For some time now, Amazon has been searching for its next location where it will open another major headquarters location. The company has been working through 238 applications in the US, Canada and Mexico, and has now narrowed the list to final 20 cities that are under consideration.
Amazon, the Seattle-based company, is looking at some strong locations for its “HQ2,” like New York City, Austin and Boston. These specific locations already have a strong tech sector, so it’s not surprising to see them make it through the cut. There are a few interesting pics, including Toronto, Canada, Columbus, OH and Raleigh, NC.
Even though the other 218 cities weren’t chosen for consideration, Amazon said to not feel down. “Getting from 238 to 20 was very tough — all the proposals showed tremendous enthusiasm and creativity,” said Amazon’s Holly Sullivan. “Through this process we learned about many new communities across North America that we will consider as locations for future infrastructure investment and job creation.”
Locations like Newark and Chicago are more appealing to Amazon Becca use of big tax credits that the company could receive. These moves have been criticized by local groups who say that Amazon often ends up defeating local businesses and troubling low-income residents.
They company narrowed down the cities based on “the criteria outlined in the RFP (request for proposal,” but did not provide any additional details. Amazon will now ask the remaining 20 cities to elaborate more on their proposals, answer questions from the company and how those cities will be able to fulfill their hiring needs. When a city is chosen, the reward will be a $5 billion investment into HQ2 and as many as 50,000 high-paying jobs, said Amazon.
Here’s the list of cities that are in the final cut:
Atlanta, GA; Austin, TX; Boston, MA; Chicago, IL; Columbus, OH; Dallas, TX; Denver, CO; Indianapolis, IN; Los Angeles, CA; Miami, FL; Montgomery County, MD; Nashville, TN; Newark, NJ; New York City, NY; Northern Virginia, VA; Philadelphia, PA; Pittsburgh, PA; Raleigh, NC; Toronto ON; and Washington D.C.
