Connell
Reporter covering economic development with a focus on commercial real estate and Trump organization
Crystal City, in northern Virginia, still has a preference for winning thousands of jobs at Amazon as part of its planned expansion, but people close to the process said they expected the 50 000 project jobs are spread between at least two cities, which represents a sudden last-minute change. to a research that lasted more than a year.
The possibility of splitting the project was discussed with officials in Virginia, according to three people familiar with the negotiations. Virginia officials are ready to make an announcement soon, once Amazon makes its final decision, according to relatives of the negotiations.
A person close to the process said that Amazon had decided the split, and another said that she was "very at the table" as recently as last week. A third person, close to the company, said that Amazon was discussing a split for months, but was not sure whether a final decision had been made.
Amazon declined to comment, except to reaffirm the company's commitment to make a decision this year. Arlington County and Governor Ralph Northam's office (D) also declined to comment.
(The founder of Amazon, Jeffrey P. Bezos, owns the Washington Post.)
It is not known how many other cities, if any, remain in the running. The New York Times announced Monday that half of the project was to be held in Long Island City, Queens. The offices of New York Governor Andrew M. Cuomo (D) and New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio (D) did not respond to requests for comment.
Crystal City Metro Station. (Astrid Riecken for the Washington Post)
While most of the country was focused on the mid-term elections, officials from five other finalist countries, speaking on condition of anonymity because they had signed an agreement to confidentiality with Amazon, stated that they had not been informed of their removal. Nothing indicated that the Montgomery District or County, nor that Virginia sites other than Crystal City and Potomac Yard, in the city of Alexandria, were still under study.
In Dallas, the parent company of the Dallas Morning News submitted this week a regulatory file in which it agreed to sell the old newspaper headquarters in downtown, under an agreement providing for additional compensation if the buyer developer "concluded an Amazon agreement later".
A spokesman for the Dallas Regional Chamber of Commerce, who manages the bid for the city, declined to comment.
Amazon's apparent decision to split the project rather than open a second head office on par with its Seattle campus, which was first reported by the Wall Street Journal, angered some who said that Amazon had reduced competition between cities to change the rules along the way. Some said it was unfair, the company seemed to consider only sites located in richer communities.
[With Amazon decision looming, improvements in higher ed, housing gain steam]
Amazon launched the project in the fall of 2017 by naming it HQ2 and publishing the search criteria of a "second head office" with nearly 50,000 jobs.
"Because of the company's successful growth, it now needs a second head office in North America," reads the RFP.
Bezos personally reiterated the scope of the project in a press release: "We expect QG2 to live up to our Seattle headquarters," he said.
Richard Florida, author and researcher in urban studies, described the process as "simulation", forcing cities and states to "spit up bonuses".
Greg Leroy of the Washington-based Good Jobs First advocacy group said the jurisdictions offering fixed-cost subsidies to Amazon – such as promises to expand roads or transit – could face the same amount for fewer jobs.
"I think it would be very unusual not to promise special offers," Leroy said.
[Where Bezos’s jet flies most — and what it might say about Amazon’s HQ2 winner]
Others said the idea of a split made sense for Amazon because of the difficulty of finding 50,000 skilled workers – including many computer engineers – in a single region. Concerns about the pressure Amazon's growth could have on housing, transportation networks and schools could also be eased.
"By choosing two cities, Amazon will not increase the cost of labor as much as it could by concentrating its demand in a single metropolitan area," said Heidi Learner, Chief Economist at Savills Consulting. Studley.
"Maybe half is good," said Mark J. Rozell, Dean of the Schar School of Policy and Government of George Mason University. "Many people were worried about putting too much pressure on resources, capacity, schools and local housing costs."
In Virginia and New York, the public largely ignores what has been proposed to the company, as neither of the two states has announced its offer. New York officials have previously said they had offered nothing to Amazon, other than what was available to other companies. Last week, he announced $ 180 million worth of Long Island City infrastructure improvements – which would support Amazon's campus if it moved there.
[How can the D.C. region absorb an Amazon headquarters if it can’t cope now with gridlock and housing costs?]
After the Washington Post announced on Saturday that Amazon was about to sign a deal with Crystal City, Del. Lee J. Carter (D-Manassas) posted a question on Twitter: "We can not wait to find out how much we spend for public money. And if you think that NoVA is expensive now, wait until we get ready for HQ2!
After the story published, Amazon's director of economic development, Mike Grella, tweeted that Virginia officials treated their non-disclosure agreements "as a used napkin", which appeared to have had a chilling effect on the willingness of public servants to discuss their plans for social adjustment.
Authorities in Virginia are still waiting for Amazon to make a decision this month, if not in the next few days. Once that is done, it will let the leaders of the losing jurisdictions evaluate all the time and money invested in the search for 50,000 jobs, especially if they do not end up in the same place.
"I think we've known for a while that it's something that they envisioned," said a finalist court official about the split. "I would not say we feel aggrieved. On the one hand, we received millions of dollars in free advertising. "
Meanwhile, potential winners were getting ready to make the most of the surprising turn of events.
"I'm sure there would be some disappointment," said Stephen Fuller, regional economist at George Mason University, if a jurisdiction was to share the project. "Everyone leaves for the home run here, and maybe it's just a double, it would still be very meaningful.Whoever else creates 25,000 jobs?
Gregory Schneider and Laura Vozzella contributed to this report.
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