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posted by martyb on Tuesday October 17 2017, @02:22PM   Printer-friendly
from the Ares-and-Harmonia dept.

Cities Dream Of Landing Amazon's New HQ And They're Going To Great Lengths To Show It

Officials in Tucson, Ariz., uprooted a 21-foot-tall saguaro cactus and tried to have it delivered to Amazon's Seattle headquarters. Birmingham constructed giant Amazon boxes and placed them around the Alabama city. In Missouri, Kansas City's mayor bought a thousand items online from Amazon and posted reviews of each one.

All of these cities are clearly trying hard to get Amazon's attention. Why? Because they know that otherwise, they don't stand a chance against some big-name cities that are all trying to win the contest to land Amazon's second headquarters.

The retail giant announced a month ago that it has plans for a second home outside of Seattle, where it is currently headquartered. The project has been named HQ2, and the deadline for final bids is Thursday. Amazon has promised to invest $5 billion and said the facility will create as many as 50,000 jobs.

It has led to a mad scramble from cities across the nation and even in Canada. And various publications have analyzed cities' chances of landing this deal. Atlanta, Denver and Pittsburgh have made it to a few of those lists.

Many cities don't really figure as finalists on any of those lists. But that hasn't stopped them. In fact, just like Tucson or Birmingham, cities are pulling out all the stops to get noticed.

The Amazonk Prometheans may be coming to your city...

Previously: Amazon Spheres Add to Seattle's Quirky Architecture
Amazon Acquires Whole Foods for $13.7 Billion
Amazon to Invest $5 Billion in Second HQ Outside of Seattle
Amazon Looks to New Food Technology for Home Delivery


Original Submission

Related Stories

Amazon Spheres Add to Seattle's Quirky Architecture 32 comments

USA Today has an article about Amazon.com's new Seattle headquarters, which consist of "three gigantic glass spheres," and about other unusual buildings in the city.

Americans tend to think of brown shipping boxes when it comes to Amazon. But in Seattle, the company is increasingly known as a real-estate owner. That's especially true downtown, where Amazon employs more than 24,000 — some of whom will soon hold meetings and take lunch breaks inside three gigantic glass spheres that add a geodesic flare to the urban grid.

The tallest of the glass and metal Spheres rises 90 feet and is more than 130 feet in diameter, with two smaller spheres to each side. In a city that gets 152 days of rain a year, they will provide a warm, dry, plant-filled space for meetings, meals and mingling for up to 800 Amazon employees at a time.

"It's kind of fantastic," said Thaisa Way, an urban landscape historian at the University of Washington in Seattle.


Original Submission

Amazon Acquires Whole Foods for $13.7 Billion 18 comments

Amazon has made its biggest acquisition ever: Whole Foods for $13.7 billion. That number includes Whole Foods' net debt:

The deal, expected to close in the second half of this year, gives the e-commerce giant — which has been experimenting with various physical store concepts to make itself a name as a food purveyor — an instant expanse of 460 high-end brick-and-mortar stores across the U.S., in Canada and in the U.K.

Whole Foods, which made its name retailing organic and fresh products, had been struggling recently amid stepped-up competition from Costco Wholesale, Trader Joe's and other grocers.

Shares of Whole Foods rose ahead of the acquisition while analysts speculated that other grocery retailers would snap up Whole Foods to keep it away from Amazon, or at least drive up the price.

Groceries are low margin and high cost businesses. This acquisition may be seen as part of a long-running war between Amazon and Walmart.

Will the shelves of Whole Paycheck be stocked by Amazonk's mighty robotic Prometheans? I think I'll shop at ALDI instead.

Previously: Walmart Plays Catch-Up With Amazon
Walmart Kills Amazon Prime-like Service, Expands Free Shipping
Amazon Shuts Down Diapers.com as Founder Runs Walmart's E-Commerce Operations


Original Submission

Amazon Looks to New Food Technology for Home Delivery 15 comments

Amazon.com is exploring a technology first developed for the U.S. military to produce tasty prepared meals that do not need refrigeration, as it looks for new ways to muscle into the $700 billion U.S. grocery business.

