Amazon HQ2

[southslider]

The schizophrenic bid tanked it.  Starched collars be damned.

[kermit]

Interesting story from the Detroit Free Press on Amazon providing an explanation for Detroit's near miss:

Quote

"My takeaway, yeah, regional transit played a role. Was it the defining role? No, I think talent was the defining role in us not making the list," 

https://www.freep.com/story/money/business/john-gallagher/2018/01/18/detroit-amazon-headquarters-finalists/1043624001/

 

Edited January 19, 2018 by kermit

[KJHburg]

at least Apple's search is not going to be this free for all and they already have a short list.  From Austin Business Journal:

""Apple Inc. wants to create a new corporate campus that will house thousands of employees, but it won't follow Amazon.com Inc.'s highly public HQ2 approach, according to media reports.  Reuters reports Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) won't hold a bidding process for its new campus. The company on Jan. 17 announced its campus plans as part of its efforts to contribute $350 billion to the U.S. economy over the next five years. The company said it will create 20,000 new jobs, spread out between the new campus and existing facilities.  “We’ve narrowed the list a lot,” Apple CEO Tim Cook said, Reuters reports. “We wanted to narrow it so we prevent this auction kind of process that we want to stay out of.”  According to ABC News, Apple does not plan to create the new campus in California or Texas. The company already has more than 6,000 employees in Austin, its largest office outside its headquarters of Cupertino, California.""

Hopefully Charlotte is one of the cities they will take a look at.  Their process is the more normal economic development process.   Maybe this thread can be change to the Apple Amazon thread. 

[Cadi40]

I’m sure somewhere in NC is on that short list, They have a decent presence in NC.

[QCxpat]

Heartily agree with @KJHburg regarding Apple and Charlotte.   

Curiously, Charlotte Center City Partners (CCCP) and the numerous civic, urban planning,  artistic , environmental and community organizations that contributed to the Charlotte Center City 2020 Vision Plan almost appear to have foreshadowed Amazon's decision about Charlotte.  Specifically, Chapter 3 of the Center City 2020 Vision Plan concerns the development of an "Applied Innovation Corridor" beginning in South End, extending through Uptown and "North End", and linking onward to the UNCC campus.  The 2020 Vision Plan recommended that Charlotte incentivize small start-ups rather than pursuing large mature tech corporations like Amazon.  The 2020 Vision Plan stated, in part: "In particular, Center City should be poised to accommodate the needs of fast-growing young companies in Charlotte, rather than focusing on attracting mature large corporations from elsewhere.  These small start-ups with growth potential are the seeds of a home-grown strategy key to innovative economies."  (Charlotte Center City 2020 Vision Plan, Chapter 3: Transformative Strategies, Applied Innovation Corridor Recommendations, p. 47)   

See link to the Center City 2020 Vision Plan (click open link in new tab):   https://www.dropbox.com/s/0bc9olj9x94nvkl/2020 Vision Plan.pdf?dl=0

 

Edited January 19, 2018 by QCxpat

[elrodvt]

Breakdown of cities by criteria in post. I thought it was a good read.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2018/01/19/the-big-losers-in-amazons-hq2-hunt

[Durhamite]

23 hours ago, elrodvt said:

Breakdown of cities by criteria in post. I thought it was a good read.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2018/01/19/the-big-losers-in-amazons-hq2-hunt

Realistically, NC cities will probably never win one of these type of bids.  I think it's better do what's always worked, build the business from the ground up much like Wachovia, BOA, Duke Energy,  RTP, SAS, etc.  Be better off pouring money into startups, etc instead of wasting too much energy into these things.  By all means put the hook in the water but don't sweat it which seems to be the mentality of Charlotte's effort.  

[southslider]

Tech talent topping all other criteria, the real finalists are: DC, Boston, and Austin.  Amazon did Charlotte a favor.  Imagine the heartbreak next round.

[urbanlover568]

3 hours ago, southslider said:

Tech talent topping all other criteria, the real finalists are: DC, Boston, and Austin.  Amazon did Charlotte a favor.  Imagine the heartbreak next round.

Those three probably wont be the picks. I think it will be either ATL, RDU, or YUL. 

[Scribe]

My prediction (just for fun):

• DC Metro will get Amazon HQ2

[elrodvt]

I'll pick Denver just to annoy everyone. ;-)

I think it'll be the MD / Montgomery County site. Picking without the incentives being public is a coin toss though.

Places which would shock me: LA, Dallas, Miami, Raleigh, Nashville, Columbus and Indianapolis.

Edited January 20, 2018 by elrodvt

[DEnd]

29 minutes ago, elrodvt said:

I'll pick Denver just to annoy everyone. ;-)

I think it'll be the MD / Montgomery County site. Picking without the incentives being public is a coin toss though.

Places which would shock me: LA, Dallas, Miami, Raleigh, Nashville, Columbus and Indianapolis.

I'm hoping for Philly, or Pittsburgh personally*.  But having basically three DC locations in the pick points to the strength advantage that region has.  20% of the short list are basically on the North East Corridor, so I think transportation choice is going to be a fairly strong factor.  

*Yes I'd love Amazon to pick Raleigh, as that would be best for Charlotte's Tech industry, Atlanta would be good too, as I think it might help spur development of the SEHSR as well,  but it would be absolutely huge for Philly's or Pittsburgh's image.  After watching them decline for so many years it'd be great to see either one get a big win like that.  

