Could Amazon’s second North American headquarters be headed to the Hudson Valley? The recently released list of finalist locations has marked the greater New York City area a top contender. Though New York City is exclusively named in the list, the bid is inclusive of New York City, Long Island, and the Mid-Hudson region.
After announcing plans for a second headquarters (named HQ2) last year, Amazon received a whopping 238 proposals from municipalities across North America — including some in Dutchess, Rockland, and Westchester counties. The e-commerce powerhouse has since condensed the list to just 20 viable locations, giving preference to metropolitan regions with a population of at least one million people, stable and business-friendly environments that have the potential to attract and retain talent, and communities that think creatively when analyzing real estate possibilities. Amazon promises the chosen city a $5 billion investment in construction and 50,000 new, high-paying jobs.
Proposed Hudson Valley locations include the former Novartis property in Ramapo, Rockland County, several Westchester cities including White Plains, Mount Vernon, and Somers, as well as two Dutchess County sites at the old East and West IBM campuses in East Fishkill. Rockland County officials were notified on Thursday morning that their proposed site is no longer in the running.
Empire State Development, New York State’s principal economic development organization, announced in October that it had divided all state-wide Amazon bids into four distinct regions: Buffalo and Rochester; Syracuse, Utica, and the Mohawk Valley; the Albany Capital Region; and New York City, Long Island, and the Mid-Hudson region. It has rejected Freedom of Information requests pertaining to further specifics, such as taxpayer-backed initiatives, that have been submitted to Amazon.
While all other state bids failed to make Amazon’s recent list, the New York metro area is still in the running, along with the following competitors. Amazon has said that it will make its final decision in the coming months.
- Atlanta, Georgia
- Austin, Texas
- Boston, Massachusetts
- Chicago, Illinois
- Columbus, Ohio
- Dallas, Texas
- Denver, Colorado
- Indianapolis, Indiana
- Los Angeles, California
- Miami, Florida
- Montgomery County, Maryland
- Nashville, Tennessee
- Newark, New Jersey
- Northern Virginia
- Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
- Raleigh, North Carolina
- Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Washington D.C.
