Photo courtesy of Industry City
After Amazon announced last week plans to build a second corporate headquarters in North America, the competition among cities hoping to be chosen remains fierce. The company’s proposed headquarters, called HQ2, would bring $5 billion in initial city investment and 50,000 new jobs, making it very appealing for most cities. According to Crain’s, a group of landlords in Brooklyn is working together to pitch Amazon the borough’s many office properties, including space in Industry City, a massive 6.5 million square-foot complex in Sunset Park. Proposals are due by Oct. 19 and Amazon is expected to make a decision by next year.
In Amazon’s request for proposals, they listed certain criteria that must be met for a city to be considered. This includes having a population of at least 1 million people, proximity to airports, a talented workforce and tax incentives. The competition is tight, as 55 U.S. cities fit the criteria, according to CityLab. Amazon’s current headquarters in Seattle employs 40,000 people and has given back $38 billion in investment to the local economy.
New York City real estate heads like Jamestown, Rudin Management, Forest City and Rubenstein Partners have decided to work together in their pitch for HQ2, instead of competing against one another. According to the CEO of Industry City, Andrew Kimball, the borough of Brooklyn, especially the spacious campus of Sunset Park would be a perfect fit for Amazon’s second corporate headquarters. “Brooklyn’s innovation coast from Williamsburg to Sunset Park has numerous opportunities for a campus-like environment with an ecosystem of academic institutions, a skilled labor force, bedroom communities and culture.”
Public officials are also getting in on the action. Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams and Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce President Andrew Hoan wrote a letter to Amazon, pitching their “Brooklyn Prime” campaign. Adams and Hoan cited Brooklyn’s diverse population and its college-educated residents as benefits for the headquarters to be located in the borough.
In the letter, the Brooklyn officials wrote: “Our quality of life is second-to-none, with world-class arts and culture, five-star foodie experiences, healthy workplace initiatives, and incredible transit access to all of the natural beauty our region has to offer. Most important, we have the human capital any top-tier global business is looking for; with 90 spoken languages, Brooklyn is the living embodiment of the United Nations.”
[Via Crain’s]
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Tags : amazon, Industry City
Neighborhoods : Sunset Park
