+ A
A -
Reuters
More than a year of work to bring Amazon.com Inc’s headquarters and tens of thousands of jobs to New York City ended on Thursday with a couple of phone calls.
Jay Carney, the company’s top policy executive, told New York Governor Andrew Cuomo that the world’s biggest online retailer would not go ahead with plans to invest $2.5 billion to build a second head office in the New York City borough of Queens.
Carney, a former press secretary for President Barack Obama, told New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio the same shortly after.
Abruptly scuttling its Big Apple plans blindsided Amazon’s allies and opponents alike. The company said the decision came together only in the last 48 hours, made by its senior leadership team and Jeff Bezos, Amazon’s founder, chief executive and the richest person in the world.
Yet by some measures the decision was months in the making, as community opposition signalled to the company that it was not entirely welcome.
The abrupt reversal has made the company a target of ire from progressives like US Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez who are swiftly gaining ground and influence in the US Democratic party. It may also play into an intensifying battle between Republicans and Democrats as President Donald Trump and his allies accuse left-leaning rivals of embracing socialism.
The decision has also generated fresh debate about the rich tax-breaks and public funding that municipalities routinely throw at companies to lure their business and the jobs they bring with them.
Seattle-based Amazon captivated elected officials across North America in September 2017 when it announced it would create more than 50,000 jobs in a second headquarters dubbed HQ2. Cities and states vied desperately for the economic stimulus.
A backlash began in earnest when Amazon announced two winners to split the offices last November: Arlington, Virginia, and New York’s Long Island City neighborhood, with New York offering incentives worth $1.53 billion to Amazon. The company could apply for $900 million more, too.
New York State Senator Michael Gianaris and City Council Member Jimmy Van Bramer said that day that it was “unfathomable that we would sign a $3 billion check” to one of the world’s most valuable companies considering the city’s crumbling subways and overcrowded schools.
More than a year of work to bring Amazon.com Inc’s headquarters and tens of thousands of jobs to New York City ended on Thursday with a couple of phone calls.
Jay Carney, the company’s top policy executive, told New York Governor Andrew Cuomo that the world’s biggest online retailer would not go ahead with plans to invest $2.5 billion to build a second head office in the New York City borough of Queens.
Carney, a former press secretary for President Barack Obama, told New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio the same shortly after.
Abruptly scuttling its Big Apple plans blindsided Amazon’s allies and opponents alike. The company said the decision came together only in the last 48 hours, made by its senior leadership team and Jeff Bezos, Amazon’s founder, chief executive and the richest person in the world.
Yet by some measures the decision was months in the making, as community opposition signalled to the company that it was not entirely welcome.
The abrupt reversal has made the company a target of ire from progressives like US Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez who are swiftly gaining ground and influence in the US Democratic party. It may also play into an intensifying battle between Republicans and Democrats as President Donald Trump and his allies accuse left-leaning rivals of embracing socialism.
The decision has also generated fresh debate about the rich tax-breaks and public funding that municipalities routinely throw at companies to lure their business and the jobs they bring with them.
Seattle-based Amazon captivated elected officials across North America in September 2017 when it announced it would create more than 50,000 jobs in a second headquarters dubbed HQ2. Cities and states vied desperately for the economic stimulus.
A backlash began in earnest when Amazon announced two winners to split the offices last November: Arlington, Virginia, and New York’s Long Island City neighborhood, with New York offering incentives worth $1.53 billion to Amazon. The company could apply for $900 million more, too.
New York State Senator Michael Gianaris and City Council Member Jimmy Van Bramer said that day that it was “unfathomable that we would sign a $3 billion check” to one of the world’s most valuable companies considering the city’s crumbling subways and overcrowded schools.
