How about Columbus, OH?

The Canadian part of me is rooting for Toronto. They have a large, diverse, well educated workforce. Montreal apparently has a large amount of companies working on A.I. tech within their borders, which might be a draw to amazon. But I have a feeling a U.S. city will be chosen.

(09-07-2017 04:44 PM)Niner National Wrote:  

(09-07-2017 04:09 PM)Hood-rich Wrote:  I think it will be on the east coast / southeast outside of a major city.

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Agree. I think it'll be in the metro area of Atlanta, Charlotte, Raleigh, Nashville, or Richmond. I could also see the DC suburbs.

Those locations (except dc) offer low land costs. They have good workforces and proximity to 85/95.

Texas cities are always in the running, but I feel like Amazon will go for a true east coast headquarters.

I was thinking SC side of Charlotte. A community like Rock Hill possibly... thinking SC would give a bigger tax break. Agree with your list 100%. won't go in the Midwest or NE.

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(09-07-2017 05:00 PM)Lord Stanley Wrote:  

(09-07-2017 04:49 PM)NoDak Wrote:  The Star-Tribune says Minnesota's Governor may offer big incentives.

As a MN citizen I would expect nothing less than this effort from the Governor's office but everyone from Portland OR to Portland ME will be offering big incentives.

I could see MN being shortlisted. But with our outrageous climate, relatively unfriendly business regulations, a tight housing market and a small tech / IT footprint, I just don't see it. The missing outweighs the current.

Portland is too close anyway, but won't offer big incentives. When MLB was considering expansion and the Marlins were considering relocation, Portlanders protested proposed concessions to get a team into the city, in the name of protecting education, healthcare, and equal rights. (???) Then, they occupied the water front area. Now, they provide strong support for the Timbers, so there's that.

(09-07-2017 04:49 PM)NoDak Wrote:  

(09-07-2017 04:17 PM)Lord Stanley Wrote:  

(09-07-2017 04:00 PM)Bull_Is_Back Wrote:  

(09-07-2017 03:29 PM)hawghiggs Wrote:  They should build it in Little Rock Arkansas. That would be a big FU to Wal-Mart.

Or Minneapolis as a big FU to Target and Best Buy

I don't think there is a chance in tundra they'd put a HQ here.

The Star-Tribune says Minnesota's Governor may offer big incentives.

lol....shipping during the frosty months should work out just fine and dandy.....

They won't pick the west coast, it's too close to Seattle and too expensive. They won't pick the north or Canada, the weather is too sketchy for smooth air logistics. That leaves the southern midwest and south.

From what I've read, local educational quality will be the most important asset with ample real estate, quality of life, business-friendly environment, and sufficiently-sized airport rounding out the other factors. Mass transit will probably have to be pretty developed unless the local traffic situation is a breeze. My guess is that Amazon will set pretty high standards in each category for a city to meet, but once a metro area meets them it'll come down to who's willing to get on their knees the most.

Of the major cities in the midwest and south, my money would be on Atlanta - of course, their transportation situation isn't exactly peachy between their nightmare traffic and already crazy airport. For medium-sized metros, the Charlotte area or Research Triangle would make sense (especially in terms of education). I wouldn't be surprised if they made a wild card choice no one here is talking about. I'd like my hometown of St. Louis to get the nod because we need it and we definitely have the airport capacity and land to provide, but the city/county divide will probably kill any chance we have of a strong effort.

Whatever the case may be, it's smart to start saving some money to invest in real estate wherever they end up selecting. Have they released a timeline?

(09-07-2017 06:32 PM)Love and Honor Wrote:  They won't pick the west coast, it's too close to Seattle and too expensive. They won't pick the north or Canada, the weather is too sketchy for smooth air logistics. That leaves the southern midwest and south.

From what I've read, local educational quality will be the most important asset with ample real estate, quality of life, business-friendly environment, and sufficiently-sized airport rounding out the other factors. Mass transit will probably have to be pretty developed unless the local traffic situation is a breeze. My guess is that Amazon will set pretty high standards in each category for a city to meet, but once a metro area meets them it'll come down to who's willing to get on their knees the most.

Of the major cities in the midwest and south, my money would be on Atlanta - of course, their transportation situation isn't exactly peachy between their nightmare traffic and already crazy airport. For medium-sized metros, the Charlotte area or Research Triangle would make sense (especially in terms of education). I wouldn't be surprised if they made a wild card choice no one here is talking about. I'd like my hometown of St. Louis to get the nod because we need it and we definitely have the airport capacity and land to provide, but the city/county divide will probably kill any chance we have of a strong effort.

Whatever the case may be, it's smart to start saving some money to invest in real estate wherever they end up selecting. Have they released a timeline?

there always st. elizabeth, mary queen o' peace, and vianney to kick start that heart....

born in kirkwood bro.....raised in crestwood/glendale first 9 years before moving to toto = little house on the prairie land.....

I'm guessing there's still plenty o' land west side......

like I previously mentioned.....anywhere in the central midwest is the logical choice....

