Phoenix!
Along the lines of your post, there’s been some recent articles about companies leaving Hartford/CT. There’s lots of opinions on it, but I think bottom line is that companies have to be in a place where the types of employees they need actually want to live. Including the executives, not just the worker bees. That last one is important, as you’ll get many more executives willing to relocate to NY, SF, San Diego, etc. vs a small town they’ve never heard of.
http://www.slate.com/articles/business/metropolis/2017/06/something_is_wrong_with_connecticut.html
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/29/nyregion/insurance-giant-aetna-is-leaving-hartford-for-new-york.html?mcubz=1
My money’s on Austin. They are already a tech hub, have a strong software presence, and would be able to attract talent who have reservations about moving to Seattle. No way are they going to locate and try to revitalize a dying city. They piggyback off the charitable good will of other successful companies like Boeing and Microsoft to attract new hires.
http://www.seattletimes.com/business/amazon-a-virtual-no-show-in-hometown-philanthropy/
I was going to mention how they don’t sponsor anything local in Seattle - oh wait they give out free bananas on the street !
Want to throw out Cincinnati as an idea - it is very close to Hebron where they are going to build their Amazon Prime airline.
This is an interesting take on choosing the chosen city:
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/09/09/upshot/where-should-amazon-new-headquarters-be.html
Not sure I’d rule out Boston/Cambridge too quickly, given the redevelopment initiatives in Kendall square…
In other news (spoken as a long time Hartford area resident…begin sarcastic font here), Hartford also likes to say it has a good shot. I’d put the chances about equal to the Patriots moving here, or the Whalers returning.
As a CT resident, I agree with you, JustaMom.
Amazon has a checkered history with how it treats its employees. I bet they are looking for a state that has some tech already, but one that doesn’t have strong protection for workers rights. That would probably rule out MA, NY, and MD. It might rule out PA too since people will remember the ambulances there that Amazon kept on call rather than put AC in their warehouse.
MA actually has poor non-compete protections for employees, relative to say California. The laws here strongly favor the employer. So that would actually be a plus for Amazon.
That warehouse issue is a thing of the past. These new jobs are going to be well-compensated tech jobs, so Amazon is likely looking for a place where it can easily attract that kind of workforce from places with weak non-compete laws to a place with a stronger employer protection. Oh, and the place has to provide infrastructure without Amazon contributing a penny towards it, like it has been doing here in my neck of the woods.
article about Boston as a contender - https://patch.com/massachusetts/backbay/s/g89nz/amazon-refutes-report-about-boston-having-inside-track
Back to the 20 offers original part of the thread, I was excited to see that I can get Audible podcasts (and one free full-length book) as well as many free magazines (I read them with the Kindle app on my iPad).
Amazon has leased office space in San Diego for 500 employees.
http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/business/technology/sd-fi-amazon-utc-20170913-story.html
Boston is backing Suffolk downs (in Revere) as its site offering to Amazon - https://www.bizjournals.com/boston/news/2017/09/14/deleo-backs-161-acresuffolk-downs-as-site-for.html