4 ms·

My money is on one of Nashville, Indianapolis or Columbus with Pittsburgh as a dark horse. Amazon is going to be looking to build a major campus (say 5-10 big

My money is on one of Nashville, Indianapolis or Columbus with Pittsburgh as a dark horse. Amazon is going to be looking to build a major campus (say 5-10 big buildings) right in the center of town (as they've done here in Seattle) and that's just not feasible in expensive cities like LA, Boston, NYC, Chicago or DC. Denver is too far west, Miami, Atlanta and Raleigh too far southeast. Newark and Philadelphia don't have a sufficiently developed tech scene and as satellites of NYC have a price premium. There's no way Seattle and Dallas are going to form a family, Austin looks great on paper but I doubt they're hungry enough to offer sufficient incentives. Don't know why Montgomery County or Northern Virginia are even on this list.

jacek 9y ago
Nashville does not stand a chance. It is growing rapidly, but the infrastructure is not keeping up. It is a car-centric city with almost nonexistent public transportation. As a result there is a citywide gridlock twice a day during rush hours. And not a single alternative. "It's a village that grew too big" is what my SO says about Nashville.
- deleted 9y ago
  [deleted]
chao- 9y ago
>There's no way Seattle and Dallas are going to form a family What does that mean? My top five (unordered) guesses are Raleigh, Dallas, Pittsburgh, Toronto and Columbus.
- Cshelton 9y ago
  I also am curious what he meant by that? I have 4 friends in Dallas from Seattle, they love it and have no intention of moving back.
- femto113 9y ago
  Boeing contemplated it but decided on Chicago instead. I think it's a cultural thing, the cities have very different and not particularly compatible personalities. Anecdotally in I've never known anyone choose to leave Seattle for Dallas, and Amazon is going to have to convince hundreds if not thousands to do just that.
  - chao- 9y ago
    >the cities have very different and not particularly compatible personalities That was my read of the GP post as well, but it strikes me as odd. I have lived in both cities, and while I agree they have differences, I don't see that being fatal flaw to a business having a headquarters in each? One could make same "different personality from Seattle" point for about half of the cities on the list. Consequently my interpretation is that it is one of the factors they are looking for, not one they are avoiding.
meritt 9y ago
Nashville makes the most sense to me. Centrally located for the midwest and Atlantic seaboard. Great central roadway hub. Airline flights can be increased easily with demand. Relatively low-cost of living, cheap land and cheap labor. Moderate weather. Very low likelihood of terrorist attack.
Goopplesoft 9y ago
Northern Virgina has quite a few areas including Tysons that would 'fit' (it is HQ to "Intelsat, Gannett, Hilton Worldwide, Freddie Mac, Capital One and Booz Allen Hamilton") [1]. Montgomery County, on the other hand, is definitely a weird choice. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tysons,_Virginia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tysons,_Virginia
aceinaday 9y ago
Too far southeast?
- appstateguy 9y ago
  There really has been some prejudiced undertones in this thread that belittle the southeast.
  - scarmig 9y ago
    Texas is one bad election from making it legal to discriminate against LGBT communities and racial minorities. North Carolina is already there. That's a nonstarter.
    - appstateguy 9y ago
      Your comment is ignorant of both the past and future trajectories of the voting populations for both Texas and North Carolina. NC has only become "far right" since 2010. Prior to that it's legislature was controlled by democrats since 1990. Increases in hispanic and latino populations within Texas could turn it blue within the next 20 years. It is very short sighted thinking to think this won't change.
      - scarmig 9y ago
        I know plenty well about Southern politics, having worked as a staffer on multiple Southern campaigns. As an alternative, Amazon can choose states that don't currently discriminate against potential employees. Both of those states have positive trajectories (as well as Georgia!) But one bird in the hand is worth... Well, one bird in the bush.
        appstateguy 9y ago
        And I live here and it's clear you're extremely ignorant on what the culture is actually like in the Raleigh-Durham region.
tptacek 9y ago
I don't think Amazon is going to pick Chicago, but there are underdeveloped areas in/near the center of the city in Chicago. There are parts of Chicago that are quite expensive (like West Loop, where McDonalds is moving its campus), but Chicago is really big.
- cbHXBY1D 9y ago
  Why not? It ticks all the boxes: tax breaks, good airport, transit, large metropolitan area, good schools, talent pool, etc.
  - tptacek 9y ago
    My suspicion is that Amazon has known all along where they want to put HQ2, and that this whole exercise is a negotiating tactic. Illinois would be a particularly rough choice, due to state finances.