I agree with much of what you say. If you're looking for wildcards, Kansas City (doesn't much of that city have the google high speed fiber?), Oklahoma City and Fort Myers, FL might be three possibilities. All have large airports in terms of acreage, which is a factor I think will be important. Bad weather is a factor for every city - if it's not cold winters, it's hurricanes and/or tornadoes.

If I'm right about airport size, here's a list of the largest airports in terms of acreage. Denver is #1 by a wide margin.

https://panethos.wordpress.com/2013/01/1...y-acreage/

(09-07-2017 06:32 PM)Love and Honor Wrote:  They won't pick the west coast, it's too close to Seattle and too expensive. They won't pick the north or Canada, the weather is too sketchy for smooth air logistics. That leaves the southern midwest and south.

From what I've read, local educational quality will be the most important asset with ample real estate, quality of life, business-friendly environment, and sufficiently-sized airport rounding out the other factors. Mass transit will probably have to be pretty developed unless the local traffic situation is a breeze. My guess is that Amazon will set pretty high standards in each category for a city to meet, but once a metro area meets them it'll come down to who's willing to get on their knees the most.

Of the major cities in the midwest and south, my money would be on Atlanta - of course, their transportation situation isn't exactly peachy between their nightmare traffic and already crazy airport. For medium-sized metros, the Charlotte area or Research Triangle would make sense (especially in terms of education). I wouldn't be surprised if they made a wild card choice no one here is talking about. I'd like my hometown of St. Louis to get the nod because we need it and we definitely have the airport capacity and land to provide, but the city/county divide will probably kill any chance we have of a strong effort.

Whatever the case may be, it's smart to start saving some money to invest in real estate wherever they end up selecting. Have they released a timeline?

(09-07-2017 06:42 PM)stinkfist Wrote:  

(09-07-2017 06:32 PM)Love and Honor Wrote:  Of the major cities in the midwest and south, my money would be on Atlanta - of course, their transportation situation isn't exactly peachy between their nightmare traffic and already crazy airport. For medium-sized metros, the Charlotte area or Research Triangle would make sense (especially in terms of education). I wouldn't be surprised if they made a wild card choice no one here is talking about. I'd like my hometown of St. Louis to get the nod because we need it and we definitely have the airport capacity and land to provide, but the city/county divide will probably kill any chance we have of a strong effort.

Whatever the case may be, it's smart to start saving some money to invest in real estate wherever they end up selecting. Have they released a timeline?

there always st. elizabeth, mary queen o' peace, and vianney to kick start that heart....

born in kirkwood bro.....raised in crestwood/glendale first 9 years before moving to toto = little house on the prairie land.....

I'm guessing there's still plenty o' land west side......

like I previously mentioned.....anywhere in the central midwest is the logical choice....

Moved to West County when I was four, when to Marquette. The city has WashU and SLU on its side in terms of higher ed, if UMSL was the level of Pitt or something instead of just being a commuter school we'd have a better chance imo.

One thing going for us is that the region has that empty runway at Lambert and all of MidAmerica Airport basically sitting empty to offer to Amazon. Our geography in the middle of the US is handy from an air cargo POV. While I doubt they'd build a complex on the north side there's a bunch of cheap land to hand over for free with a new rail line to offer now that they approved the Metrolink expansion. But to coordinate all of that would require the city and county to work well together, along with the state governments of Missouri and Illinois. I wouldn't count on it working out that well.

(09-07-2017 07:01 PM)Love and Honor Wrote:  

(09-07-2017 06:42 PM)stinkfist Wrote:  

(09-07-2017 06:32 PM)Love and Honor Wrote:  Of the major cities in the midwest and south, my money would be on Atlanta - of course, their transportation situation isn't exactly peachy between their nightmare traffic and already crazy airport. For medium-sized metros, the Charlotte area or Research Triangle would make sense (especially in terms of education). I wouldn't be surprised if they made a wild card choice no one here is talking about. I'd like my hometown of St. Louis to get the nod because we need it and we definitely have the airport capacity and land to provide, but the city/county divide will probably kill any chance we have of a strong effort.

Whatever the case may be, it's smart to start saving some money to invest in real estate wherever they end up selecting. Have they released a timeline?

there always st. elizabeth, mary queen o' peace, and vianney to kick start that heart....

born in kirkwood bro.....raised in crestwood/glendale first 9 years before moving to toto = little house on the prairie land.....

I'm guessing there's still plenty o' land west side......

like I previously mentioned.....anywhere in the central midwest is the logical choice....

Moved to West County when I was four, when to Marquette. The city has WashU and SLU on its side in terms of higher ed, if UMSL was the level of Pitt or something instead of just being a commuter school we'd have a better chance imo.

One thing going for us is that the region has that empty runway at Lambert and all of MidAmerica Airport basically sitting empty to offer to Amazon. Our geography in the middle of the US is handy from an air cargo POV. While I doubt they'd build a complex on the north side there's a bunch of cheap land to hand over for free with a new rail line to offer now that they approved the Metrolink expansion. But to coordinate all of that would require the city and county to work well together, along with the state governments of Missouri and Illinois. I wouldn't count on it working out that well.

pops is an EE from SLU....


whatever they end up choosing, I'm betting they'll build their own airstrip outside a major metro with multiple distribution options.......StL, MEM, KC....all valid options....Nashville too....