The world's biggest online retailer has discussed selling ready-to-eat dishes such as beef stew and a vegetable frittata as soon as next year, officials at the startup firm marketing the technology told Reuters.

The dishes would be easy to stockpile and ship because they do not require refrigeration and could be offered quite cheaply compared with take-out from a restaurant.

If the cutting-edge food technology comes to fruition, and Amazon implements it on a large scale, it would be a major step forward for the company as it looks to grab hold of more grocery customers shifting toward quick and easy meal options at home.

Source: https://www.cnbc.com/2017/08/11/amazon-looks-to-new-food-technology-for-home-delivery.html


Original Submission

Amazon to Invest $5 Billion in Second HQ Outside of Seattle 26 comments

Amazon will invest $5 billion in a second headquarters in a North American city outside of Seattle.

Amazon.com Inc. already has a sprawling Seattle headquarters that attests to its size and ambition. Now the world's largest online retailer plans to open a second North American campus -- dubbed HQ2 -- that Amazon says could be just as big as the existing one.

The company is asking local and state governments to submit proposals for a development that will likely cost more than $5 billion over the next 15 to 17 years and give the winning city or town an enormous economic boost. Amazon is already one of the biggest employers in Seattle and expects the new headquarters to house as many as 50,000 workers, many of them new hires. Cities have until next month to apply through a special website, and the company said it will make a final decision next year.

The mayor of Memphis, Tennessee, quickly expressed interest. So did officials in Chicago; Philadelphia; Hartford, Connecticut; Tulsa, Oklahoma; St. Louis; and Rhode Island, demonstrating that Amazon will wield a lot of leverage in making its choice.

"We expect HQ2 to be a full equal to our Seattle headquarters," founder and Chief Executive Officer Jeff Bezos said in a statement. "Amazon HQ2 will bring billions of dollars in up-front and ongoing investments, and tens of thousands of high-paying jobs."

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-09-07/amazon-hunting-for-second-u-s-headquarters-to-host-50-000-staff

Will the new HQ be in the U.S.?

Additional coverage at Reuters, NPR, Business Wire and The Washington Post


Original Submission

Is A Mega-Deal Like Amazon's HQ2 Always Worth It? 51 comments

'A Major Distraction': Is A Megadeal Like Amazon's HQ2 Always Worth It?

Thursday marks the deadline for bids in Amazon's highly publicized search for the location of its second headquarters, dubbed HQ2. Cities are clamoring to land the conglomerate's project and its unparalleled promise of up to 50,000 jobs paying an average of $100,000, at one of the world's fastest-growing companies.

But with that comes some public soul-searching: How much should a city or state subsidize a wealthy American corporation in exchange for such a shiny promise? [...] Financial incentives are among numerous criteria Amazon included in its solicitation of bids. [...] By multiple estimates, Amazon has already cashed in on more than $1 billion in taxpayer-funded subsidies and incentives for its warehouses, data centers and other operations.

[...] "I often thought, as governor, it would be sort of nice, if all the governors just got together and said, 'Look, we're just not going to play this anymore,' " says former Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle. Doyle was at the helm during the financial crisis in 2008, when General Motors shuttered plants, including a factory in Janesville, Wis. But later, the automaker said it would reopen one location, bringing back the jobs. Wisconsin put together its largest incentive package yet — Doyle says he felt an obligation to — but it lost to Michigan's even bigger offer. [...] Since then, Wisconsin has become infamous for its eye-popping $3-billion financial incentive to get a Foxconn liquid-crystal display plant.