jacek 9y ago

Nashville does not stand a chance. It is growing rapidly, but the infrastructure is not keeping up. It is a car-centric city with almost nonexistent public transportation. As a result there is a citywide gridlock twice a day during rush hours. And not a single alternative. "It's a village that grew too big" is what my SO says about Nashville.

deleted 9y ago
[deleted]

chao- 9y ago

>There's no way Seattle and Dallas are going to form a family What does that mean? My top five (unordered) guesses are Raleigh, Dallas, Pittsburgh, Toronto and Columbus.

Cshelton 9y ago
I also am curious what he meant by that? I have 4 friends in Dallas from Seattle, they love it and have no intention of moving back.
femto113 9y ago
Boeing contemplated it but decided on Chicago instead. I think it's a cultural thing, the cities have very different and not particularly compatible personalities. Anecdotally in I've never known anyone choose to leave Seattle for Dallas, and Amazon is going to have to convince hundreds if not thousands to do just that.
- chao- 9y ago
  >the cities have very different and not particularly compatible personalities That was my read of the GP post as well, but it strikes me as odd. I have lived in both cities, and while I agree they have differences, I don't see that being fatal flaw to a business having a headquarters in each? One could make same "different personality from Seattle" point for about half of the cities on the list. Consequently my interpretation is that it is one of the factors they are looking for, not one they are avoiding.

meritt 9y ago

Nashville makes the most sense to me. Centrally located for the midwest and Atlantic seaboard. Great central roadway hub. Airline flights can be increased easily with demand. Relatively low-cost of living, cheap land and cheap labor. Moderate weather. Very low likelihood of terrorist attack.

Goopplesoft 9y ago

Northern Virgina has quite a few areas including Tysons that would 'fit' (it is HQ to "Intelsat, Gannett, Hilton Worldwide, Freddie Mac, Capital One and Booz Allen Hamilton") [1]. Montgomery County, on the other hand, is definitely a weird choice. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tysons,_Virginia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tysons,_Virginia

aceinaday 9y ago

Too far southeast?

appstateguy 9y ago
There really has been some prejudiced undertones in this thread that belittle the southeast.
- scarmig 9y ago
  Texas is one bad election from making it legal to discriminate against LGBT communities and racial minorities. North Carolina is already there. That's a nonstarter.
  - appstateguy 9y ago
    Your comment is ignorant of both the past and future trajectories of the voting populations for both Texas and North Carolina. NC has only become "far right" since 2010. Prior to that it's legislature was controlled by democrats since 1990. Increases in hispanic and latino populations within Texas could turn it blue within the next 20 years. It is very short sighted thinking to think this won't change.
    - scarmig 9y ago
      I know plenty well about Southern politics, having worked as a staffer on multiple Southern campaigns. As an alternative, Amazon can choose states that don't currently discriminate against potential employees. Both of those states have positive trajectories (as well as Georgia!) But one bird in the hand is worth... Well, one bird in the bush.
      - appstateguy 9y ago
        And I live here and it's clear you're extremely ignorant on what the culture is actually like in the Raleigh-Durham region.

tptacek 9y ago

I don't think Amazon is going to pick Chicago, but there are underdeveloped areas in/near the center of the city in Chicago. There are parts of Chicago that are quite expensive (like West Loop, where McDonalds is moving its campus), but Chicago is really big.

cbHXBY1D 9y ago
Why not? It ticks all the boxes: tax breaks, good airport, transit, large metropolitan area, good schools, talent pool, etc.
- tptacek 9y ago
  My suspicion is that Amazon has known all along where they want to put HQ2, and that this whole exercise is a negotiating tactic. Illinois would be a particularly rough choice, due to state finances.