Amazon: The Thread | 5,000 Jobs | 1M SQFT in Nashville Yards

[FromParkAveToTN]

I was in Europe a couple of weeks ago on business and met two gentlemen from Seattle and they both said they think Amazon will pick Nashville as the location for HQ2. They didn't elaborate on why they thought so, but I found it interesting they made that statement. 

[Dale]

6 minutes ago, FromParkAveToTN said:

I was in Europe a couple of weeks ago on business and met two gentlemen from Seattle and they both said they think Amazon will pick Nashville as the location for HQ2. They didn't elaborate on why they thought so, but I found it interesting they made that statement. 

Would not be the least bit surprised.

[PaulChinetti]

I mean at this point they could feasible come in. Lobby for a transit plan of their making. Mobilize all their workers to vote and most likely have enough votes. 

[Tim29tn]

11 hours ago, Dale said:

Would not be the least bit surprised.

Considering Tennessee has the best economy in the United States right now, nobody should be surprised. This is a very business friendly state and is getting more friendly each passing year. 

Edited July 8, 2018 by Tim29tn

[BnaBreaker]

1 hour ago, Tim29tn said:

Considering Tennessee has the best economy in the United States right now, nobody should be surprised. This is a very business friendly state and is getting more friendly each passing year. 

By what metric does it have the "best economy?"  Not disagreeing... just curious.

[Hey_Hey]

The Nashville MSA has the lowest unemployment rate in the country. While that doesn't necessarily equate to it being the best economy in the country, it is a factor that makes it one of the best economies in the country. 

[Dale]

I just got back from Vancouver. Trust me, Nashville is easy livin'. Alliance Bernstein certainly agrees.

[Pyramid Scheme]

2 hours ago, Dale said:

I just got back from Vancouver. Trust me, Nashville is easy livin'. Alliance Bernstein certainly agrees.

Are things not looking up in Vancouver?

[e-dub]

I dunno, I just don't see it happening for Nashville . That said, I don't want it to happen here, but objectively... I just don't think we're the best fit.

[SoundScan]

3 hours ago, Dale said:

I just got back from Vancouver. Trust me, Nashville is easy livin'. Alliance Bernstein certainly agrees.

Real estate prices? Because the rest of Vancouver is about 50 years ahead of Nashville, and is my favorite all-around city in North America. Not sure what a financial services company moving their back-end operations to Nashville from NYC has to do with a city in southwest Canada.

[Dale]

1 hour ago, SoundScan said:

Real estate prices? Because the rest of Vancouver is about 50 years ahead of Nashville, and is my favorite all-around city in North America. Not sure what a financial services company moving their back-end operations to Nashville from NYC has to do with a city in southwest Canada.

My observations are an antidote to the grass-is-greener syndrome. Vancouver has a marvelous setting AND an extensive rail network. BUT the costs associated with managing a home gobble up 88% of income. Projected: by 2030, mortgage alone will be 108% of income. While there, I spoke with people who work downtown, but can't afford to live closer than a 90 minute to two-hour commute from downtown. And for all the transit options in the central area, Vancouver only has one commuter rail leg. Compare to Music City Express.

Does that sound like a shining city on a hill now ?

[SoundScan]

Quote

Does that sound like a shining city on a hill now ?

Yes. I've spent a cumulative three months in Vancouver over the last 15 years. It's consistently voted as one of the most livable cities in the world by the EIU, and anyone that's spent significant time there can see why. That the most popular cities of the world have expensive real estate should come as no surprise. There is no escaping supply and demand. And in fact, the average commute time in Vancouver is lower than in Nashville. Meanwhile, there is no shortage of anecdotes concerning housing affordability and its effect on commutes in Nashville--ask those who slog in on I-24 everyday.

Sorry, I don't understand the desire to bash on great cities just to make another feel superior. Unlike many large cities that struggle with growth, Vancouver is an example that Nashville should be looking toward. 

[Dale]

3 hours ago, SoundScan said:

Yes. I've spent a cumulative three months in Vancouver over the last 15 years. It's consistently voted as one of the most livable cities in the world by the EIU, and anyone that's spent significant time there can see why. That the most popular cities of the world have expensive real estate should come as no surprise. There is no escaping supply and demand. And in fact, the average commute time in Vancouver is lower than in Nashville. Meanwhile, there is no shortage of anecdotes concerning housing affordability and its effect on commutes in Nashville--ask those who slog in on I-24 everyday.