Previously: Amazon to Invest $5 Billion in Second HQ Outside of Seattle
Cities Desperate to Become the Location of Amazon's "Second Headquarters"


Original Submission

Amazon Receives 238 Proposals for HQ2, Including Multi-Billion Dollar Incentive Offers 29 comments

October 19th was the deadline to submit bids to become the host city for Amazon's second headquarters. 238 proposals were submitted:

Amazon.com Inc's $5 billion second headquarters and its promise of up to 50,000 jobs attracted 238 proposals from 54 states, provinces and districts in the United States, Canada and Mexico, the company said on Monday.

Regions and cities in 43 U.S. states from Maine to Alaska, as well as Washington, D.C., submitted bids by the Oct. 19 deadline, Amazon said. The states that did not bid were Arkansas, Hawaii, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Vermont and Wyoming.

Canadian bids came from the provinces of Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, Nova Scotia, Ontario and Quebec. Mexican bids emanated from the states of Chihuahua, Hidalgo and Queretaro. Other bidders included Puerto Rico, which is struggling to recover from Hurricane Maria and is in the process of restructuring its sagging finances in court.

Details of the bids, including tax breaks and other incentives being offered to entice the internet retailer, were scarce as some bidders cited competitive reasons or nondisclosure policies.

New Jersey offered $7 billion in tax credits for a Newark headquarters, while Chicago offered $2.25 billion of incentives, including tax credits, property tax breaks, $450 million in infrastructure improvements, $250 million in "Neighborhood Opportunity Funds", and potentially free land. The mayor of Stonecrest, an Atlanta suburb, offered 345 acres of industrial land on which a new city called Amazon could be built, with Jeff Bezos as mayor-for-life.

Also at First Post, NYT, and the Chicago Tribune.

Previously: Amazon to Invest $5 Billion in Second HQ Outside of Seattle
Cities Desperate to Become the Location of Amazon's "Second Headquarters"
Is A Mega-Deal Like Amazon's HQ2 Always Worth It?


Original Submission

Microsoft to Rebuild its Redmond Headquarters 12 comments

Microsoft to Expand Campus, as Amazon Looks Elsewhere

While Amazon is hunting for a second headquarters away from its hometown, its neighbor in the Seattle area — Microsoft — is doubling down on the region, with plans to invest billions of dollars in redeveloping its existing campus.

The project, which Microsoft plans to announce at its annual meeting of shareholders on Wednesday, amounts to a major overhaul of the company's 500-acre campus in Redmond, Wash., the leafy Seattle suburb that it has called home since 1986.

The company will take a wrecking ball to 12 old buildings, replacing them with 18 taller ones with more open work environments. The construction will add about 2.5 million square feet of new space to the roughly 15 million it has in the area, enough room for an additional 8,000 employees.

Microsoft's redevelopment, which will take five to seven years to complete, would not ordinarily stand out — lots of technology companies outgrow their offices and need new space. But this is Microsoft, a company that spent years fumbling new initiatives, laying off employees and retrenching from key markets. The bet on a bigger, more modern campus is a symbol of its resurgence over the past few years under its chief executive, Satya Nadella, who has made invigorating Microsoft's culture one of his top priorities.

It is also hard not to notice the contrast to Amazon, the area's younger and buzzier technology company. After Amazon announced its plans for a second headquarters, cities and regions laid out tax breaks and other promises to lure the planned 50,000 high-paying jobs to town.

Also at VentureBeat and The Verge.

Related: Cities Desperate to Become the Location of Amazon's "Second Headquarters"
Is A Mega-Deal Like Amazon's HQ2 Always Worth It?
Amazon Receives 238 Proposals for HQ2, Including Multi-Billion Dollar Incentive Offers


Original Submission

Amazon Said to be Close to Picking Crystal City, Virginia for Second Headquarters 20 comments

Amazon in advanced talks about putting HQ2 in Northern Virginia, those close to process say

Amazon.com has held advanced discussions about the possibility of opening its highly sought-after second headquarters in Crystal City, including how quickly it would move employees there, which buildings it would occupy and how an announcement about the move would be made to the public, according to people close to the process.