[videtur quam contuor]

3 hours ago, mpretori said:

Those three probably wont be the picks. I think it will be either ATL, RDU, or YUL. 

YUL is Montréal. YYZ is Toronto

[KJHburg]

I still bet Atlanta but now with 3 choice metro DC choices I believe it will be Northern Virginia 

[QCxpat]

On 1/18/2018 at 6:02 PM, lewy2000 said:

While I never felt like Charlotte had a legit shot, we certainly didn’t do ourselves any favors by focusing on our “edginess.”

Whoever came up with that game plan certainly doesn’t understand this city and the value it could bring to companies like Amazon. They probably dismissed our bid for being disingenuous.

Apparently we are the “stable genius” of HQ2 submissions.

 

The Charlotte UP  board has a deep and very impressive bench of gifted and talented members. 

The A Team:  @ricky_davis_fan_21 (Visionary, Dreamer, Artist) ,  @KJHburg (Historian, Archivist, Artist),  @kermit (Polymath and Ethicist),  @ah59396 (Philosopher and Folk Humorist),  @Cadi40  (Incurable Cockeyed Optimist), and  @CLTranspo (Environmentalist, Sustainability and Transit Expert).  And many, many others!  

With a little crowd-fund sourcing, it's possible our "A Team" could've made us real contenders.   Just interesting to contemplate, what if.

    

 

Edited January 21, 2018 by QCxpat

[mjcatl2]

Quote

Dale I’ve got a challenge for you.  Try to go a whole day without injecting your political opinion into a thread.  It’d be a miracle.

It's rare.

Regarding DC being on the list 3 times - it's because of the nessecity of MD, DC and VA to have had to submit separate bids.  This is a list of bids.  The reality is that all of these bids offer more than one location (at least they should).

[Dale]

25 minutes ago, mjcatl2 said:

It's rare.

Regarding DC being on the list 3 times - it's because of the nessecity of MD, DC and VA to have had to submit separate bids.  This is a list of bids.  The reality is that all of these bids offer more than one location (at least they should).

You people are so brave.

[SydneyCarton]

Honestly, subsidies aside, Boston fits the bill for tech companies way better than any city outside of the Bay Area.  It has two of the greatest universities in the world within its city limits.

Edited January 21, 2018 by SydneyCarton

[CLTranspo]

2 hours ago, QCxpat said:

The Charlotte UP  board has a deep and very impressive bench of gifted and talented members. 

The A Team:  @ricky_davis_fan_21 (Visionary, Dreamer, Artist) ,  @KJHburg (Historian, Archivist, Artist),  @kermit (Polymath and Ethicist),  @ah59396 (Philosopher and Folk Humorist),  @Cadi40  (Incurable Cockeyed Optimist), and  @CLTranspo (Environmentalist, Sustainability and Transit Expert).  And many, many others!  

With a little crowd-fund sourcing, it's possible our "A Team" could've made us real contenders.   Just interesting to contemplate, what if.

    

 

Wow I am honored since I mostly just lurk as of late.   

I agree that there are a lot of knowledgeable fans of Charlotte out there who probably could've sold the city more effectively and truthfully!

[mjcatl2]

Quote

You people are so brave.

Huh?

[KJHburg]

Amazon real estate execs list real estate priorities in HQ2 in hearing this I ask why Nashville and Raleigh?  Is it because they have plans for transit?  I still think they are going to a metro area as large or larger than Seattle. https://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/news/2018/01/19/amazons-real-estate-chief-just-outlined-the.html?ana=e_atl_bn_newsalert&u=oAaDx%2B74FoP4qOJ%2By4AU6dhJPpc&t=1516579823&j=79551901

[Richhamleigh, DC]

9 hours ago, SydneyCarton said:

Honestly, subsidies aside, Boston fits the bill for tech companies way better than any city outside of the Bay Area.  It has two of the greatest universities in the world within its city limits.

Northeastern university and UMASS Boston?!

[cjd5050]

13 hours ago, KJHburg said:

Amazon real estate execs list real estate priorities in HQ2 in hearing this I ask why Nashville and Raleigh?  Is it because they have plans for transit?  I still think they are going to a metro area as large or larger than Seattle. https://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/news/2018/01/19/amazons-real-estate-chief-just-outlined-the.html?ana=e_atl_bn_newsalert&u=oAaDx%2B74FoP4qOJ%2By4AU6dhJPpc&t=1516579823&j=79551901

How much of the list is based on a quota?  As in needing to have states selected just so those states participate in the bidding process, in turn, helping them leverage who they actually want.  

[KJHburg]

^^^ I believe their list is much shorter than this for sure.  It has to be.  Most companies start out with 20-25 and whittle  it down to 2-3.  

[atlrvr]

That's an excellent point....only 2 states had more than 2 cities (Texas and Pennsylvania), so this is most likely to strategically get as many states involved as possible.

Some of the more questionable cities (Nashville, Indianapolis, Raleigh, and Columbus) are all in states known for large incentive packages, so probably kept in as stalking horse bids.

New prediction, is that they locate in D.C. but with 2 campuses....1 in NoVa and 1 in MD.