Sorry, I don't understand the desire to bash on great cities just to make another feel superior. Unlike many large cities that struggle with growth, Vancouver is an example that Nashville should be looking toward. 

It's "The World's Most Livable City" ... for the 1%. The rest are sleeping on the sidewalks for the privilege of living in a livable city. Meanwhile, commute times compared ....

https://vancouversun.com/news/local-news/getting-around-metro-vancouver-three-key-commutes-mapped-out

http://nestinginnashville.com/typical-nashville-commute-times-by-neighborhood-heat-map/

Finally, you've sorely misconstrued my intent here, which is to show, by way of contrast, that Nashvillians may not realize how good they've go it.

[Dale]

Potentially lost in the kerfuffle: you can virtually eliminate your commute by sleeping on sidewalks downtown.

[Nathan_in_DC]

11 hours ago, Dale said:

Potentially lost in the kerfuffle: you can virtually eliminate your commute by sleeping on sidewalks downtown.

So THAT'S why that park is always so crowded. It's just hipster bartenders and baristas wanting an easier commute!

[Tennessine]

Going back to @Tim29tn's claim, I am not positive we have one of the best economies in the country.

The good: We rank high in infrastructure, fiscal solvency, and our central location allows anyone to access more than 50% of the population within a 600-mile radius. The population is growing faster than the national average, and we ranked at #11 in numeric population increase since 2010 with Nashville and Knoxville leading the state in growth. The state has also been able to maintain an unemployment rate below the nation's average for a few years running, which was unthinkable to anyone here back in the early 2010s.

 

The bad: Wage growth is stagnant, and we're still in the bottom ten U.S. states for median family income. Although we're adding jobs, we are mostly adding low-wage jobs. See this Business Insider list, which actually ranked our economy at #42:

http://www.businessinsider.com/state-economy-ranking-q1-2018-2#3-massachusetts-49

Also, crime is a statewide issue; Memphis is the third-most dangerous cityin the country, and even Knoxville and Chattanooga are disproportionately unsafe. 

 

 

I'm not trying to pick apart your post, @Tim29tn, but I would amend the statement to say Nashville has one of the best metropolitan-area economies in the country. The rest of Tennessee has a lot of catching up to do. Thankfully, signs are promising, especially in once-beleagured cities like Chattanooga and Knoxville, which are finally sustaining healthy population growth and funding urban renewal.

 

I think Nashville will be among their top 5 choices, but my prediction for HQ2 is Atlanta. Like Amazon, Atlanta is big, sprawly and can't seem to stop growing. 

[Guest]

Unfortunately the methodology of your Business Insider neglects to factor Cost Of Living rankings....7th lowest in nation. This is notable because 2 of their 6 measures - Q3 2017 GDP per capita and December 2017 average weekly wage - are only relevant within the COL context.

 

https://www.missourieconomy.org/indicators/cost_of_living/

 

[FromParkAveToTN]

16 hours ago, nativetenn said:

Going back to @Tim29tn's claim, I am not positive we have one of the best economies in the country.

The good: We rank high in infrastructure, fiscal solvency, and our central location allows anyone to access more than 50% of the population within a 600-mile radius. The population is growing faster than the national average, and we ranked at #11 in numeric population increase since 2010 with Nashville and Knoxville leading the state in growth. The state has also been able to maintain an unemployment rate below the nation's average for a few years running, which was unthinkable to anyone here back in the early 2010s.

 

The bad: Wage growth is stagnant, and we're still in the bottom ten U.S. states for median family income. Although we're adding jobs, we are mostly adding low-wage jobs. See this Business Insider list, which actually ranked our economy at #42:

http://www.businessinsider.com/state-economy-ranking-q1-2018-2#3-massachusetts-49

Also, crime is a statewide issue; Memphis is the third-most dangerous cityin the country, and even Knoxville and Chattanooga are disproportionately unsafe. 

 

 

I'm not trying to pick apart your post, @Tim29tn, but I would amend the statement to say Nashville has one of the best metropolitan-area economies in the country. The rest of Tennessee has a lot of catching up to do. Thankfully, signs are promising, especially in once-beleagured cities like Chattanooga and Knoxville, which are finally sustaining healthy population growth and funding urban renewal.