The discussions were more detailed than those the company has had regarding other locations in Northern Virginia and some other cities nationally, adding to speculation that the site in Arlington County is a front-runner to land the online retail giant's second North American headquarters and its 50,000 jobs.

The company is so close to making its choice that Crystal City's top real estate developer, JBG Smith, has pulled some of its buildings off the leasing market and officials in the area have discussed how to make an announcement to the public this month, following the midterm elections, according to public and private-sector officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity because Amazon has asked that the selection process remain confidential. The company may be having similar discussions with other finalists.

[...] [After] publication of this story, Mike Grella, director of economic development for Amazon, posted on Twitter: "Memo to the genius leaking info about Crystal City, VA as #HQ2 selection. You're not doing Crystal City, VA any favors. And stop treating the NDA you signed like a used napkin," he said in reference to the nondisclosure agreements that Amazon required finalists to sign.

The Amazon Washington Post confirms it.

Crystal City, Arlington, Virginia.

Also at CNBC and CNN.

Previously: Amazon to Invest $5 Billion in Second HQ Outside of Seattle
Cities Desperate to Become the Location of Amazon's "Second Headquarters"


Original Submission

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  • (Score: 1, Offtopic) by Runaway1956 on Tuesday October 17 2017, @02:53PM (8 children)

    by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday October 17 2017, @02:53PM (#583484) Journal

    I generally dislike NIMBY people, but, please don't put it anywhere near me. Not Dallas, not Little Rock, not Shreveport or Baton Rouge. Fort Smith is to close, Texarkana much to close.

    I'll offer a tip though. There really isn't much point in locating a new headquarters (or warehouse) within the sprawling East Coast Megalopolis. Tennessee, Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky all make sense. Maybe the western end of the Carolinas. Put that sucker out somewhere that you don't have to compete with some of the worst bumper to bumper traffic in the world. As I recall, that was one of the lesser reasons given when industry moved away from the rust belt, to the sun belt. Less traffic.

    Just please don't put it near me.

    • (Score: 1) by nitehawk214 on Tuesday October 17 2017, @03:41PM (5 children)

      by nitehawk214 (1304) on Tuesday October 17 2017, @03:41PM (#583501)

      I would be fine if they put it near me, as it would be near the airport and I don't live anywhere near the airport, and that area could use some development.

      However I would be against it if the county is bid into the ground to give them tax breaks that have to be paid by the residents on the promise that "lots of jobs" will be created. Then have those lots of job be mostly minimum wage jobs, the high end jobs be imported people, causing even more competition for jobs and driving wages down. And if the number of jobs doesn't cover the costs for getting them in the door.

      Actually... fuck it, I don't want thing anywhere near me. Any city/county getting this deal is going to get screwed.

      --
      "Don't you ever miss the days when you used to be nostalgic?" -Loiosh
      • (Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 17 2017, @06:13PM (3 children)

        by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 17 2017, @06:13PM (#583582)

        So you're probably thinking that Wisconsin won't recoup all of that $3B incentive package they're putting in place for Foxconn?

        • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 17 2017, @07:34PM (2 children)

          by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 17 2017, @07:34PM (#583616)

          So you're probably thinking that Wisconsin won't recoup all of that $3B corporate welfare handout incentive package they're giving to putting in place for Foxconn?

          FTFY.

          • (Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 17 2017, @08:05PM (1 child)

            by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 17 2017, @08:05PM (#583627)

            Fail. Scott Walker supports it, as does Paul Ryan. They are true blue Republicans and are, by definition, against any kind of welfare. These are tax incentives and breaks that will pay for themselves based upon long-term, sustained growth of at least 3%.

            • (Score: 3, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 17 2017, @08:44PM

              by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 17 2017, @08:44PM (#583646)

              These are tax incentives and breaks

              Epic fail. The majority of that is cash handouts. NOT tax breaks, NOT incentives. CASH. The EXACT SAME THING the Republicans spend half their time screaming about when given to the poor instead of massive multinational corporations. Walker, Ryan, and the rest of the Republicans are VERY MUCH IN FAVOR of welfare, just not welfare for the poor. Hypocrites, all of them.