Go Birmingham!!!! Woot woot but I am sure Alabama will screw this up

Huntsville would make a great choice given our present position within the shipping and tech industries.

The overall size may be a problem.

(09-07-2017 09:27 PM)HeartOfDixie Wrote:  Huntsville would make a great choice given our present position within the shipping and tech industries.

The overall size may be a problem.

that would work too....AMZ is in 'pick your poison' land.....

(09-07-2017 09:24 PM)Dragonlair2.0 Wrote:  Go Birmingham!!!! Woot woot but I am sure Alabama will screw this up

IMO, b'ham is too far south.....

(09-07-2017 09:33 PM)stinkfist Wrote:  

(09-07-2017 09:24 PM)Dragonlair2.0 Wrote:  Go Birmingham!!!! Woot woot but I am sure Alabama will screw this up

IMO, b'ham is too far south.....

It's also kind of dead and has a history of screwing up good things...

***cough***Delta***cough***

Well the twin cities are going to bid... About the only downside to our area is that the unemployment rate is just 3.7% so finding workers would not be as easy as some other areas. The area has a good history working with fortune 500 companies in the retail sphere (Target / Best Buy / supervalu).

(09-08-2017 07:55 AM)Bull_Is_Back Wrote:  Well the twin cities are going to bid... About the only downside to our area is that the unemployment rate is just 3.7% so finding workers would not be as easy as some other areas. The area has a good history working with fortune 500 companies in the retail sphere (Target / Best Buy / supervalu).

let's not discount the ~20% that are subsidized....

they're not willing, nor able....

If I had too guess it is going to be somewhere South with good access to I95 and other interstates..a good airport and sea port. Probably GA,SC or NC. Id put my money on Atlanta....then Charlotte or Raleigh/Durham area...maybe Columbia or Greenville/Spartanburg areas. SC will give them anything they want. Where ever it goes there is going to be a hell of a bidding war for these jobs. No telling what infrastructure improvements and tax breaks will be offered to Amazon to lure them.

(09-08-2017 08:16 AM)Fo Shizzle Wrote:  If I had too guess it is going to be somewhere South with good access to I95 and other interstates..a good airport and sea port. Probably GA,SC or NC. Id put my money on Atlanta....then Charlotte or Raleigh/Durham area...maybe Columbia or Greenville/Spartanburg areas. SC will give them anything they want. Where ever it goes there is going to be a hell of a bidding war for these jobs. No telling what infrastructure improvements and tax breaks will be offered to Amazon to lure them.

I think Atlanta has a very good shot.

With the airport, they seem to be looking more for transportation than logistics (but I only skimmed the RFP). They wanted frequent flights to Seattle, DC and NYC as well as an international airport. So I don't think they are seriously considering DC and NYC. Atlanta has a huge advantage over Charlotte and Raleigh with the airport, although Charlotte may be adequate. Miami has a good airport.

I suspect they will aim for eastern time zone, so that gives Atlanta an advantage over Houston, Dallas, Austin and San Antonio. Same for Chicago, but I think they flunk business climate right now. Columbus seems like a reasonable possibility if they look smaller. Think costs eliminate Boston and Philadelphia.

(09-07-2017 04:47 PM)NoDak Wrote:  Think Philadelphia might have a shot.

They might. A lot of good universities there (Drexel, UPenn, St. Joe's Lasalle, Villanova, Temple) and low wages (relative to the rest of the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast). They need it because aside from the universities, it is a dying city. It is also crooked enough that just about any elected mayor or city councilman would sell their votes for a small kickback.

(09-08-2017 08:25 AM)bullet Wrote:  

(09-08-2017 08:16 AM)Fo Shizzle Wrote:  If I had too guess it is going to be somewhere South with good access to I95 and other interstates..a good airport and sea port. Probably GA,SC or NC. Id put my money on Atlanta....then Charlotte or Raleigh/Durham area...maybe Columbia or Greenville/Spartanburg areas. SC will give them anything they want. Where ever it goes there is going to be a hell of a bidding war for these jobs. No telling what infrastructure improvements and tax breaks will be offered to Amazon to lure them.

I think Atlanta has a very good shot.

With the airport, they seem to be looking more for transportation than logistics (but I only skimmed the RFP). They wanted frequent flights to Seattle, DC and NYC as well as an international airport. So I don't think they are seriously considering DC and NYC. Atlanta has a huge advantage over Charlotte and Raleigh with the airport, although Charlotte may be adequate. Miami has a good airport.

I suspect they will aim for eastern time zone, so that gives Atlanta an advantage over Houston, Dallas, Austin and San Antonio. Same for Chicago, but I think they flunk business climate right now. Columbus seems like a reasonable possibility if they look smaller. Think costs eliminate Boston and Philadelphia.

Does Atlanta's airport have enough capacity to handle it. I would have thought they might be maxed out and almost have to kick out Delta to handle Amazon's demand. That was my thinking when I had Raleigh as my dark horse.