 

I think Nashville will be among their top 5 choices, but my prediction for HQ2 is Atlanta. Like Amazon, Atlanta is big, sprawly and can't seem to stop growing. 

I'm considering moving to Atlanta myself.  As much as I love Nashville the one thing still very obvious when you go downtown,  Green Hills, etc is Nashville's lack of diversity. The city is growing by leaps and bounds,  but unfortunately,  it's doesn't feel inclusive in my honest opinion. 

[Tennessine]

12 hours ago, nashville_bound said:

Unfortunately the methodology of your Business Insider neglects to factor Cost Of Living rankings....7th lowest in nation. This is notable because 2 of their 6 measures - Q3 2017 GDP per capita and December 2017 average weekly wage - are only relevant within the COL context.

 

https://www.missourieconomy.org/indicators/cost_of_living/

 

I am in accordance with the facts you have shown and neglected to mention median household income adjusted for cost of living.

 

However, we still scrape the bottom in metrics such as upward mobility, quality of life, life expectancy, and poverty. We are in the bottom ten in all of these categories and have showed little improvement. My point is that our economy is doing wonders for creating a business-friendly environnent, but hasn't been effective in mitigating the severity of poverty. 

I guess this is, after all, a classic trickle-down debate.

On another note, I admit I am guilty of not wanting Amazon in Nashville for no legitimate reason.

[e-dub]

3 hours ago, FromParkAveToTN said:

I'm considering moving to Atlanta myself.  As much as I love Nashville the one thing still very obvious when you go downtown,  Green Hills, etc is Nashville's lack of diversity. The city is growing by leaps and bounds,  but unfortunately,  it's doesn't feel inclusive in my honest opinion. 

I can't say I blame you on this one, tbh.

[japan]

3 hours ago, e-dub said:

I can't say I blame you on this one, tbh.

I'm just curious, but what would make Nashville more inclusive?  Affordable housing? 

[Alley]

I don't have enough diversity in my wallet to live in Green Hills or DT.  We need to fix that 'cause Green Hills is nice and I wouldn't mind living there.

And if Amazon comes here I may have to move clear out to Smith County or something.

Edited July 10, 2018 by Alley

[Jamie Hall]

7 hours ago, FromParkAveToTN said:

the one thing still obvious when you go downtown,  Green Hills, etc is Nashville's lack of diversity. 

I wouldn't expect to find much diversity downtown or in Green Hills -- just as every city is going to have areas that lack diversity, including Atlanta. I live in south Nashville near the fairgrounds and see diversity daily, and I embrace it. Anyone who can't find diversity in Nashville isn't trying very hard to find it.

Edited July 10, 2018 by Jamie Hall

[jmtunafish]

1 hour ago, Jamie Hall said:

I wouldn't expect to find much diversity downtown or in Green Hills -- just as every city is going to have areas that lack diversity, including Atlanta. I live in south Nashville near the fairgrounds and see diversity daily, and I embrace it. Anyone who can't find diversity in Nashville isn't trying very hard to find it.

Exactly.

Besides, statistically, Nashville and Atlanta are very similar when it comes to diversity, or at least that's what the US Census says.  Nashville and Fulton County both have 12.5% of their populations born outside the US (it's 7.0% for the city of Atlanta).  For Nashville, 16.9% of its residents speak a language other than English at home, and for Fulton County it's 16.3% (9.8% for just the city of Atlanta).  Fulton County has more Asians (7.2%) than Nashville (3.5%), but Nashville has more Hispanics (10.3% vs. 7.3%).

Unless, of course, FromParkAveToTN says "diversity" but really just means "African Americans" in which case yes, Atlanta is more "diverse."

[Tennessine]

Nashville boasts a rapidly expanding Hispanic community plus one of the largest Kurdish communities in the country. We also have a sizeable Indian and Laoatian presence in Williamson and Rutherford. Conversely, nearly 30% of Nashville metro residents identify as having "American" ancestry, one of the highest rates in the nation; this is most common west of Appalachia and across the Mid-South, signifying neglible international migration to our city over the course of the 19th and 20th centuries. But that is quickly changing- we are more diverse now than ever, and international migration to Nashville has been unprecedented. Nashville has a ways to go in terms of equalling the diversity of large U.S. cities, but I do believe we are getting there