              Sources:
              "Wisconsin Senate approves $3 billion cash payment for Foxconn factory" http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-foxconn-20170912-story.html [latimes.com]
              (Emphasis mine)

              But wait, there's more:

              "Foxconn would receive up to $2.85 billion in cash payments from state taxpayers over 15 years..." http://www.jsonline.com/story/news/politics/2017/08/16/how-would-wisconsin-foxconn-deal-work-here-some-answers/572186001/ [jsonline.com]
              (Emphasis mine)

              If you want more sources Google it yourself.

              (On a semi-related note, can we have an underline tag please? Pretty please? With a cherry on top? begging_puppy.jpg)

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 17 2017, @06:24PM

        by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 17 2017, @06:24PM (#583585)

        who cares? think of how fast you'll get your chinese shit? the whole town's on welfare and meth anyways!

    • (Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 17 2017, @05:22PM

      by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 17 2017, @05:22PM (#583549)

      Paddle faster; I hear banjos.

    • (Score: 4, Funny) by aristarchus on Tuesday October 17 2017, @08:17PM

      by aristarchus (2645) on Tuesday October 17 2017, @08:17PM (#583633) Journal

      Fort Smith is to close, Texarkana much to close.

      I don't get it, Runaway. Why would you want "to close" Fort Smith? Or Texarkana? Should not these fine boroughs remain open? Or perhaps, in the slipperiness of the spittle on your keyboard, you meant to say "too close", as in "not far enough away"?? Spelling, it's not just for eggheads anymore!

  • (Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 17 2017, @02:55PM (8 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 17 2017, @02:55PM (#583486)

    A government, if there must be one, should be facilitating the voluntary exchange of resources amongst individuals, not making those deals on behalf of them.

    A government has no business allocating resources.

    • (Score: 2) by bob_super on Tuesday October 17 2017, @04:59PM (5 children)

      by bob_super (1357) on Tuesday October 17 2017, @04:59PM (#583538)

      Because the government is the only entity with the reach and mandate to pull together a complex package of offers (land, taxes, roads, building/water/power rights) to entice a potential major employer to come provide a major burst of employment to its constituents.
      Typically, the initial offer is a loss leader, with the local government pledging to lose money in exchange for the tax revenues from the expected development, rising local business, and jobs.

      Sure, the government shouldn't do that, and let companies choose their location without input. Who wants to attract prosperous businesses anyway? The extra traffic scares the horses.

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 17 2017, @05:26PM (4 children)

        by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 17 2017, @05:26PM (#583553)

        ... but it shouldn't be that way.

        • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 17 2017, @07:06PM (3 children)

          by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 17 2017, @07:06PM (#583603)

          Yeah, but here we are... We've figure out that "it not supposed to be that way" doesn't work in practice. Great in theory, horrible in practice.

          • (Score: 1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 17 2017, @07:30PM (2 children)

            by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 17 2017, @07:30PM (#583614)

            Society creates wealth through the voluntary exchange of resources, and then this parasite (named "government") siphons off some of the wealth under threat of violence, pretending to be the master orchestrator of all that is good.

            The new idea is that what matters is voluntary exchange and freedom, not the Dear Leader.

            • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 17 2017, @08:26PM (1 child)

              by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 17 2017, @08:26PM (#583636)

              and then this parasite (named "government")

              United States Constitution, Preamble:
              "We the People,"
              We are the government. Who the fuck are you?

              • (Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 17 2017, @08:52PM

                by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 17 2017, @08:52PM (#583651)

                Whatever makes you feel like part of the team.

    • (Score: 2) by LoRdTAW on Tuesday October 17 2017, @11:04PM (1 child)

      by LoRdTAW (3755) on Tuesday October 17 2017, @11:04PM (#583710) Journal

      Take it easy there Swanson.

