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  Geebo 8:00 am on April 30, 2019 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: Amazon ( 103 ), HQ2, Virginia ( 9 )   

  Amazon offering first HQ2 jobs 

  

  Amazon’s proposed development for HQ2 in Virginia

  Even though Amazon withdrew their plans for their second headquarters to be built in New York after a grassroots campaign drove them out, the retail leader seems to be all in with the Commonwealth of Virginia. Just recently, Amazon announced the first opening positions for the new headquarters that is planned to span through both Alexandria and Arlington. The first positions have already been posted to Amazon’s job website. This comes along with the promise of 400 more jobs by the ends of the year and an additional 25,000 jobs in the coming years. However, just as it was in New York, Amazon’s presence in Virginia does not come without controversy.

  [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oBZhV0gnSUA%5D

  Much like what happened in New York, Virginia and Arlington County have offered multi-million dollar incentives for Amazon to develop their headquarters there. While many politicians in Virginia supported these incentives, there have been detractors. These detractors are concerned that Amazon will not be hiring many local employees and instead will be hiring people from out-of-state. That, in turn, could potentially make the already strained housing market even worse, especially for lower-income families. Amazon’s proponents say that Amazon will bring Virginia a windfall of tax revenue, however, it has to be mentioned that Amazon has been accused of taking advantage of tax loopholes where they paid no federal income tax last year.

  Getting back to the potential housing crisis coming to Virginia, Amazon states that the median income of its HQ2 employees will be over $100,000. Many local leaders fear that the area will become more gentrified than it already is. This could potentially drive many lower-income families out of the area. However, with the proposed scope of the construction of the new headquarters that could result in thousands of construction jobs for several years.

  Are you from this part of Virginia? If you are, how do you feel about Amazon coming into your area? Do you think it will be an economic boon for Northern Virginia, or will it result in more economic inequality? Please let us know what you think.

   

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  Geebo 10:00 am on March 1, 2019 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: Amazon ( 103 ), Andrew Cuomo, HQ2, Jeff Bezos ( 3 ), new york ( 16 ), New York Times ( 6 )   

  New York tries to lure Amazon back with full-page ad 

  

  Long Island City, the proposed spot for HQ2

  Just like a lover who was spurned on Valentine’s Day, New York is trying to win back Amazon on both the state and city level. As you’ll recall, Amazon had originally picked Long Island City in the Borough of Queens to be the location where Amazon would construct its new corporate headquarters dubbed HQ2. Then after a groundswell of opposition by a number of politicians representing the community, Amazon announced on Valentine’s Day of this year that they would not be going forward with the project in Queens. Since the announcement, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has vociferously voiced his displeasure in those who opposed the Amazon deal citing Amazon would bring much-needed jobs and revenue to the state. Governor Cuomo is even reportedly working behind the scenes to try to bring Amazon back to New York City.

  To that end, not only has Cuomo been in communication with Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos but in today’s New York Times, a full-page ad has been taken out asking Amazon publicly to come back to New York. The open letter has been signed by such luminaries as the AFL-CIO labor union and former New York mayor David Dinkins.

  [youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vl1H94AxI8o]

  This past week, Governor Cuomo has insisted that 70% of New Yorkers were in favor of Amazon building HQ2 in New York, which may, in fact, be true. However, when it comes to picking a final location anywhere in the five boroughs will the local residents be in favor of Amazon coming to their part of town. I’m sure someone living in Brooklyn or Manhattan wouldn’t mind if Amazon chose to build a massive complex on Staten Island but the Staten Island residents may have an issue with them. Amazon can have both good and bad effects on any community it lands in. If New York really wanted to have a smooth process of bringing Amazon back it needs to find a community that would welcome Amazon in with open arms first.

   
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  Geebo 10:06 am on February 15, 2019 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: Amazon ( 103 ), housing ( 5 ), HQ2, New York City ( 3 ), Queens   

  Amazon dumps New York on Valentine’s Day 

  

  In 2017, online retail leader Amazon announced that it was searching for a city to host its second corporate headquarters dubbed HQ2. Amazon’s initial headquarters in Seattle would remain while the new headquarters would potentially host up to 40,000 new jobs wherever Amazon ultimately chose to build it. In November of last year, Amazon finally decided on putting HQ2 in New York City, specifically Long Island City in the Borough of Queens. That was until yesterday when Amazon announced it was withdrawing from the deal due to local opposition.

  Many local politicians and residents opposed the new Amazon headquarters claiming that not only would the jobs go to those from outside of the area but it would also put a strain on an already crumbling infrastructure. Most importantly opponents to the new headquarters were concerned that the influx of Amazon employees would make the local housing crisis even worse. Those who were in favor of the new headquarters touted the tax revenue that would be brought into the city and the state and that would bring even more companies with more jobs and revenue to New York.

  [youtube https://youtu.be/f_jz-Pi-510%5D

  However, the housing crisis question is one that can’t be ignored. In Amazon’s own hometown of Seattle, many local residents blame Amazon not only for rising housing prices but also disrupting old neighborhoods that for generations were well within the financial grasp of the middle class. Silicon Valley is an even more bleak example of how giant tech corporations have affected local housing markets as the San Francisco Bay area has been priced out of reach for almost all except the tech elite and the revenue generated by these companies does not seem to be providing many benefits to locals.

  What do you think? Did the residents of Queens make a mistake in driving Amazon away or were they justified in trying to protect their neighborhoods?

  Amazon’s alleged tax dodge is just the beginning | Greg's Corner is discussing. Toggle Comments