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 17 2017, @11:13PM

        by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 17 2017, @11:13PM (#583717)

        I'm all out of mustache oil.

  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 17 2017, @04:32PM (9 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 17 2017, @04:32PM (#583526)

    My bet is north of Denver. Lots of bodies of water for cooling in summer. Lots of techies near. Winter has snow but that is doable and help with cooling.

    South? Why risk a hurricane in a region that doesn't care about global warming? Not to mention to much heat 9 months of the year. Add in trump desire to cut red tape with building standards by not having many and swamp areas that are the south seems a stupid investment.

    Dallas is as far south as I would go.

    East coast to expensive.
    New Mexico or Arizona? Water from the already fought over Colorado river and super hot summers? Pass.

    • (Score: 3, Insightful) by bob_super on Tuesday October 17 2017, @04:39PM (7 children)

      by bob_super (1357) on Tuesday October 17 2017, @04:39PM (#583530)

      It goes where the tax breaks and cash offers are the highest, bonus for the weakest unions, cheapest power, and lowest minimum wage.
      The rest is just for show.

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 17 2017, @05:02PM (6 children)

        by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 17 2017, @05:02PM (#583542)

        Well, they sure as hell found out how bad Seattle is for all of the above.

        High taxes, over and above state taxes. Not much room to expand because of Seattle's geography (hills, sound, lakes, crowded area with silly building codes), agency state with strong union tradition, and $15/hour minimum wage in the city.

        Honestly, of all those factors the minimum wage is probably the least relevant for their HQ workforce. When your typical HQ has maybe 2% of staff anywhere near the minimum wage, it's a non-issue. Unions and taxes are likely the bigger factors, with available space or a friendly zoning board being near the top.

        But honestly, at the top I'd expect to see low cost of living and low prevailing wage levels. Why pay $150K/year for an engineer in Seattle when someone will live the same way of life, or damn near, for $90K in Smalltown, Nebraska?

        • (Score: 2) by bob_super on Tuesday October 17 2017, @05:07PM (2 children)

          by bob_super (1357) on Tuesday October 17 2017, @05:07PM (#583544)

          Because the boss has to go to HQ2 occasionally, and Nebraska weather can interfere with Amazon-like clockwork planning?

          The answer is obvious: US citizens for cheap, in very nice (yet cheap) area with very eager government: Puerto Rico!

          • (Score: 2) by AssCork on Tuesday October 17 2017, @06:40PM

            by AssCork (6255) on Tuesday October 17 2017, @06:40PM (#583591) Journal

            Puerto Rico

            And they could build pretty much anywhere they want to, as long as they clear the rubble first?

            --
            Just popped-out of a tight spot. Came out mostly clean, too.
          • (Score: 2) by LoRdTAW on Tuesday October 17 2017, @11:08PM

            by LoRdTAW (3755) on Tuesday October 17 2017, @11:08PM (#583713) Journal

            They were trying to build up in what, the 70's? Then they took away the tax breaks and all the businesses along with the smart Puerto Ricans, left.

            Too bad it does have that whole hurricane problem. Would be nice to work and live in the tropics.

        • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 17 2017, @06:50PM (1 child)

          by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 17 2017, @06:50PM (#583595)

          Idiot washington has no state taxes but you probably didn't hear about that in russia.

          • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 17 2017, @07:31PM

            by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 17 2017, @07:31PM (#583615)

            HAHAHAHAHAH! ...

            oh, wait, you were serious?

            Washington has no state INCOME taxes. But it has state property taxes and state sales taxes, on top of which counties and cities can add higher ones. You will be shocked - SHOCKED to learn that Seattle does so, to an extent that exceeds most other locations in the state, and adds additional things like higher car tab fees (lots of news articles if you google for Seattle taxes, you will be surprised to learn).

            So ... yeah. Seattle taxes. Not low.

        • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday October 18 2017, @06:22AM

          by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday October 18 2017, @06:22AM (#583822)

          or smalltown, WA (AKA Spokane)

    • (Score: 2) by NewNic on Tuesday October 17 2017, @08:59PM

      by NewNic (6420) on Tuesday October 17 2017, @08:59PM (#583656) Journal

      My bet is north of Denver. Lots of bodies of water for cooling in summer.

      They are opening a new HQ, not a datacenter.

      --
      lib·er·tar·i·an·ism ˌlibərˈterēənizəm/ noun: Magical thinking that useful idiots mistake for serious political theory
  • (Score: 2) by looorg on Tuesday October 17 2017, @05:18PM (2 children)

    by looorg (578) on Tuesday October 17 2017, @05:18PM (#583548)

    It's not that 50k jobs is anything to scoff at, and it's probably why various city treasures are salivating just thinking about Amazon coming to town. There are probably also side opportunities as in if Amazon comes to town then other little companies will plop up around it sort of like support businesses or just business that cater to the needs to the amazonians. Are these side businesses the actual taxable jobs that will be created? Since the Amazon jobs are subsidized so heavily you probably won't turn a profit on it anytime soon.

    But are not Amazon (Google, Facebook etc) notorious for being tax dodgers? So sure you can get your taxes from the people that live and work in or around town but as far as actual corporate cash from the company? Are you really going to see all that much of that? After also giving them giant tax breaks for eternity or how ever long it is that you are trying to suck up to them.

    I have mostly here noted that Amazon, Google and Facebook are building datacenters. They don't employ 50k people, or all that many people after the center is up and running. Google built some in Finland, Facebook built in northern Sweden, Amazon is building around Stockholm, Google bought more land out in the middle of nowhere for "future datacenters". All the local politicians are probably ecstatic but there isn't really a whole lot of jobs or tax dollars that are going to trickle down to them from the giants. Is it really worth sucking up to them for them to move to your neck of the woods?

    • (Score: 2) by takyon on Tuesday October 17 2017, @05:32PM

      by takyon (881) <reversethis-{gro ... s} {ta} {noykat}> on Tuesday October 17 2017, @05:32PM (#583555) Journal

      "HQ2" is a much better get than a datacenter. It's the kind of thing that could attract other businesses besides the Amazonk-catering support businesses, causing the elevation of a smaller community beyond what they could achieve with decades of normal pandering.

      On the local level, property tax would likely be part of the incentive bribes process. Local sales tax may be paid by Amazon employees.

      --
      [SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
    • (Score: 2) by EvilSS on Tuesday October 17 2017, @05:44PM

      by EvilSS (1456) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday October 17 2017, @05:44PM (#583565)
      Most cities won't care about corporate income tax. They live mostly off of sales taxes and property taxes. Even giving Amazon a break on the local property tax they stand to make a crap ton of money off them in those categories.
  • (Score: 3, Interesting) by opinionated_science on Tuesday October 17 2017, @05:39PM (2 children)

    by opinionated_science (4031) on Tuesday October 17 2017, @05:39PM (#583559)

    I read the headline and thought "some folks are itching for a kickback".

    Or did I read it wrong?

  • (Score: 2, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 17 2017, @08:18PM (2 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 17 2017, @08:18PM (#583634)

    I can only imagine Bezos' behavior: "Go on then, squirm for me, now moan a bit. Now tell me how much you'd like me to abuse you, oh yeah, that's it, wonderful! NEXT CONTESTANT!... Welcome, take a seat on this black-leather couch and tell me all about the things you'd like me to do to you..."
    Welcome to Feudal USA where The Corporation has the Ius Primae Noctis [wikipedia.org].

    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 17 2017, @10:47PM (1 child)

      by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 17 2017, @10:47PM (#583702)

      You linked to a fake historical concept to help you exaggerate the power of corporations. Good for you, idiot.

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday October 18 2017, @01:21AM

        by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday October 18 2017, @01:21AM (#583748)

        It's not because it was fake in the past, that it is not fake in the present...

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